Well Travelled Warbler

On a whitethroat hunt at Fishers Green again today. The area where I have seen them in previous years is near the car park. Mish doesn't mind staying in the van. I walked to a little meadow that was full of cowslips and cuckoo flowers. I've included an aberrant cowslip in extras. I couldn't hear the scratchy song of whitethroats at first but chiffchaffs and blackcaps were warbling away. (Extras)

I met very knowledgeable birder Dave on the path. He is extremely shy but I gently get him talking. He said the whitethroats don't like the wind. I wandered up and down for a while and shot a muntjac deer buck. (Extras) It's amusing that it has moss and a bit of litter on its head. Then I heard a whitethroat singing from deep in a bramble bush. I waited ages but it didn't show itself. On the the way back to the van I stopped to take a pic of a female orange tip on garlic mustard. I looked back and the bird had emerged from the bush and was singing lustily from the top of a dead bramble branch. They love elevated song posts like this. I think this is a male setting up his territory. The females arrive here from Africa about ten days after the males.