Saw loads of whales yesterday, maybe humpbacks. Quite a few over the afternoon just surfacing for air but when I got to the crag at about noon, there were were a couple (I think, might've just been one) whales breaching a couple hundred metres off the rocks. Really cool to see. Can't remember ever seeing whales breach like that before. Dolphins, yeah loads, but never whales. They were coming way out of the water, turning and landing on their back.
whales breaching a couple hundred metres off the rocks. Really cool to see.
I saw a bird of prey near the parking in Tideswell Dale last week, near those little limestone outcrops by the road. Was a reddish brown, white underneath, bigger than a Kestrel but not massive, either a Buzzard or small Red Kite?
Saw an echidna the other day.
Quote from: mark20 on July 22, 2014, 03:54:16 pmI saw a bird of prey near the parking in Tideswell Dale last week, near those little limestone outcrops by the road. Was a reddish brown, white underneath, bigger than a Kestrel but not massive, either a Buzzard or small Red Kite?Was this flying or perched? Red kites don't have a white body, though they have white on the wings and tail. There are some in the Peak District but wouldn't be as common as buzzards or kestrels. They do perch in trees occasionally but are generally seen soaring when their forked tail makes them unmistakeable. Buzzard's plumage can vary quite a lot and you do get quite pale ones. Female kestrels are noticeably bigger than the male, and don't have the grey head of the male and fit your description - could be a possibility? Female sparrowhawks are brown with a white barred front, but more of a dark brown than a reddish brown.