Granny Get Down off the Gas-Stove

 You're to Old to be Riding the Range

Again it was ROBINs that stole the show at the wakening hour but not without a 'base-line' from above, a mixed skein of

GREYLAG GEESE
plus a few

CANADA GEESE
requesting permission to land, while at what was once known as the
Puddle of Mud now stand the first of the promised

lorries / trailers - let's just see how long it takes to be strewn with litter? While the only news from the water-courses was good albeit just the / or another single male

TUFTED DUCK
further to which there were also Moths

yes plaural but both of the same species but enough to fill a small desire as

2 x SPRING USHERs
with the rest of the morning

taken up by

some of the

youngest

EQUESTRIANS

we have ever seen at the

CENTRE

ICE ICE BABY - Vanilla Ice

 After a period of freezing and frosty weather, on the day the temperature rocketed to a balmy +9C bringing with it the likes of a

Mackerel Sky
and within the Moth Trap c7

ICHNEUMON WASPs
along with a further hand full of

DOR BEETLEs
pointing to the fact that Insect Life is emerging and who knows maybe a Moth or 2 next??

Otherwise, both ponds (despite the headline) have returned to open water with a

First for the Year

REED BUNTING
to be found at the

IRRIGATION POND
while the

GRAVEL PIT
held the first of the 'early' returning Waterfowl a brace of male

MUTE SWANs

along with a pair of
MALLARD
while passing overhead a

Stranger in the Camp
not an aircraft that we have ever noted here before!.... while within the Solar Panel Compounds no surprise to find a couple of

MISTLE THRUSH

Book-Ending the overnight excavations of

Mister Mole and Co.

and to end today's epistle all of the Crab Apple Trees now lie just about bare while the

Flood Plain of the River Stour have now receded to a more normal level.

All Over the Place - Appologies

  While our resolve for catching Moths will never fade it is also something of a fillip to find that others around us are securing the odd one or two throughout the winter! That was the case during the week with the capture of a

MOTTLED GREY

at the Portland Bird Observatory, an insect we have never clapped eyes on let alone caught!

With a chill still in the air the

MAGPIES
are already inspecting last years nest for a possibilty of refurbishing while we have also witnessed

WOOD PIEON
carrying nesting material (without image) this being one of last years youngsters.

MERLIN

transiting but we would much rather have an encounter with the Feathered Form!
While what will likely be the strangest addition the the Bird Year List was provided by one of the residents who asked if we could throw any light as to the 'hooting' he had heard across a number of nights? Most likely an Owl was the first though but a sound recording could clinch the deal. Provided the following day it could not be denighed as a

LITTLE OWL
duely attached to our Year List while later in the day another addition was provided by a 

'CHARM' of GOLDFINCH

if indeed the 'collective noun' is aforded to just c2 individuals??
We appologise once again for the 'out-of-kilter' Posts and can only hope that Will the Laptop Wizzard will be with us sooner rather than later! 

Having spent most of the day trying to get to grips with a 'new' laptop we were somewhat distracted from our daily wander but at least we have the White-Browed Bush-Robin back. As we settle in we hope to get back to more normality, and look the already the text is central under the images.

The New Generation

 Having got Half a Grip on this new fangled unit we can perhaps now thank our valued audiance a little further with a few of the videos taken, but not attachable until now, from our recent visit to windy Hampshire.

SABINES GULL

GREY PLOVER
which we have now learnt that we can glue them onto a Post on the new laptop!

BRENT GEESE

SABINE'S

RED-BREASTED MERGANSER
(pair)

SHORE LARK

REDSHANK

SABINE'S GULL

GREY PLOVER

YOU KNOW WHAT!

Just Larking About

For reasons best known to itself yesterday's Post defected to before the the previous publiction after which there was no way we could find to correct it. We are now hopeful that you will all be able access Part I then come backhere to Part II

 No more than a 40 minutes drive from the Sabine's Gull, along the north bank of the Solent, seperating the Isle of White from the mainland we were quick to find the second of our heart's desires along the

shingle bank towards the

HURST CASTLR LIGHTHOUSE and FORTIFICATION

where among a few of the more common species including

RED_BREASTED MERGANSER
(male)

(female)

REDSHANK

WIGEON

in the distance and jutting out from the Isle of Wight

THE NEEDLES

GREY PLOVER
but with attention more focused on our target

a

most obliging

SHORELARK

Small but considered Fast
Inshore Pleasure / Angling Boat

TURNSTONE'S
along with a

BRENT GOOSE
while before leaving we were approached by a very large and fit looking gentleman who approched me and asked,

"it's Bagsy is it not".
Yes sir, but at a loss to know or remember who you are, replying that he was none other than
Simon King, right with Dave, (last seen as a teenager) son of likely the most well know and certainly most entertaining Ron (CHUNKY) King unfortunately no longer with us!
It is doubtfull that any long standing Bird Watcher in the whole of the U.K. would not have known Chunky - R.I.P. our Dear Friend!
As afitting end to that part of the day it was though worth stopping off in

LYNDHURST
in the New Forest and finding the very best of Tea Rooms (even though we had coffee)

and finding this rather interesting and knurled

Roadside Bench

but with one more stop at