Nature Painting the Landscape

I have seen a couple of extraordinary natural events. On either Saturday or Sunday, I saw a group, a flock of gulls circling. It was not the behaviour that caught my attention but the numbers, there were at least three hundred Lesser Black Backed Gulls, Herring Gulls and Black Headed Gulls, they were circling in a way that mirrored a bait ball. I have seen similar behaviour when over a food source. Therefore, I can only presume that on the field was something that was a food for them. I was too far away to see also my vision of the field was obscured by obstacles. I went back and was trying to get the camera set up, I had it on charge, when I saw a raptor swoop in and take one of the gulls. I could not identify the bird as I was too distant and when I looked through the binoculars all I could be sure of was that it was a large raptor.

I also missed filming the bait ball of Gulls as that rapidly dispersed. Away today I was just going to sit down with a cup of tea when I saw a large Bird sitting atop the Chestnut Tree that I can see from my front window. Regularly Jackdaws perch there between foraging flights and I could have dismissed it as one in the tree, but the size was too large. I picked up the Binoculars and was able to see a Buzzard take to the Air from its perch. It had a bird in its talons but I could not see what its lunch was.

Was it the same bird that had taken the gull? I lack the observation evidence to say for sure, but I would guess that it was. So I will keep my eyes open as this Young Male Common Buzzard seems to be operating in the same general area.

The second observation was seeing a weather event occurring. I was waiting for a bus to travel into Newcastle and from the villages elevated position I could see fog rolling in across the bottom of the river valley. Had I not had an appointment to keep I would have gone home grabbed the camera and filmed it. Had I done so I would have missed the other aspect of this event, as on the bus I was able to observe the fog rolling across the fields to the north, the river valley was to the south of my position.

Seeing the leading edge of weather as it coats the land is something remarkable to observe.