Over the past few days one bird in particular has been drawing a lot of interest in Oxfordshire. A great bustard, descended from the flock which was reintroduced to Salisbury Plain around 16 years ago has found its way to a fallow field in Letcombe Regis, a village near Wantage. Because of my hours of work, there is always a few days before I am able to get out and look for anything that has been reported at the weekend, thus today was my earliest opportunity.
Wantage is about half an hour away, and I left home in rather drizzly conditions at around 9 o'clock. Yesterday the bustard was reported as spending the day in a field viewable from the A417, next to a secondary school but this doesn't provide any parking opportunities. However, in the evening it returned to a neighbouring field which can easily be reached from a cul de sac called Manor Fields.
I therefore decided to check the site next to the school first and with nothing visible there from the A417 I turned round in the school drive. A quick check on my phone, showed that the bird had already been seen near Manor Fields and I drove over to that location.
After parking, I followed the guidance and walked along a footpath leading from the end of the road and looked in the field to my left, which has gaps in the hedgerow and plenty of good viewing points. Around 300 metres along, I saw the Great Bustard, albeit at a distance but easily discernable.
These birds stand about a metre tall and are one of the heaviest flying birds, but from a distance it was difficult to get a feeling of its size; in the middle of a large open field, there was nothing to compare it to. This particular bird is apparently a first winter male. I have found out it is possible to join a trip to see Great Bustards on Salisbury Plain at a cost of about £20. However, I was pleased to be able to get today's sighting much more locally.
I took a few photos but with the overcast sky and drizzle I had to be satisfied with record shots. 
view from the edge of the field ,
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