The Gathering of the Clans

Had it not been as the headline suggests along with a Tail of the Unexpected there may not have been a Post at all today - but we keep up the momentum for our DWINDLING audience! At the Manor Car Park crab apple trees the Hungry, that Must be Fed, had increased by a further 2 species joining what is considered to be the original

FIELDFARE

under yet another beautiful sky-scape, while the single male

BLACKBIRD
took to the trees

as the females,

about half-a-dozen in all,

contented themselves with the fallen fruits

while the second of the new arrivals a
MISTLE THRUSH
(a scarce species at this location)

also took to the higher perch.

The Stranger in all of this was a single

BROWN HARE

once an almost daily sighting here but this the first for maybe a couple of years or more?

Short but Sweet

 It was plainly obvious at first light

that the day was not going to be one for Wildlife but with the

predicted +12°C and the stiff breeze still hanging on from a south-westerly direction, we were at the very least going to get out there to make sure. At the first of the Moth traps, as was the same at the second and last, the whole container was swarming with

FLIES

with many pro-creating maybe due to the balmy conditions while within the first c4

DECEMBER MOTHs
while in the second no more than a

single of the same species but unfortunately
not a Migrant to be seen!

The further good news was that the hike in temperature
(IRRIGATION POND)

had also melted the venere of thin ice
(GRAVEL PIT)

with some Gulls - Black-headed and Herring

along with a few water-fowl such as a pair of MALLARD along with a MUTE SWAN.
Long before noon it was once again Rain Stop Play so back Onboard for a welcome mug of
Douwe Egberts Pure Indullgence.

Time - Pink Floyd

 

Ticking away the moments that make up a dull day, you fritter and waste the hours in an offhand way. Kicking around on a piece of ground in your hometown, waiting for someone or something to show you the way!

 Didn't even step outside of our humble home yesteday with continuous heavy rain backed by gusting Sou-Westerly wind and the promised +12 ° which unfortunately, because of the afore mentioned conditions, kept us away from the Moth Traps. However, the 'adicted' was not swayed from a little 'watching' from the windows gleaning the short list as shown below. The first to show were a couple of the unexpected firstly in the shape of a female

PHEASANT

followed in quick time across the lawn at same course, same speed a female

MALLARD
both considered scarce so close to home but far more familiar dozens of

ROOKS
eventuallt braving it to feed inside the Chicken Coupe where a brace of

HERRING GULLs
were doing their best to keep everything else at bay and just a single

BLUE TIT
among a small gathering of

BLACK-HEADED GULLs
whizzing around overhead trying to avoid the attentions of the Herrings with the now tiny flock of

STRARLINGs
content to feed on the lawn. Not to be outdone in the Corvid steaks a lone

MAGPIE

The usual contingent of
HOUSE SPARROWS
and finally a couple each of

JACKDAW
and

CARRION CROW

Tired of lying in the sunshine, staying home to watch the rain. You are young and life is long, and there is time to kill today. And then one day you find ten years have got behind you, no one told you when to run, you missed the starting gun!!

THANK HEAVENs for the WORLD CUP FINAL!

Island in the Sun - Harry Belafonte Haiti - Part III

 It wasn't that the Bon-Accord across the whole of my 2 weeks visit to Haiti, one of the most volitile countries in the world, had been lacking but the farewell, on that final Sunday, was to be one never, ever forgotten! Jumping into Ernso's shooting-break we were whisked off to the

about 10 miles from the Eucalyptus Guesthouse.

Having never seen anything quite like it the whole place was constructed from re-cycled materials through and through from the Bar

to the

CHANDELIERS

PATIO

WALKWAYs

and a number of

ACCOMMODATION BLOCKS
and even the occassional birds such as

RED-LEGGED THRUSH

with a host of
BLOOMS
and coincidentally a 'yank'

ROBINSON HELICOPTER

but with no association with Rowdy's (left) project.

AMERICAN KESTREL

even down to the Drinking Glasses as can be seen to have been fashioned from the necks of empty wine bottles, corks left attached.

Something of a novelty far below us along with plenty of interesting

Bugs in the Bushes
while mid-afternoon, along with more Birds

PRAIRIE WARBLER

the BAND also turned up

("shake them maraca's man")

VILLAGE WEAVER
(introduced from Africa)
The only analogy that can be made, particularly of that final day, was that decreed at the
First Isle of Wight Festival
If You Remembered 'it' You Weren't There!!!!