Great Grey Shrike at Waddington Fell, March 2010

Following a single sighting near Chipping some weeks earlier, this same (or another) bird was reported from the fells and conifer plantation above Grindleton on February 22. It was seen there by myself soon afterwards and again on March 6 and subsequently before it moved about 1.5km to the west onto the Waddington Fell area a week later. There, at about 280 metres altitude, it was active on both sides of the road above the Moorcock Inn, perching in trees, broken walls and overhead wires. This is roughly the same location where a bird had been seen in past years and was quite possibly the same one.






A local resident from Grindleton told me that he had seen the Shrike in the Grindleton Fell plantation as far back as the hard weather around Christmas time. Occasionally, the it appeared to move back briefly to this original area above Grindleton.





On March 10, I again saw the Shrike in the same area on Waddington Fell, to the east of the road where it was hunting from scattered trees and later from overhead power-lines (apparently quite unaffected by the current passing through them). The three photos immediately above were digiscoped.

It was still there as late as March 28 when seen from the lay-by on the B6478 and for the past three weeks it seemed to prefer this limited area of moorland. Early that particular day it was reported to be singing/calling and was seen to take a vole and hang it in a nearby tree. The bird was very active and from its many perches it incessantly turned its head from side to side watching for any movement of prey. It never seemed to rest, so perhaps food was hard to come by?