With what seemed like any chance of seeing the Kite sp. found by LiverBirder at West Hartford on Tuesday all but gone, imagine my surprise to see LMcD at my front door at 7:15 last night saying he had a Kite sp. back at Hartford.
We went straight back just in time to see it land in a tree in the plantation north of the small flash. With the light fading and all of the main ID features obscured by branches we stood and waited on top of the mound inside the metal compound.
Eventually after being mobbed by corvids it flew low to the west then higher over the river but still the ID couldn’t be confirmed. It then disappeared into the trees along the riverside next to Bedlington Golf Course. The rain soon came as did some other birders but there was no further sign.
I was back there early this morning with a few other birders. With no sign we stood at the same point inside the metal compound and at 6:55 the Kite appeared from roughly the same area it had gone down in last night and landed in a tree near where we had seen it last night.
This time it was not obscured by branches and the light was much better and at last it was confirmed as a Black Kite, a patch, county tick, lifer etc all rolled into one!
There was some questions that could this not be the supposed hybrid seen at Hartford Hall four years ago but this was defiantly not a hybrid and crucially had none of the multiple rings that the hybrid wore.
With many people connecting with the Kite as it sat in the same tree for over an hour it then took off and soared overhead gradually gaining height before flying off over the river and towards Morpeth.
As always with birdign no matter how good the morning was the edge was later taken off when news that a Purple Heron had flown NW over Arcot Pond broke. Oh Well at least it wasn’t over WH.
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