Something Else

In which I repeat history with near identical effects.

Shock.

So, of Old there was a Wonder of the Summer woods. My favourite warbler, Joy in the feather.

I speak of the Wood Warbler.

You just don't find them around any more.

[This is due to several factors, including migration survival*, but very largely summed up by Disturbance.**]

Except, it seems, every Spring, someone finds one, usually for a day, 'somewhere'.  Then I work out where 'somewhere' is, go there, and find nothing.

I also tend to get rained on due to lying weather forecasters.

Plus ça change and all that jazz.

Into The Woods

and all that...

Some consolations present

"Hold on, this isn't

a nest box.!?"

Another habit seems to be finding flint tools as I return defeated...

Oh yes.

Pole for scale as it was pissing down [did I mention that? Supposed to be 'sunshine and a chance of a shower', it had been raining constantly for about 45 mins by this time. Ha figgin' ha]. Pale colour due to being baked - allows finer knapping, apparently - and as you can see from the size is a microlith, so likely mesolithic. I've found a couple of others elsewhere, but this is the first at this site.

Before the rain I encountered Tree Pipit, Redstart, and Garden Warbler, which were all nice but not What I Wanted.

I wasn't giving up, and you shall be hearing More Of This.

[I shall, hopefully, be giving up Crazy Person Capitalisation....]

Be Seeing You...

[[* How many of those ringed males came back? Exactly.]]

[[** Studies have shown that male Wood Warblers, as well as singing, watch the ground carefully for terrestrial predators. Too much activity means they move on. {They nest on the ground, if you didn't know. Yes, the ultimate canopy warblers.} You can see where this is going, right? 

Also, removing understory - young trees, Holly, that sort of thing - gives far easier sightlines for Jays to locate nest sites, and lack of Goshawks gives Jays the freedom to do so unmolested.

All that means we have a snowball's chance of seeing Woodies back at Yarner any time soon...]]