In post # 1126 I was worrying about Waxwings ...last year there were NONE round our way. So .. I've got out all the local bird reports I've been able to find, and some of my relevant finds as well, and here's what " 1st Arrival Dates" I've found ...so far. 1988 14/11 1991 26/11 1996 13/11 1998 2/12 1997 22/11 2000 13/12 2002 6/1 ( the only one I saw that winter) 2003 23/10 2008 21/11 And if you put them in date order you get this ... OCT NOV NOV NOV NOV NOV DEC DEC JAN 23 13 14 21 22 26 2 13 6 So ...now you know. The second half of November looks like the best bet. You can, if you wish, calculate the mean, median and mode. And the best of luck for all of us Waxwing-Wanters. Or, if you prefer , Bombycilla-Baggers. And, what with Autumn Approaching, what we really really need is a poem about Autumn birds. So ..here is one ... by John Clare (1793 - 1864) AUTUMN BIRDS The wild duck startles like a sudden thought, And heron slow as if it might be caught; The flopping crows on weary wing go by, And greybeard jackdaws, noising as they fly; The crowds of starnels whizz and hurry by And darken like a cloud the evening sky; The larks like thunder rise and suther* round, Then drop and nestle in the stubble ground; The wild swan hurries high and noises loud, With white neck peering to the evening cloud, The weary rooks to distant woods are gone; With length of tail the magpie winnows on To neighbouring wing, and leaves the distant crow, While small birds nestle in the hedge below. * ..to make a rushing noise. So .... it is music time.... let's have some action ... .... Hey ... I managed to get some petrol today ... I was very thoughtful and only put £10 -worth in. Anyway, it's a chink of light in glum times.
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It seems to be "Garden Raptor Week" at the moment .... we had a very brief Merlin a few days ago, and this morning we had 15 mins with a Sparrowhawk on the Eucalyptus ... excellent ! If you move your eyes upwards from the blue table, there it is on a branch. And ... as I'm writing this, 49 grey geese have flown over southwards silently at a great height ... no calls at all, so tricky to ID. About an hour after that snap was taken, we got soaked to the skin in a terrible torrential downpour .. and not only that ... it was very cold as well. The house is now draped with many square metres of soggy clothes. And now, the very appropriate music .... but you'll need to click on the " Watch on Youtube" thingy ... and you'll be wanting to sing along with the subtitles.. Here's what the i newspaper had to say about Pink-footed Geese..... " The flocks of Pink-footed Geese sound like 1000 bicycle horns in Tiananmen Square " But, of course, their most frequent call is a rather high-pitched and squeaky "wink-wink" ... and the "ung-unk" call is far less likely to be heard. And here's another thing ...also in the paper was a big, half-page pic of a group of penguins in Antarctica ... but the caption-writer might have bothered to tell us what sort they were ...but they didn't. Why not ? Were they short of ink ? Had they got an vital meeting to go to ? I think not. But enough of all this negativity .... lets have an uplifting song ..... the Lumineers ..... " Brightside" ... smashing stuff ! A little while ago I wrote about the tedious times I've spent waiting outside supermarkets while the TSO dawdles about inside getting stuff. But I did spot ... Approx 100 Pinks V.v. high up going South Then a Jay right overhead similarly south. And then a 190+ bunch doing the same. So that was OK . Then I strolled down to the river and counted the Common Gulls. All that got ditched last winter due to Covid restrictions. THEN ... I ruined my orthinological credentials by buying ( 99p)(Oxfam Shop) that book up there. When I got home I drew horns on everyone. It took a while. ..and now, the wonderful " Wir sind Helden" und " Von hier an blind" ......... and it is the "sing-along" version as an extra bonus..... |
AuthorThat's the author up there ... I was young and sprightly then. Archives
October 2022
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