You must listen to this!!..

Excitement today. It's been wet, miserable, and grey for most of the day. Rain on and off, but mostly on, and then, a patch of brightness in the early evening..

Out with camera, maybe catch a swallow, or two if it's summer..

Then I got distracted. Can it be? Is it? Yes. The return of the Corncrake.

For those of you who are not familiar with the Corncrake, it's an endangered species that struggles to survive on the fringes of Scotland, the Outer Hebrides, and Ireland. There is estimated to be 1150 breeding pairs, and it's on the RSPB Red list. It's about the size of a partridge, dull brown in colour, and very secretive. So secretive, I've never seen one (I have, just the once, but not in this picture - It's down in those rushes somewhere..). How do I know it's there you may ask?

Well, it has a mating call akin to dragging a plastic comb over the edge of a table, DRRRaaa DRRRaaa, DRRRaaa. It starts doing it first thing in the morning, for a minute or so, then pausing for breath for a couple of seconds, it starts again. Continuing to lunch, and on into the afternoon. Relentlessly, without a break, it carries on into evening, and the night. So you don't think you're missing out on anything, it keeps you awake through the night. DRRRaaa, DRRRaaa, DRRRaaa..

No wonder they're declining in numbers.. (I love them really)

music? (the call is a little way down on the right)

..and there's a bit of red on the Fire Station BowBelle!!..