At about 445pm today I got a text from Paul Howard telling me that there was a Nightjar at The Lodge, viewable to within about six feet. I immediately got in the car, armed with bins, and joined the (small) crowd there, finding that the bird was in fact only about three feet beyond the boundary fence on a felled section of tree trunk. The area had been taped off, but it was still possible to approach within a couple of yards of the bird. I had a quick look and returned home, to pick up my camera, and to Anna's school, having texted her, to pick her up. We got back within a few minutes and stayed for about half and hour and I took a few dozen photos. The first of these shows the general situation of the bird, on the tree trunk inside a patch of thistles.
Here is another from the left-hand side, through the thistles, showing the bird from the rear.
I then moved along the track and took some shots from the right-hand side, which gave a better view. Again, it was not possible to eliminate the foliage in front totally, but the next five shots show the bird fairly well.
We then moved back to the left-hand side, and before long the bird, which, amazingly, had shown no concern whatsoever at the numbers of people around it - they were all talking quietly, but it was not exactly total silence - opened its eyes and started to shuffle around. Within a couple of minutes it flew off, giving good views of its plumage (and it was identified as a male), and then it flew up into a nearby tree. It could be clearly identified, but photography was not easy, especially with the light behind. However, here is a shot of the bird sitting lengthwise, characteristically on a branch about 15 metres up. Thanks, Paul!!!
