Falco subbuteo . . .

. . . back of the net! I went to the Vale today in the hope of finally picking up Grey Partridge and possibly Common Scoter off the coast for my Glamorgan Year Lists. I got neither of them. But, and it's a big BUT . . . walking along the cliff top at Nash Point I saw a raptor coming full pelt towards me. It was obviously a falcon, but it wasn't the Kestrel which had been hanging around for the last quarter of an hour. Neither was it as bulky as a Peregrine. As it whizzed past me there was no doubt - it was a Hobby! It didn't hang around, dashing straight off east in the direction of the lighthouse. Not the best view of a Hobby I've ever had, but I was chuffed to bits. I'd completely given up on seeing this species in Glamorgan this year. Earlier in the day I'd visited the Barrage. Would the reported Yellow-legged Gull still be around? No, it wasn't. I re-found Wayne's two Common Tern and had a pleasant surprise in the form of 21 Ringed Plover and 3 Dunlin roosting on the rocks on the inside of the Barrage. There was also a Wheatear hanging around. Next stop, Cosmeston. Would the Yellow-legged Gull be hanging around there? No, it wasn't. And there was little else there either. Is it me, or does anybody else find Cosmeston frequently disappointing? After leaving Nash Point I went on to the Ogmore Estuary. No sign of the Little Gull - only half a dozen Curlew, a Redshank and a Kingfisher of note. Still, I'm not complaining - I wasn't at work and that Hobby really made my day. East Glam Year List: 160 Glam Year List: 166