Pipit, pipit

Meadow Pipits have a rather serious, stoic look. There are hundreds of families of Meadow Pipits on Westray, and, as I stood on Fitty Hill in August, I could see many more arriving across the sea and making landfall on the north of the island.

This one is a local bird, which enjoyed the freedom of the farm at Noup Head, with only the occasional passing Merlin to worry it.

I love the detail in their plumage and adore watching the minutiae of their brief lives. Spending time with them is a wonderful way of feeling connected with nature.