I've just spent a relaxed sunny Sunday having a family lunch in a restaurant in Divača (Slovenia). After the delicious and abundant meal I had the brilliant idea to take my mum on a short stroll in the nearby grassland (airfield) of Ležeški Gabrk. I was expecting to see the odd Great Grey Shrike... but instead I got far more than that. Approaching the airfield by car I immediately spotted a soaring Buzzard with a very white tail-base. At that instant I realised what kind of buzzard was that.
So I jumped from the car and had binoculars ready on it: *ROUGH-LEGGED BUZZARD*!! The bird glided slowly towards me, then started to soar above my head. On few occasions it tried a short hover. A few minutes after it rose so much up in the sky that I lost it. I was quite impressed by the overall whitness of the bird, contrasting with the dark carpal markings and brown belly. The white seemed just so pure and hoary that it was like the angelic form of a Buzzard.
This represents indeed one of my best finds in the last weeks! And by the way Rough-legged Buzzard is still considered a rarity here, so twice the enjoyment!
Unfortunately I had no telescope, so the above pics were made through the bins - binoscpoing works at times!
The Buteo lagopus was actually contending its airspace with a Common Buzzard and most surprisingly, a migrating female Marsh Harrier. A few Ravens were also nearby.
Later while driving back home, a flock of +100 Fieldfares near Lipica was also quite interesting to see.
