Monday 27 February 2017

To the Runner - Jon Anderson

From the SENSATIONAL 
and maybe somewhat overlooked album by
Jon Anderson - ex Yes
OLIAS of SUNHILLOW
Harrier - (Cross Country) Runner - get it?
Another 'away day' and even though to the same location as in more recent days, Poole Harbour, an altogether different part with the potential of a selection of differing species of Birds? This time we stuck more or less to the southern rim of the second largest Natural Harbour in the World, making a particularly good start on arrival at Middlebere. There, and almost immediately we spotted a female
HEN HARRIER
quartering the reed-bed and while there were c2 Marsh Harrier in view
at the same time our full attention was focused on this much more scarce raptor.

Even if not a single bird were noted on any visit to this out of the way location,
the tiny Hamlet alone provides excellent value, as was the case,
as all else to be added to the list were a good number of
DUNLIN
(added to the Dorset List)
along with a decent gaggle of
BRENT GEESE
Onward towards Studland Bay, which the 'pureists' will tell you forms the
eastern perimeter of the harbour, as usual we could not resist the temptation
to stop and admire the

HIGHLAND CATTLE 
 (which at this visit appear to have doubled in numbers since our last visit)

 
 which form part of what we feel is 'no coincidence
Scotland Farm! 
 
 From the 'in car' camera approaching
CORFE CASTLE
 With a number of scans of the telescope revealing nothing on a very
choppy sea, the only interest lay in
MEDITERRANEAN GULL
viewed from above at the elevated Middle Beach Car Park
and given the absence of anything else this
CARRION CROW
took centre stage.
Save for the Harrier, bird-wise it had been a case of fairly lean pickings,
but our trump card was to visit the village of Studland in the hope of the speciality there.
We didn't have to wait long to hear the raucous screeches of the local
RING-NECKED PARAKEET
which not unusually took some time to bring to view.
It was the somewhat strange behaviour of Herring Gulls that drew us to their perch,
as the Gulls were flying around the trees, seeming mobbing them, behaviour we have never seen before.
Arriving at the
immediately there was an addition to the Year List
RINGED PLOVER
in good numbers but little else.

Avoiding the Chain Link Ferry on this occasion we returned via the same route
and found along the way a few
SPRING LAMBs but nothing else to report!
The Full Album
Olias of Sunhillow - Jon Anderson

OLIAS was to build the ship the Moorglade Mover
RANYART was to guide the moments begotten light
QOQUAQ a leader, and fashioner of peoples was 
charged to unite the 4 tribes of Sunhillow.

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