A Little Surprise

Another Sunday, another day on't Moor with the Folks [whatever next!]. This time the north east, from Scorhill to the White Moor circle, then south to Wild Tor and on to Hangingstone Hill, 'round the head of the Walla Brook to Watern Tor, before looping back to Scorhill. The sun shone, the wind blew, the Skylarks sang, Tilly found a sheep bone and strutted along with it sticking out of the side of her mouth like a cigar... No Wheatears up there, but it was a good walk all the same. While the wet bits are pretty wet from the winter, the ground itself [with no significant rain for a while now] is dry but not hard, so excellent going. Visibility was excellent [unlike the last few occasions] and if it wasn't for mad sheep [["Ooh, there's a dog over there, let's stand in front of her and make her go crazy!"....]] we'd have spent a lot longer enjoying the views.

Last two days have been spent, when not diligently jobseeking, pounding the streets and paths of the Patch. A couple of Mipits on Walls Hill yesterday were definitely migrants [Despite it's vague similarity to Beer Head, no ground birds live there due to near 24 hour wogdalking {{Yes, I've nicked it, no I'm not sorry}} - I kid ye not, I've seen people walking their dogs by torchlight up there...]. The 2 BN Grebes remain in the north end of the bay, but no further sign of Yellowy-legged Gull in the harbour. Still no sign of any frickin' Chiffs, either :( Much singing and general to-do among the 'ordinary' birds, and in the Garden, we still have our Blackcaps [though only one at a time - a timeshare truce seems to be the order of things].

Spring is definitely sproinging, though - leaves on some trees, popping buds on others, the first Campion flowers :) A Small Tortoiseshell fluttered by me this morning, and a fearless Bank Vole scurried right past my feet up in the Lincombes - just foraging away, utterly unbothered by me [Desperate, deranged, or the World's Hardest Vole?] [[I couldn't help but think of it talking in badly-dubbed Cantonese...]]. Once the misty murk had burned off it was a gloriously sunny day, with the wind, while still cool and easterly, much reduced from yesterday. Thus it was that I was very surprised, when checking [for form's sake - onshore winds and a still rolling swell do not make for many grebes] off Blackball to see among the half dozen Black-headed Gulls picking at the flotsam and jetsam none other than an adult Little Gull! I've never seen one in such comparatively calm conditions before - flying past headlands or foraging in the crashing surf at Livermead is the usual backdrop, not picking stuff out of the foamy drifts off Oddicombe Beach in a rolling sea and moderate wind.. Yesterday would have been more like it [Ok, maybe it was there then too and I just missed it. Thinking about it, that seems quite likely...].. They don't call it Mad March for nothing, I suppose - maybe I'll get a Hoopoe next! [[Ho ho...]]

P.S. - The Competition is still going, btw, come on, you know you want your name up in lights [well, red, or green, or orange, or blue.. I'll do white if you really want ;) ]

PYL: 97