Slim Pickens

 Probabley best remembered by us Senior Citizens as Sheriff McKay in the late 1950's TV show Rawhide, alongside a budding Clint Eastwood, just about sums up todays little adventure! A decent start while plucking a

TAWNY PINION

(a First for the Year)
from the Moth Traps but it was a long wait and something of a disaster to locate anything else,

with those laying the new pathways in and around the Solar Panel Compound unwittingly piling the top dressing oacross the puddle often used by Green Sandpiper, Grey Wagtail et al with the later having found a new

food souce at the

Gravel Pit
and further on just a small showing of what we believe to be the rather eye catching

COMMON GREENSHIELD LICHEN
while the

RED-LEGGED PATRIDGE
(having had enough coverage in recent days)
was found as far west as the main bridleway, something of a 'wild rover'!
All else here amounted to no more than a local

WILLOW
showing signs of breaking into Leaf while a most fortuitous and un-programmed visit to
Chloe and my surrogate nephew Dylan produced the best viewing of the day as a number of

EGYPTIAN GEESE

were both prospecting the bows of the Oak Tree's in their garden
(just to slow to capture that action) but

caught in his and her

WATER-MEADOWs

displaying

and end with one on their last visit to me.

Bird of Prey - Uriah Heep

 Refreshing as not having to start the day by dodging inclement weather again, and some reward from the Moth Traps among the now familiar 'also ran's'

in the form of a single

GREY SHOULDER-KNOT
with the only representative of the wing'ed squadrons of the skies being this local

DASSAULT FALCON 20F
During the process it was noticed that the local pair of

KESTREL's

are now showing interest in the traditional nest site in the nearby stables.
Next mission to capure one, or both, in the nest box. Next, having now become a daily visit to the River Stour in search of Cetti's Warbler, which we once again 'dipped' on, but did come away with the bonus of this

LITTLE EGRET
on the far bank and with nothing of interest down south we headed in the opposite direction

to find, almost unheard of on the
Irrigation Pond

these 2
GREYLAG GEESE
among what have become the Usual Suspects.

Between there and the Gravel Pit no more than this lone
GREAT TIT
while the watercourse produced yet another surprise with this flighty male

SHOVELER
likely attracted by the c5 females still in attendance but with no tolerance of me.

A short visit to a friends house allowed for these couple of clips of an obliging

PIED WAGTAIL
bringing back memories of this novilty shot captured on the 16/06/2016 and entitlied

'GUESS WHO'S COMING to DINNER?'

Something in the Air - Thunderclap Newman

Relates to both the Chopper and the as yet only small signs of the Birds getting it together.

We don't know how long, but it seems a while, since we have seen the

COASTGUARD HELICOPER

cut across our section of sky but, like all of our Emergency Services its good to know they are there.

Oh no, another Senior Moment it was only the other day!!
Down South and for the second time within the past 4 weeks a / the

STONECHAT
showed itself again, while after the short attention span of the recent House Sparrow investigation the

New Nestbox

was given a

thorough looking at by this

GREAT TIT

having previously chased off a

Blue Tit with its Estate Agent
and it has been very much longer since we last saw an

EDDIE STOBART LORRY
and this one also bedecked with an unfamiliar name - we have a collection somewhere?

aA bit of a change, or maybe that should be 'addition' at the
Irrigation Pond

as along with the now established pair of
COOT

a couple more female
SHOVELER
have arrived.
Only what we would describe as the 'usuals' at the Gravel Pit

but just on turning to leave these c2

MUTE SWANs
dropped in with immediate thoughts of nest building before noteing they were both

COBs
while all that could be found along our beat of the

Moors River 

and obscured by foliage were this pair of feeding

GADWALL
and no surprises to find the

RED-LEGGED PARTRIDGE
again, but today inside of the
Solar Panel Compound.

Back close to base and another 2 Cobs and this time very close to where a pair nested last year.
Some may remember the c7 eggs and c7 Sygnets?

PS - we thank the 2 correspondants who put us right on a couple of errors on yesterday's Post  Never to Old to Learn!

The Kids are Alright - The Who

 Another morning, another 'Chopper' a

MERLIN
we believe, for no other reason than for a CHANGE we covered the usual ground in reverse order, with yet another failure at the Sewerage Woeks not being able to coax a much hoped for Black Redstart out of cover. The plan however did have its reward as plying the banks of the Moors River to find onlt this

MUTE SWAN
keeping its head above the parapit, while at the junction with the bridleway unfamiliar calls from above was soon recognised as that of a

MARSH TIT
which once was thought to breed here, but gone are the days.

We did record a single last year after a drought of 4 years but the days find may have included as many as 3 individuals? while the Solar Panel Compound fielded on the expected a handful of

STARLINGs

ditto
MEADOW PIPITs

STONECHAT
keeping the 'Panels Cleaning Team' in business and en-route to the
Gravel Pit

what we are calling
SELF-HEAL
in certainty that if incorrect we will be put right.

At the Gravel Pit and totally expected the

COOTs
were starting to engage in this pre-nuptual sparring

with the dominant male standing on a totally submerged female.
Unfortuneately the ritual didn't last long enough for a video clip, but we are working on it,

while to capture a pair of GADWALL in company with c3 LITTLE GREBE
was something of a miracle in itself! All else there was this

PIED WAGTAIL
with a second feeding at the

newly formed puddle.
Penultimately, there was no more than a fleeting glimps down south at the

ASH STUMP
of a second sighting this year of a / the

LITTLE OWL
which looked promising with images from the archive, and finally a short visit from 2 of the former Appretices who's interests were stifled by the covid outbreak.

Sofie and Josh, but an absent Oliver.
4 years ago taking to the Moths like Ducks to water.