Four Seasons in One Day - Crowded House - Part II

 A little late this morning as a result of a 'slack hammock' but more so as staggered by the 'HITS' still well into 4 figures, Maybe ALL of our Most Welcome New Readers might consider sending the Link to All of there addressees in a bid to double up! We thank you in advance - Cheers!

a.k.a. Changes - David Bowie

 Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes, turn and face the strange,
Ch-ch-changes, don't want to be a richer one
Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes
(Turn and face the strange)
Ch-ch-changes
Just gonna have to be a different one
Time may change me, but I can't trace time!

Up North, some wag had found a use for the 'fly-tipped' Tyre while at the

Sewerage Works

CATKINs
are starting to bloom as we also caught a few decent glimpses of our
Second for the Year

BLACKCAP
this time a female.

The SUN, from the Heath, was giving it a Best Shot but still didn't look too promising as a

BELTD GALLOWAY
waddled irresitably right before us.

It was raining somewhere but not hindering the passage of what was thought to be a

K,L,M.
and my personal favourite

Rare Breed Shetland

browsing the Gorse something I have never quite been able to get my head around.
Although we see this regularly and often we remaine baffled how these animals manage to
chew and then swollow what is no more than a solid Crown of Thorns!

Along the Moors River a pair of

EGYPTIAN GEESE
(male above, female below and with male Mallard on the clip)

On arrival back the

LLAMAs
looked content come Rain or Shine.
Always interesting to have a yarn with the Gardener during which time

one of the local

KESTRELs

perched most obligingly directly above us just befoe the next

Cloud

Burst and an appearance of the local OK-PFY

TIMEAIR NEXTANT 400 XT
which our 5th Cloumnist informs us carries hight-end
Oil Executives to and from Aberdeen among others.

Look Up the SUN is Out again and still no SNOW so
let's quit while we are ahead.

Four Seasons in One Day - Crowded House Part I

a.k.a. Changes - David Bowie

Still don't know what I was looking for
and my time was running wild a million dead-end streets.
Every time I thought I'd got it made it seemed the taste was not so sweet.
So I turned myself to face me but I've never caught a glimpse,
of how the others must see the faker I'm much too fast to take that test.

Despite the pre-dawn Mist the massed voices of

SONG THRUSHES

predominated

long before daybreak as they have done so for the passed week or more.

One we caught Long Ago.
What did come as something of a surprise however were the piglet-like squeals
coming from the direction of the River Stour and warrented investigation.

We picked up on a couple of
PIED WAGTAILs

at the Stables, worthy of a click or 2 but were then equally surprised to see

just how much the water level had dropped before confirming the

WATER RAIL
along with c4 Mute Swans which we rather feel you have seen enough of in recent days?
The same, while being different, at the

Main Pond
where it looked far more like 'high tide' than did the river but still with another c4

MUTE SWANs
in the vacinity - nice to just see one we think!
Not a bad start, but it was about to get better as we found the 1^st addition of the 2^nd month

to the Year List by way of c4 extremely flighty

LINNETs
but still the "beat went on"! Continuing along the southern bridleway we scanned, as ever, the pylons to find what we considered to be a 'second'

PEREGRINE FALCON

far better and paler marked around the lores (face markings) and throat

but then again

at quite some distance

as is usual at this site.
Heading north, and to end Part One of what was considered best to spread the goodies about,

we happened upon one of the Eco resident

COLLARED DOVE

before the Hail cum Rain started
(don't let Mister Blue Skies fool you)

The HIT COUNT went off the scale yesterday with our own calculation showing 1694 and the Provider logging a massive 2569. Looks like some kind individual, with some clout, has done us a huge favour for which we THANK she or he - Keep It Up!

Dragonfly - Fleetwood Mac

 As one of the

COBHAM JETS
raced off through the gloom to undertake perhaps another bout of 'in-flight refueling training' we attended the single Moth Trap to find no more than 2 Firsts for the Year

CADDISFLY
and a

COMMON EARWIG

Very strange happenings at the main Pond, in fact only the second known occurance, of a feeding

CORMORANT
as given the volumn of vehicular and pedestrian traffic they usually stay away from this well stocked area. A new and full adult

LITTLE GREBE
at the Irrigation Pond was a most welcome sight even if only prospecting this years potentioal nesting, and maybe needless to say still 2 pairs of

TUFTED DUCK
on the Gravel Pit.

With just a smattering of common fare between there and the Sewerage Works, there perched on the rails, as usaul, stood c4 

BLACK-HEADED GULLSs
at which, more out of frustration, we loosed off a couple of shots before they flew off. One of these did catch the eye but viewing the image (singular) found it to be an

ALBINO

The Edgar Winter of the Birding World!

Along with the Snowdrops, Daffodils, Crocuses and Others this

VIBURNUM TINUS

was also close to full bloom (February - ????) and we thank John for his assistance.

Disturbing sights continue along the  

MOORS RIVER
as more

EFFLUENT
continues to flow downstream. Something of a concern as this extract from

STEVE BROOKS Field Guide
shows the demise of the

ORANGE-SPOTTED EMERALD

in Dorset and the rest of the UK!
We did record a number during several visits to Estonia back in the heady days of 2009.
Meanwhile, the

Mowing

continues on the

Heath

where there were also c6

STONECHAT

Tyred of Waiting - The Kinks

 Again, and despite the inclement weather, there were returns from the 2

Moth Traps

yet another
CHESTNUT

a tiny
SLUG

along with what has become the usual assortment of Flies.

Apart from the continuously feeding

GUINEAFOWL

which have now become irresitable there was locally just a snap

which may assist our Readers when refering to the homestead that is Slight Return II,

The Strange Rover

the Bund, just beyond the Lime and Holm and the more distant Stables and Ash trees.

The only surprise a little further on was the appearance of our first
DAFFODILS
close to a Staddle Stone and just a single male

BLACKBIRD
at the Pondside.
Otherwise, we had to lean heavily on the returning squadron of

TUFTED DUCK

which had now reach c6 but quickly decamped to the

Gravel Pit

to join a

a 7th Bird

with this pair of sleepy

MALLARD
making up the numbers.
We strongly suggest you cling onto something soild before pressing play for fear of you getting
Over Excited!
Talking of which, and with the Heath almost inaccessible due to floodwater, yet another example of

FLY-TIPPING
We are hopeing to buck our ideas up but you can only present that which is there!
STAY SAFE!