Stormy Monday - T-Bone Walker

Relates to yesterday, and like the proverbial clouds it seem even the unrelenting Storm Franklin had something to offer as after having searched both the Southern Sector and the Solar Panel Compound and drawing pretty much a Blank, a surprise awaited on reaching the 2 Ponds. At the

Irrigation Pond
were found c2 'adult' Little Grebe, at this traditional nesting sight, with

both being 'vocal' and showing signs of 'display'.
As if the Storm had herded them all into the Gravel Pit, on arrival was more like a visit to the Slimbridge Wildfowl Trust, Gloucestershire, and being met by

c2 inward bound

CANADA GEESE
landing on the Island and which have also bred close by with the lone

COOT
hopefully due to attract a partner soon - another regular breeder.

While there were c4 pairs on the pond on the day
(male)

(female)
it has never been the way of the TEAL to nest here, but we live in hope, while c3 female

SHOVELER
still remain but with males as rare as me getting the drinks in!

On the other hand MALLARD have always been prolific nesters at all suitable sites with this male already looking to be in full breed attire, in what little sunlight there was, and while this single

EGYPTIAN GOOSE,
a 'tree nester', usually favour the Moors River they do occassionally gather here, and on the Irrigation Pond with their youngsters in tow. The same might be said of the

GADWALL

which are also reluctant, but strangely have brought off young on the Main Pond very close to Civilisation?

Down at the Club - The Pioneers

As is our want on a Sunday, despite the chances of  more torretial rain and the blustery wind and with

STORM CLOUDS
gathering and breaking, we first visited the deep south with later intentions of monitoring, for the first time this year, the grounds of Bournemouth International Airport, which given the impending conditions would have to wait until later for a final decission with the main thrust being 2 of the breeding colonies within. Kicking off with our usual daily cicuit there was little to report from the Deep South save for the

predominance of  a decent number of jaunty

GREAT TIT
along with the appearance of this strange contraption, looking rather like a

CANAL BARGE
complete with surfboard which is hardly condusive with such waterways

along with a third this year

PARTY (helium) BALLOON
with all else amounting to no more than singles of

MEADOW PIPIT

and

STONECHAT
unusually in the Southern Solar Panel Compound. With little by way of works traffic we continued directly to BI Airport starting at the potential

ROOKERY

where at least c8 nests

look to be

close to completion at

the site where there were 28 nests last year! Stout structures but yet to be seen if they survive the continuing storms?
Attention then turned to the aircraft hanger rooftops favoured by c3 species of Gulls for procreation

GREAT BLACK-BACKED GULL

not that we are suggesting that they have started yet

despite the 'sitting' / 'incubating' type pose?
There close but 'smaller' cousins the

HERRING GULLs

seemed more intent on 40-winks than nest building, but no signs of Lesser Black-backed Gulls, so round the corner to investigate another

flier
AZMAN AIRLINES

a Kano, Nigeria Based Domestic Airline Company,
and the added bonus of a singing

COAL TIT

before reaching Home Base

and seeing all these lovely youngsters getting into the
Swing of Things at the Golf Club!

Beyond the Horizon - Bob Dylan Part II

It did take longer than it might have done due to the decline in readership, but we heartily thank the stalwarts who have suported us through Thick and Thin. Maybe an opportune moment to scribe a Begging Letter and ask you all to get us back on course please!

1.5 MILLION HITS!

Returning to the

BUCHAN ALPHA
FLOATING OIL PRODUCTION PLATFORM

we reiterate that cited by Led Zeppelin in the first instance,

Oh, let the sun beat down upon my face, and stars fill my dreams. I'm a traveller of both time and space, to be where I have been. To sit with elders of the gentle race, this world has seldom seen. They talk of days for which they sit and wait, ALL will be revealed!

DUNLIN

EIDER
(male)

GARDEN WARBLER

GARFISH
There followed a most significant day when having taken my breakfast in the Control Room as usual, to gain a few more moments on deck Wildlife Watching, I was stopped at the foot of the ladder leading to the upper deck, fully booted and spurred, by our Opparations Co-ordinater Dave Penney. His question to me was very simple as "what is it you do up there every morning dashing fron the place of work at high speed as soon as having been relieved"? The equally simple answer was "don your P.P.E. grab the rig binoculars and join me up top" which he did. With the starboard flare being active he was asked what he could see along the length of the boom, "oh just a load of Shy Talks"!

Anything different among the species he was asked and quite rightly pointed to the large pale individual at the centre of the image and told that it was a juvenile

GLAUCOUS GULL
a usual resident of far more northern waters which seem to have him intregued. To cut a long story short, and more visits and chatter on the upper deck, before our next hitch off-shore he had bought himself a £1,500 pair of Swarovski binoculars, a comprehensive Bird Field Guide and a couple of Moth Traps. How good it feels to inspire someone and visit each others 'home patch' - hooked?          During the remaining time together he saw most of the species that follow and eventually ended up finding a number of 'rarities' himself.

GOLDCREST
(male)

MERLIN
(devouring Redwing)
Maybe a little strangely a

HOODED CROW
while thought totally impossible the only

HOUSE SPARROW
recorded in the North Sea during my time.

The 'infection' had not only swept through our own company, most of whom working the upper-deck were now carring 'draw-string cotton bags' in case of capturing a 'live' specimen, but also that of our Standby Boat the Far Seeker. Out of marine courtesy, it was the done thing to speak to her Captain each evening just before the witching hour to check all was well with on one occassin him reporting that the hands had caught a couple of 'live' birds for me. He went on to say that they had scrutinised them and check against the Field Guide to come to the conclussion that they had captured both a House Martin and a Linnet. The 'full 10 points for effort' but in both instances they had FORTUNATELY got it wrong! Sent up in a Twix chocolate box on a heaving line at the turn of the watch the box was opened in my cabin in case of an escapee. We say fortunately as the first out was in fact a

STORM PETREL

seen on occassion but never handled and with the white rump, the same as a House Martin, no recriminations there! Again Linnet was a excellent try but found to be a very scarce

LITTLE BUNTING
with both birds having a story to tell but both ending in a different direction. The Petrel was highly popular with all of the crew, just about everyone paying it a visit in the Control Room, as it was fed Sardine Oil and a little of the fish, and as there was an EXPERT on hand, ME, it was decided to release it as darkness fell. Quite a few hands mustered in the lee of Alpha column as the tiny bird was shown around for the last time before being gently dropped to freedom. Landing on the surface it shook it head did a little preening before being swallowed whole by a Great Black-backed Gull - the moral of the story? "it's always an advantage to have an EXPERT on hand"! The

LITTLE BUNTING
fair much better as being 'choppered' off the rig by Bristow's and met at the airport by an A Ringer from Cove, a small village a few miles south of Aberdeen. There it was duly 'ringed', with the shackle clearly visible in the image sent to us by 'return of post', surrounded by a grateful crowd and to live another day!

MAGPIE MOTHs
were annual, there were continuous casualties, in this instance

MEALY REDPOLL

KNOT
no not those in the ropes!

GREENFINCH

LONG-EARED

OWL

LAPLAND BUNTING

LUMPSUCKER

JACK SNIPE
numerous but with a penchant for flying into windows, and penultimately
just after mid-night bringing in my 50 birthday in walked the Chief Engineer, obligatory cotton bag in one hand an 2 mugs of coffee in the other, by way of celibrating the occassion - no booze there, an immediate sackable offence!

The bag contained a

LITTLE STINT

AND STILL THEY COME!

and PS - yesterday's finale was a STARFRONTLET (with an R) yet another typo with correction made!