A short owl effect

I spent a quick three hours at West Hartford on Saturday evening, viewing from 18:00 to almost 21:00. Not much activity on the pool - only BH/LBB/HG and 1 C gull plus two mallard... In the fields one grasshopper warbler continued to reel, particularly as the evening drew on. Two whitethroat were feeding near the small brick building and reed bunting were a plenty.

Highlight of the watch (and probably the reason why I did not venture back home sooner) was the unseasonal appearance of a short-eared owl. My first July record of this species at WH. The owl appeared at 19:55 and promptly caught a vole sp. It then proceeded to sit on a distant fence post for the next fifty minutes - blowing any photo opportunities as the sun finally set (that's a photo from earlier this year to the left of this paragraph).

I headed back home along the A192 only to have to slow the car right down as a fox lazily trotted across the carriageway... a nice end to a pleasant few hours relaxed birding!