No. 156: Ruff

Anyone who has joined me on my Blip journey fairly recently may be unaware of my Bird Challenge. This is the 156th different bird I've blipped. The first 50 came with indecent haste - my first 50 blips, then we had the steady progress towards 100 and beyond, followed by the mad frenzy at the end of 2012 to try and reach 150. The pace now is very sedate. I don't twitch, but any new bird is added to the tally. Today we went to RSPB Old Moor, where there was lots to see, including unblipped birds - Little Stint - seen at a distance but no chance of a shot, Spotted Redshank, got a shot but too far away to be blippable - although I have blipped worse shots in desperation. There had been reports of an American Golden Plover amongst the many usuals, but it was not showing today. Only when I got home and checked my list did I realise that I had not blipped a Ruff, so a nice surprise, as I had got a few shots, although not so dazzling against a background of mud.