Had a nice walk around the Old Coach Road with my wife today. It was the first day we've had without the kids for years!
I think I saw a merlin but can't be sure. When I initially saw it with the naked eye I thought it was swift-like in shape. It then started to repeatedly dive-bomb the flocks of meadow pipits and was really nimble in flight. It never came that close for me to get a decent view and I'm not familiar enough to id it from it's jizz. I know I've never seen a kestrel or a sparrowhawk flying like that though. The other possibility is hobby but I'm not familiar enough with that species to id it from jizz either. Is the dive bombing particular to one of these species? I had brief views of another raptor later on that I wasn't immediately familiar with and managed a few more shots - see the gallery.
(I've put a post on the bird forum Id thread about the two raptors...
http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?p=2838051#post2838051 )
Peregrine 1 (see bird forum thread)
Pink-footed geese around 400 in separate skeins
Curlew 7 in the grass field to the West of the Old Coach Road
15+ skylark
30+ meadow pipit
1 swallow
Update - I've taken off the possible merlin. The general consensus on the bird forum thread was a kestrel from the photos. I've never seen one behave like that though!! You learn something every day!
Update 2 - The merlin/kestrel was most likely a hobby!, but I'll never be sure.
Damian P