Hel Hath No Birdies

Blyth's Reed Warbler. A species I openly admit I did not give enough love to back in Ireland. It's understandable though. A brown skulker in a hedge, giving the odd "tac" call, desperately trying to see if it has a short primary projection etc, is not the most exciting experience you can have in Irish birding. That, of course, is having a Fea's petrel bank up into your scope or a Pallid Harrier glide into view or a Baltimore Oriole pop up beside you at the tennis courts on Cape Clear. Here, however, they are not brown skulkers, well...they are, of course, but not when they arrive in. And even after they establish themselves on territory you can always come across one or two which are showy. When they make landfall they can't wait to proclaim their presence, singing at any time of the day, from any suitable patch of habitat. They're often not brown as adults either, in my opinion, more silvery, khaki and white and often delightfull

Red Backed Shrikes are one of the joys of Summer birding in Finland, and one of those species, rare in Ireland, that reminds me how spoiled I am with the selection of birds I see these days.  This juv was one I found on my beloved Mizen. Needless to say my views in Finland tend to be somewhat better. Whilst I saw many of these over the years in Ireland, I only ever found two of my own, and so I take the time to appreciate Red Backeds when I see them here, which is frequently. Female Red Backed Shrike - compared to their grey cousins, there's something very cute and sweet about Red Backeds. Male Red Backed Shrike - there's something very pleasing to the eye when it comes to the simple colours of male Red Backeds. Why do we humans often find simple color patterns so striking? Juvenile Red Backed Shrike - by August the juvs will be out, occupying any fence line they can find, the intricate scalloping of their plumage reminding me of September and October in Cork. Female Red Backed