Merlin

The weather is so awful at the moment that it is impossible to get out. The only interesting sighting I have had of late was of a male Merlin that shot across the road on Rawcliffe Moss as I drove home yesterday afternoon. The picture below is of a Merlin that was part of a brood that I was lucky to ring a couple of years ago. They are feisty little buggers and have the knack of getting their hooked upper mandible under your finger nail. Ouch!