Rare bird in the area

Chris Roche writes to say: "You will probably be interested to know that last night, around 7.30pm, I had a Hoopoe (a vagrant bird) pecking away on my lawn in Adderley."

The Hoopoe is indeed an unusual bird in Britain. They are very striking, a pinkish buff bird, a little smaller than a pigeon, with curved bill and a pink crest; if you see one, they are extremely distinctive. They are quite happy in gardens and are reasonably comfortable near to humans.

The RSPB reckons about a hundred a year may visit Britain but the numbers do vary from year to year. Normally, however, those reaching England are seen in the south. They rarely nest here, but it has been known, indeed a pair nested in mid-Wales recently. It will be worth keeping an eye out in case we have a really rare event about to happen in the area.

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