Oh Deer What Can the Matter Be - Nursery Rhyme

 With the calls and songs of the 2 Tawny Owls now having become part of the furniture (between midnight and dawn) we will make no further reference to them unless we find the nest or later the youngsters. Some improvement at the Moth Traps despite a small drop in temperature with c4 more

COMMON RUSTIC
(one escapee)

with singles of
DOTTED BORDER

CHESTNUT
and 

'first for year'

CLOUDED DRAB

Another new aircraft out of Bournemouth International, but we know not what it is, save

Package Holidays You Can Trust
there followed a short dalliance with the local

 ROE DEER

at closer quarters and likely readying themselves for the on-coming breeding season,

after which it seemed rather strange to see this
RYANAIR

approaching the Airport from the North West?
That was about IT from the Southern Section but up north

we immediately bumped into

what is presumed to be the

returning

GREEN SANDPIPER

last seen a couple of weeks ago, same puddle, same plumage and considered a good start to the  New Season.

All else up there were Tufted Ducks and

SHOVELER
On the strength of that we decided to pay a long overdue visit to the heath, which has been made extra difficult to access by an uneducated (so called) management!!

At least the

GOATS

were pleased to see us

as we were them
FRENCH ALPINE

BAGOT

and as ever

DEAN'S DITCH

like Old Man River
"just keeps rolling along"!
First of the avians was at such altitude it could only be presumed it was a Merlin

with a

drumming

GREAT SPOTTED WOODPECKER

a complete BLANK from beneath the
Reptile Covers

HEATHER FIELD

punctuated by tufts of
BRISTLEBENT GRASS

with all else incuding

forelorn looking
ASPENs

an unknown number (considered small) of singing
WOODLARK
close to the

BRISTLEBENT FIELD
"sorry Dave no Lesser-spot but it should be better next time"?

Aftermath - The Rolling Stones

As we have now dipped our toe into Spring we look back on a none to shabby Winter with 81 species of Birds and 6 species of Moth already 'in the bag'! Time was, years ago, when we would accomplish more than this number of our feathered friends on New Year's Day alone, but gone are those heady times of Twitching, but not from the memory!

While referring to the first full night of Spring there was also a little activity via the Moth Traps 

with a first for the year and season

COMMON QUAKER

and
ICHNEUMON WASP
(we'll have some of that)

Not the best of starts, a little light rain, but only a flash in the pan which turned into
  a day of splendid

CLOUD FORMATION

Rows and flows of angel hair, and icecream castles in the air

and feather canyons everywhere, I looked at clouds that way!

  of great interest having once been part of my job as a weather gatherer for the Met Office, but also a day to reflect on the passage of our 3 ex-Pals as we dumfounded  Dudley,

almost escaped Eunice

and attempted to outflank Franklin, our inheritance as above!
Not a lot of change in the wider world and still no Moths (a little ambitious we think) but the

LITTLE GREBEs

are certainly 'at it'

dashing from one end of both ponds to the other in 'display'

and extremely vocal.

A diverssion from above as this Royal Navy

BOEING CHINOOK
clattered loudly overhead.

The return of one of the female

SHOVELER 

with company
absent for a few days now, was a welcome sight and one of the male

TEAL cosying up with a LITTLE GREBE 

and Blink and you would have missed it as the 'first for the year'

KINGFISHER
perched for no more than 20 seconds with our day ending in the

Solar Panel Compound
with our second of the year

LAPWING
resisting the lush surroundings and potential breeding ground below.
It'll Be Back!!

But now they only block the sun, they rain and they snow on everyone. 

So many things I would have done, but clouds got in my way.

Both Sides Now - Joni Mitchell

A Fly in the Ointment - But not for Long

 While the first day of Spring was a deluge, dark, damp, dingy, drizely and dull affair, it was OK once we got outside, and brought with it a couple of ‘minor milestones’! 

With the overnight +10°C continuing it was considered worth flashing the

Moth Traps up again which came back with another ‘D’-word, DEVOID. Not that a Moth of any sort would have kicked off the new season or the new month for that matter, as all dated records are submitted as of the day the traps are activated, so fingers are crossed for tonight while no-one is going to be much interested in last night’s c2

HOUSEFLY's

  but we do hear on the 'spunyarn radio' that Bomber in Weymouth is still hauling them in  

    Well Done and Best Wishes Sir!

The latter of the D words describes perfectly the findings across the southern reaches as it does the Irrigation Pond with neither sight nor sound of a waterfowl but a huge change in fortunes as arriving at the Gravel Pit

to flush c3

COMMON SNIPE

First for the Year, but with Waterfowl there "to few to mention".
By and large the rest of the morning, before the rain set in, was a methodical search both inside and out of the main Solar Panel Compound with luck at the latter in finding the lone and elusive

RED-LEGGED PARTRIDGE

trying to avoid our advances at any cost.
Some readers may recall that this bird has been teamed up with this cock

PHEASANT

and having clambered back to the 'safe-side' of the perimeter fence

to join its guardian, both became very

Camera Worthy
What came next was the find of the year thus far, even though still being in it infancy, the humble

HOUSE SPARROW
which has never been recorded in any of the Solar Panel Compounds

or for that matter across the  

    ¾ of a mile between the Fencing Centre and the Sewerage Works, so considered quite a find!         All else up north involved a collection of

at least c6

STONECHAT

the highest count

across the whole of the

WINTER 

while returning to Base we were met by a lone

GREEN WOODPECKER
but not the brightly marked one we had hoped would have graced our pages befor now, must have got wind that we are after it - but hopes are still high!