Really chuffed to drop onto this dapper Wheatear this morning just along from the quarry on the Cheshire / Derbyshire border. One of three in fact. My earliest ever in the hills. Also several Curlew on territory plus the odd Lapwing, Stonechat and lots of Meadow Pipits.

I had an uncanny feeling things were about to change so the wife & I took a trip out into the hills on Monday. So glad we did when we ended up connecting with a male Ring Ouzel in the early evening. We'd been up to Blackclough and then along to Danebower Quarry during the afternoon and picked up numerous Stonechats, Curlews & a single Wheatear. It was Ouzels I was really after though so I was a touch disappointed not to have found one as we headed back towards Cut Thorn Hill where we'd parked the car. And then suddenly there it was on the wall in front of me! It soon spooked though and flew off towards Three Shires Head 'takk-ing' loudly. Back at the car, big smile on my face, and I start changing out of my boots when Anne suddenly says "OWL". So for the next 10 minutes we then had the joy of watching a Short-Eared Owl quartering the field below us. Magic! 

Seeing as how Danebower is only 27 miles from home and having a few hours to spare I drove across there this morning. Parking in the layby on the north side of the A54 (the area north of the road here, next to the fields by the layby is labelled as Wood Moss on OS Maps) a couple of hundred metres before the laybe that folk usually use for the Danebower Chimney I had a quick scan of the fields. Just one Lapwing to see, but from beyond the stone barn on the crest of the hill came the haunting call of Golden Plovers. So I headed up the path beyond the layby, no other birders were up there at this time so I'd have to find the birds myself. Just past the stone barn (labelled as Sparbent on OS Maps) I could see a flock of over 40 Golden Plovers, many in stunning summer plumage. A short search as I was joined by a Wilmslow birder who I knew from him being a Focalpoint customer, reavealed a male Dotterel in this flock. A while later the female was found too and as more birders arrived we watched them for the next 45mins or so. The female Dotterel was especially aggressive to the Golden Plovers, often giving chase and driving them away from her 'patch'. It is always great to see this species, more so in your home county, although in days gone by I remember seeing then annually in autumn at Frodsham, but not for a long time now! A Wheatear was also present, it whizzed across the field in front of the plovers, Red Grouse called and were on moorland behind the plovers and plenty of Skylarks and Meadow Pipits were seen.

The Dotterel always were quite distant and the light wasn't great but I managed a few record shots for posterity! Low res picture of the male attached.

Late post Saturday 8th April 2017 9am

A pair of Wheatear seen in courtship ritual along the walls. Lovely to watch in the sunshine.
Decent numbers of Meadow Pipits, as expected.
4 Curlew overhead.
Quiet otherwise here.

08:00 - 09:00 today.

1 ring ouzel calling. Very mild, for a change but terrible light and glare. Unable to locate the bird. Many meadow pipit and a minimum of 6 wheatear. Red grouse seen and heard as usual. A number of curlew circling round as well. All in all excellent visit.

Phil