Hat Trick!

Before we get to the fun stuff, on Saturday I only had time for a very quick look at the Harbour. The wind was frisky to say the least and there was little about; a GND in the Outer Harbour and a Moorhen in the Inner were the most interesting with 3+ Purple Sands clinging on the the Real Living Coast.

The ex-Guillemot was still on the pontoon - seemingly permanently moored next to the wall now, so bugger all use for gulls [bastard council]. Here's a couple of phonocular shots;

Alas, poor Guillemot..

...I knew it well.

Ok, maybe not, but certainly alas.

Note the 'just been chucked by the feet from a small boat' posture.





Right then.


Yesterday I got myself out and went looking for what really can only be described as my favourite bird. I've been umming and ahhing about how to post this, as I enforce a strict policy concerning endangered species. By endangered I mean literally, as there are many [Long string of very rude words removed] who mean them harm in various ways. For such reasons I don't talk about raptors except definite migrants or in very location-unspecific terms, likewise Schedule 1 species are only mentioned when not breeding and then in non-specific locations.* In the past I've talked about secret birds in secret places, or like this. Doing that is a source of great frustration for me and well, I've had enough. So, just for this post, I'm going to talk about just how wonderful it can be out there.


Not that I'm going to name locations, or even use Their name. Other species will get nicknames, too. You who read my blog will know exactly what I'm talking about, and an egger, fancier, or keeper using google won't find this.



So, I went out, thinking sunshine and some breeze was promising. The wind was a bit brisker than a breeze and not exactly warm either. Standing around in it while the morning went by with only a few Crowbait on display was a trial, but when the patience runs out, there's always persistence to fall back on. A Finchchaser duly appeared and gave a brief show; despite being a hefty female it was obvious as to what she was - lovely classic T silhouette amongst other things - at least after a couple of exciting seconds. But one long-tailed thing may lead to another, so I kept on. Gold was duly struck, not once but twice! The ten minutes either side of midday were wonderful ones, with first a definite male and then what was probably a female.


The male came up from a way off and was majestically gaining height when a Crow decided, in some fit of madness or suicidal bravery, to have a go... It had to really fight to gain the altitude, but then stuck it to the [probably rather surprised] Thing with gusto. Definitely a male, the Thing was only a little larger than the attacking corvid and it seemed to be doing the Crowbait thing of trying to ignore the yarking git until it got bored. Another Crow came up to join in, and after a minute or so of tag-team attacks, It had had enough and turned the tables! Cue a roller-coaster of swooping diving rolling birds. Crow number two backed off right away, but Crow one either wouldn't or couldn't and the mayhem was still going on when the two birds vanished into the distance! I have never seen one of Them mobbed by anything before, though I have seen Crows bite off more than they could peck, courtesy of Speedfreaks and Gingers; always amusing. :)


After the fun and games, I pondered moving on and maybe having some lunch somewhere else; ie. out of the wind. But I was giddy with Their glory, so I stayed watching a bit longer. Good call.


Another came up, and much closer. This one felt bigger and heavier, but with nothing to size against I can only say probable female. It came up and up and up and up... My arms gave out before the wonderful bird - resplendent in the sunshine - stopped climbing. I gave them a quick rest and just about re-aquired, finding the Thing soaring way up.. Again my arms cried out for relief [I had been watching for a fair while and wasn't using a tripod] so again I took optics off. This time she? was gone. Must have dropped, and I couldn't refind her.


After another half hour, with no further Things, I finally moved on in search of a lunch spot. Final scores were 2 Them, 1 Finchchaser, 2+ Raven, and 9-13 Crowbait, with a few passerines flying over - 19 Linnet and 11 Redwing the best of them.


There are many bits of wooded hillside around, and the one I ended up sitting near the top of had some shelter from the wind, a bit of valley on view, and a few small birds hanging around. These included an evil little Marsh Tit, which twice sat and posed on a branch at a nice range for a photobin shot and each time flew off right before I could get it! Seeing a Marsh Tit at all there was unusual, so I'm not moaning that much. The showers arrived as I was setting up, which would have been a right pain, but I had had a cunning plan. I have an old automatic bumbleshoot - dating back to school, would you believe! - with a broken spar but otherwise functional. I decided as it fit easily in my rucksack to take it along. Setting up, I could tuck the handle in my coat's map pocket and it would sit nicely giving hands-free shelter. As long as it wasn't too windy, anyway. Ah, there are few joys greater than being out of the rain when out birding.. :)


But to the main event.
Sudden. Silent. Other words starting with S.. Most notably SHIT! 10, maybe 12m downslope from me, contouring left to right, a wing's length above the ground, one flap and a shimmy between two saplings.. 1w Thing!!!!!!!!! Nicely streaky underneath, too. Wow. Oh, wow... I was speechless, mouth gaping open. It is a wonderful thing to be able say that this was not my closest encounter with one of Them, but it was definitely one of the best. I may have danced. ;)


After that, nothing else really could compare. A lone male Crossbill flew past. There were the usual woodland species, including a wonderful Treeeecreeeper working along the underside of a mossy branch, but the day belonged to Them.



This is what birding is about, those amazing moments; be they minutes or seconds or hours. And Those birds, those glorious forces of nature. You can't predict them, can't search them out, all you can do is keep trying and trying. Sacrifice the time and effort and pain in the hope the Goddess of Birding will smile upon you and grant you a glimpse of Them. Above all others they are Her birds, the living embodiment of the wild.



I was blessed yesterday. May you be blessed tomorrow.






[[*Saying I've seen Crossbills at Fernworthy is exactly that; if you've ever been there you'll know how massive the place is. Short of giving a grid reference to a site, you're not helping an egging scrote in the slightest.]]