Almost to the minute, on November 5th 2023 at 5.15 pm, a year after I'd seen the first one in 2022, the first returning Woodcock, Scolopax rusticola, flew over our upper hay meadow, having made their long winter migration from (probably) Kazakhstan. 3 days later I'd spotted 4 flying past in 15 minutes at dusk. On a rare clear evening on December 1st, the numbers had swollen to a dozen in just 15 minutes. If you look closely you might see 9 of these I managed to capture on screen at the very limit of my camera's sensor capabilities. Isn't human vision amazing! But not a patch on the woodcock, which often swerve as they spot my slight movement beside a dark gate post which I rest the camera on for these shots.

A real seasonal treat for me.

For more information about our garden plantings, wildflower meadows, insect-friendly flowers, and low-intervention honey bees see our website:
https://thegardenimpressionists.com/