Thursday 18 February 2016

Witche's Promise - Jethro Tull

IS THAT GLENN CORNICK ON BASS GUITAR, 
OR IS IT ME?
While there hasn't been a Post from Parley Court Farm and/or Merritown Heath for nearly a week now, we have not been resting on our laurels. Scouring our 'patch' on a daily basis, it would be fair to say that what has been seen, and committed to our various cameras, has been a little repetitive to say the least. This is likely one reason for the continuing and dramatic fall in reader numbers, but when you are operating in 800 acres of one and no more that 1000 acres of the other, change in nature comes slowly!
A frozen
GRAVEL PIT
has put paid to the temporary residence of the Little Grebe and
other occasional visiting Wildfowl - but doubtless they will be back.
MEADOW PIPIT
Some recent arrivals at the neighbouring farm which would have
been included early had the flooded fields allowed us safe and dry access.
Rare Breed
JACOB SHEEP
COLLARED DOVE
An unusually confiding
and seemingly lone
female
BULLFINCH
Still good numbers of
REDWING
here on the farm - but not for much longer surely!
Increasing numbers of
REED BUNTING
have occurred during the briefest of cold snaps

with at least a couple in just about every corner of PCF
but still to be recorded on Merritown Heath but thought, given the habitat
highly unlikely.
FIELDFARE
Under the Covers
CENTIPEDE
plus many dozens of
EARTH WORMS
and another sculpture from nephew Lawrence this time a gift for
Hugh and Janet
and erected behind the bund.
Now for a bit of the ol'
Trouble and Strife!
Seems major faults on the laying of the cable on
Phase I of the Solar Panel Complex
has necessitated the laying of an aluminium road allowing the
Heavy Plant to access the effected area,
and from a little further afield but with a tentative
connection to the Solar Panels here, this is a
HORSE LEACH
found at the sister Panel Complex in Devon, from 
where Dale Lewis the 'overall' Maintenance Manager
 tells us there are 'thousands' of the wee beasties.
STONECHAT
One hapless
COMMON TOAD
seems to have fallen victim to the 'road-laying'?
We must have driven past this 'not displeasing to the eye' looking Fungi at least a dozen times in the last week or so, but finally it was spotted and photographed. Having no idea of identifying such things we sent it of to our more learn'ed friend John Gifford who came up with
 TREMELLA MESENTERIC
further reading, more locally once we knew what we were looking at, 
found that it also has a whole array of vernacular names including
YELLOW BRAIN, GOLDEN JELLY FUNGUS, 
YELLOW TREMBLER and WITCHES' BUTTER (or 'promise')
After the thaw both
 GREY WAGTAIL and GREEN SANDPIPER
were back at the Puddle of Mud.
Not quiet in 'full spate' but full to the gunwales the
Parley Court Farm
beat of the
River Stour.
Very early days yet, but already after only a single outing the 
TRAIL CAMERAS
are proving to be as exciting as opening Moth Traps first thing in the morning. The 'anticipation value' of getting the images on the screen has already been well worth the outlay, you wouldn't want to die thinking
 "I wish I'd done this, that or the other"!
In the Dead of Night the question stands.
 Is it a BIRD?, is it a PLANE? is it a Bat or is it a MOTH?
our very first image (cropped) will enter the Record Book as a
UFO
 FOX
at what looks like great speed,
and coming back for more!
Looks like we may need to tweak the settings a little.
The MAGIC of this particular model is that it takes
Stills and Videos simultaneously.
Be Patient....................there it is!
FOX
Enter 'stage right' CARRION CROW, cross screen ROBIN
and a brief scuffle with a MAGPIE.
BLACKBIRD
We have a feeling there is a whole Bag Full of Fun waiting here,
just wait until we produce the Snow Leopard and Civet images.
Always a one for starting with the simple stuff and working up slowly to the
RARITIES!
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