Of birds and bees

May and June are crazy months for birding with so much to see and do - birds at their best and displaying, migrants here and rarities to find. There are rituals to the summer too like hearing the first Cuckoo or seeing the first Swallow. One of my favourite annual events is Nightjarring - waiting for these elusive birds to appear at dusk and hearing their weird churring song over a local heath or section of coppiced woodland. 

They wait until its almost dark so the views are always tantalising. A Nightjar's flight is almost moth-like, they have long, thin wings and seem to bounce in the air. Goathurst Common near Ide Hill is a good spot for them and a pair have been seen up there regularly. Yesterday I made my second trip and had good but brief views - photographing them in low light conditions is a challenge but seeing them at all is such a treat. 

The white wing bars indicate that this bird is a male.