Chiff Chaff Chuffed

The weather forecast has been for sunshine today. I’ve been checking it all week. Sunny, it says. As the day gets closer the length of sunshine forecast decreases. Sunny morning, the forecast says. Okay, that will suit me fine. I wake and check the forecast: sunny for an hour at 10am.

I’m up and out in my camouflage jacket and boots to my local country park to make the most of it. It’s just over a mile away:

Devon - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Walking the boundary of the park I can see a farm gate and stop to look across the bare fields. In the distance I can see a pair of Chiff Chaffs working the field boundary:

Chiff Chaff - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

They are flying along the edge of the field, stopping in the hedge and flying out to catch flies and then flying back into cover.

Chiff Chaff - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

They are both so fast it’s a challenge to frame and focus on them:

Chiff Chaff - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Sometimes they perch on clods of earth after a successful sortie:

Chiff Chaff - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

I’m standing perfectly still and they don’t appear to sense I’m there at all:

Chiff Chaff - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

The light is perfect:

Chiff Chaff - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

It begins to cloud over and I can see a Buzzard high overhead behind a crow perched on the top of a tree overlooking the field.

Crow and Buzzard - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

It’s time to tramp home. I’m feeling Chiff Chaff chuffed at having seen them.

Here’s my experience of seeing them in Italy:

Chiff Chaff

Have you ever seen birds close and watched them for hours?

Feel free to leave a Reply :)