A delight to see

Yesterday I spotted a pair of green woodpeckers as I walked around my exercise yard, our neighbouring cemetery. It was only by chance that I saw one then the other as I stood taking in the views across the valley. I of course knew immediately what birds they were, and have seen them loc ally before. In fact some years ago I blipped them in and around our garden, but more recently we have generally only seen the great spotted woodpeckers. It is probably as a result of having no lawn as they tend to feed on worms in the ground and not on seeds in feeders.

I went back today armed with a long lens as I knew I would n't get very close to the green woodpeckers even if I could see them. It was drizzling while I set off from the house with my crutch stick in one hand, just in case. When I walked up the main path of the new cemetery, close to where I took the blip image yesterday, I stopped every few hards to look for the woodpeckers. After about ten minutes and several different positions close to or under trees, IK saw the first woodpecker, perched on a headstone of a grave.

I then followed them and several times I set them off so that they disappeared into the nearby trees for a while. I gave up then and continued with my walk around the cemetery to get my hip exercised. On my way back I stood again and spotted this woodpecker back searching for worms.  It was still a long way away but I managed to get a rough shot. When it flew away again I ddi catch the flight and saw wonderfully coloured patterns of its feathers on its back. I shall have to make an expedition on a sunnier day to choose a place to sit and wait for it, and with a bit of camouflage probably.