Persistence, Resolve, Doggedness or just plain Obstinate? Call it what you like in the face of not much happening in the bird world in recent days, but if there’s half a sunny morning and Sue goes off Christmas shopping, what’s a man to do but go birding?
Pilling Lane Ends to Fluke was even quieter today with an embarrassing lack of entries in my notebook and even less images in the camera.
From the car park both the Peregrine and Merlin were about but distant. The Peregrine remained on the edge of the marsh but as I walked to Fluke Hall the Merlin perched up a couple of times on the gates of the sea wall or sit atop fence posts which line the inland ditch. After a while the bird tired of me walking its beat and flew off to sit on the remains of the washed up tree on the marsh. There was a Buzzard along the sea wall too, one of the Fluke birds, harassed out to the marsh and up into the clouds by the persistence of Carrion Crows and Jackdaws.
On the wildfowler’s pools today, 15 Shelduck, 150 Teal and countless hundreds of not very wild “mallards”.
It’s the lack of passerines which is rather strange at the moment with counts today of 6 Skylark, 1 Meadow Pipit, 2 Reed Bunting and 8 Linnet. The exception to this current November rule is the number of Starlings about, with large, even huge flocks in many parts of the Fylde. Along the sea wall today I met another resolute birder heading east who stopped to theorise that the incursion of Starlings could be associated with the current influx of White-fronted Geese, as many of the UK’s wintering Starlings also originate from Eastern Europe and Russia. A good notion there, so nice to see a University education not wasted.
I achieved a whopping count of 14 Little Egrets today, with 1 Grey Heron amongst them, so the heron family almost eclipsed my count of small birds.
It’s just as well there’s a regular Little Owl spot nearby to practice a spot of now rusty photography.
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11 comments:
Hi Phil Last time I was out I commented on the numbers of Starlings about it was quite noticeable.Best wishes JWB.
Jackdaw...hmmm, I don't think that I have ever heard of this bird and what a great looking chap it is. Yes, and when Sue goes Christmas shopping, as in when Bill goes out on his motorcycle, what is a person to do, but to go birding! Tis qgood thing... yes!
Nothing much is happening around here too, Phil. The north wind is constantly off and on, so we have periods of cold days then hot and then cold and then hot again for about 2 weeks now. All the birds around here must've been really confused, so am I. Really nice shot of the Little Owl still!
Hi Phil, you could have gone off with Sue to carry all the shopping bags. Only kidding, birding does seem to be a good decision. Love the photos of the jackdaw and the little owl. Have a great weekend.
These photos were fun to look at. I sometimes wish that I had been as interested in birds when I grew up in the UK as I am now. Loved your little owl. I have never seen one in the wild but I was able to sit in on an education program recently with rescued owls and that's my theme this week for CC. Gorgeous birds!
I love both shots! I'm always trying to get a shot of the crows here - they're so wary.
A wonderful shot of the owl, I've seen a young one once, but here in the tropical woods we get so scared fast, and i regret being scared of that baby owl. I didn't even touch it! That's the one and only owl i've ever seen.
La fotografía del joven búho es preciosa, una elegante pose. Hay que ser perseverante en esta vida Phil. Un abrazo amigo
Personally, I'd have much preferred to go birding than Christmas shopping. Love the photo of the jackdaw and also the little owl.
I spotted a bird today, which was amazing, because I'm having trouble with my eyesight again. While we were eating lunch, I saw four or five magpies standing around having a conversation, across the sidewalk from a tall evergreen tree.
Then I saw something blue in the tree, so I told my husband "I think those magpies are about to do something about a blue jay in that tree."
He grabbed his camera and took a few shots treeward, finally saying, "Yes, it's a blue jay." He did get one distant shot of it, before his attention was caught by another bird on the other side of the street.
He took a photo of it to show me, and I told him it was a Northern Flicker.
I can't see very well, but my powers of observation aren't suffering as a result. And I do persevere, as you do, Phil.
I'm going to visit my family for a couple of weeks and then, when I come back, I'm seeing an eye specialist.
Kay, Alberta, Canada
An Unfittie’s Guide to Adventurous Travel
Wow, 14 Little Egrets. Since I left the UK in the mid 90's so much has changed: the internet, mobile phones, black president of the US...............and Little Egrets becoming commoner than Grey Herons. You couldn't have made it up 20 years ago.
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