Sunday 14 March 2021

Whiter Shade of Pale - Procol Harem


Despite the inclement weather it has proved almost impossible not to succum to flashing up the Moth Traps with a resultant 'first for the year'
GREY SHOULDER-KNOT
ditto with a first
CADDIS FLY
plus another
DOTTED BORDER
With nothing more than a pair of
nest building
MUTE SWANs
and a 'brace' of
CANADA GEESE
looking likely to follow suit anytime soon, holding our attention we decided once again to toddle off to Longham Lakes.
Having given up on the Ring-necked Duck, which is still being reported but evading us, this was no more than a hit or miss expedition but started on the right note with this:-

Do you remember?
Chalk hearts melting on a playground wall.
Do you remember?
Dawn escapes from moon washed college halls.
Do you remember?

the Cherry Blossom in the market square.
Do you remember? I thought it was confetti in our hair!
At the lake and try as he may, the lad didn't seem to be havong much success with his offering
GREAT CRESTED GREBEs
By the way, didn't I break your heart?
Please excuse me, I never meant to break your heart.
So sorry, I never meant to break your heart,

but you broke mine!

but then sauntered over to directly below my viewing possition which resulted in
catching this
ROACH
Blink and You'll Miss It!
That Moment of the Day was followed by The Bird of the Day
'another', but we use the word guardedly,
LEUCISTIC
BLACK-HEADED GULL
which may have been another but consideration must go to the possibility
of being one and the same as that found on our own patch on the
1st February 2021
just 2 or 3 miles up the road
and highly unlikely we will ever know but here is the
Sewerage Works Bird
 Leucism is a wide variety of conditions that result in the partial loss of pigmentation in an animal causing white, pale, or patchy coloration of the skin, hair, feathers, scales, or cuticles, but not the eyes.
For comparison, but before closing the subject ,another oddity from the same species onboard the
Buchan Alpha Floating Oil Production Platform in the North Sea
when one was seen to stalk, catch, kill and swallow whole an exhausted migrant
BRAMBLING!