Saturday 15th March 2014

   As usual, a rare bird turns up on a Monday, and work all week gets in the way, bugger!!!! After waiting all week to see the Great Spotted Cuckoo, i finally have chance, so lets go see. This will only be my second in the UK. My first being the one at Pennington Marshes, Hampshire in 2001! Wow, long time. I actually saw a couple last year in Spain, but need photos..........

   So, after a 2 hour drive, we arrived in the railway station car park, at Penally, Pembrokeshire. I asked a birder in the car park "I take it its still showing well, is it?", to get the answer "No.......it flew from the headland out to the island, about half an hour ago!" POOH!!!!

   Oh well were here now, may as well take a look around. A Cettis warbler called from a nearby wet field. Meadow Pipits flew from around my feet, there were quite a few on the golf course. I bumped into a bird photographer friend, Richard Stonier, who said he had sen it quite close earlier, but the it was still too dark for photos. After about 2 & a half hours of nothing, i decided to go to look at another site, and maybe come back later. I swapped phone numbers with Richard, he said he would ring if it came back. So we left. We stopped to get some food, but the shop had nothing there, so we had ice creams instead, not really a fair swap i know, but hey......it was a sunny day! We were heading for Bosherton Lily Ponds, i had seen reports of Bittern and Ducks there, and more importantly some very tame Otters. Just over half way there, my phone rang, it was Richard, "Its back". So, we turned around and went back.

    We got back and i walked across the Golf course again. Got to where Richard was standing, and asked "Where is it mate, and have you got pix yet?" to which he replied "Its over there, and NO I haven't"

   The bird had been hiding in the long grass, between the humps. It then popped up on top of one, and the photos began. The bird then showed well for about an hour, before being disturbed by some golfers, and disappeared for over an hour. It was found again, but it was at the other end of the course.

Great Spotted Cuckoo

Great Spotted Cuckoo

Great Spotted Cuckoo

Great Spotted Cuckoo

  Eventually, about 6pm, it returned to near the 'tin huts', where it roosts, and did exactly that! Sadly, it didn't show enough of the bird, from any angle to get decent shots, even if the light was gone by then!

   Oh well, defo the best shots i have anyway. Lets see if it stays a while?