A Skylark day on Farleton Crags (18th February 2014)

"Limestone natural sculpture on Farleton Fell"

A Skylark day on Farleton Crags

 (18^th February 2014)

Good morning Ceterach, Gud-day Turtle,

Yellowhammer chinks o’er Newbiggin Crags,

His territory for sure, he’s letting them know.

A distant Song Thrush commands the tree top,

Below the gorse, and gorse, and gorse of course!

Singing the song, his awakening song.

Skylark one rises and sings his space,

Further on Skylark two and three are seen 

 to fight and chase along the path, then one goes,

up and up whilst singing sweet to the heavens,

And further on and near the Knott, “thrupping”

through”, a exultation of seven larks to the North.

A quartet of Mipits sang and chased and,

Eventually perched wise on the Tor to my left,

They were taken up with keen focus on Buteo,

Skylark eleven was singing sweet high up to a dot,

Above Holmepark Fell, I marked the spot he did plot,

Whilst two Mistle’s moved on and soon gone.

(Note: A very enjoyable morning, first of all checking out the Ceterach (Rusty Back Fern) behind Whin Yeates, then carrying along the path past the Turtle Stone were a couple of Yellowhammers were "chinking". Then hearing and seeing two separate Song Thrushes singing from the uttermost of their respective trees, one of them from somewhere down in Newbiggin. Then a single Skylark singing from high, then a pair fighting one another, then another one singing from high, then some Meadow Pipits, then another seven Skylarks moving through, then a Buzzard, another Skylark on Holme Park Fell and finally a pair of Mistle Thrush).