Blog n pics

Killing in the name

Thu, 24 Dec 2009 05:56:00 -0500

Have a merry festival of consumerism all ,cant even bring myself to use the c word.Absolutely delighted that Rage against the Machine are this years Christmas number one! There Ive used the c word - I find the word christmas more offensive than the other c word -cunt (which is a versatile adjective, think Cliff Richard and mistletoe and wine for example).Im not just delighted because of the fact that the chorus of killing in the name is fuck you I wont do what you tell me,its what this song and band mean to me personally.Back in 1992 ,when I was in my 20s this particular record blew me away ,on many occasions I lost my voice quite literally by singing along to this one in various London nightclubs that played so called alternative music of the day like the Camden Palace for example,listen to this track and you will see what I mean.The previous year , had seen Nirvanas Never Mind released ,Red Hot chilli Peppers seminal Blood Sugar Sex Magik and Pearl Jam brought out their finest album Ten -what a year for music fans ,I was in my element .All these records still sound good today by the way.A new generation of fans of intelligent music have found and embraced Killing in the name and what it says and thats a beautiful thing as far as I am concerned.Rage Against the Machines modern day incarnation as a hybrid Sound Garden /RATM supergroup called AudioSlave could have a bearing on RATMs current popularity too .No matter that national radio stations still enforce sensorship (as in Fascist dictator led countries) this isnt a hollow victory for Christmas hating ,music fans ,its a show of strength, the epitome of people power.The x factors offering a cynical commercial money making venture ,with no originality whatso ever has been denied the coveted number one spot at the record industries most lucrative time of the year.Rage Against the Machine ,musically and lyrically excel ,they still have the power to send shivers up my spine nad give me goose pimples after all these years ,the throw away nature of the pop bubble gumof x factor with nothing to say could not make a more stark comparison.The alleged fact that the record industry is on its arse does not enter into the equation ,I would question the perception that the music indusrty in the British Isles has died ,that nobody buys records any more.We have since the advent of the i pod and its music downloads more freedom and choice than ever before.The i pod was a fantastic invention ,it revolutionised music buying ,suddenly cds looked rubbish when they first appeared ,in the a similar way to how awful records seemed in comparison to cds when cds first became commercially available.So not a hollow victory then , a genuine ,miraculas one ,the Rage Against the Machine website has had a million hits ,on this site ,real issues are addressed ,yes thats right politics,and things that actually matter around the globe opposition to oppresion for example,sadly the x factors site has discussions about hairstyles and similarly vaacuous subject matter.I am not saying that I begrudge kids from buying x factor records ,personally I cant tell the difference between the ironically named Britains got Talent and x factor ,thats absolutely fine let kids enjoy this stuff if they want ,what I take exception to is grown adults buying this drivel and listening to it ,spending their dreary lives never questioning anything-these people irritate me(they could try listening to Wake up by RATM ,but I doubt they would get it) .The point of the excercise will be lost on many ,no matter ,I am over the moon.Lets make it an annual tradition ,power to the music lovers who have hijacked the Christmas number one . .Im off to listen to them right now

Snowy pit is no place for a toss 19/12/09

Mon, 21 Dec 2009 09:51:00 -0500

A new addition to my garden list was the snipe that I watched flying over .Up at the pit ,the second time this year that its been covered in snow,the main pond was almost entirely frozen over and covered largely in snow ,making a familiar scene look entirely different.On the main pond there were no ducks ,geese,grebes or swans in fact the only birds present were three coots on the only part of the water that wasnt frozen ,huddled up apparently having called an amnesty to hostilities ,usually they attack each other when their personal space is breached.Apart fom the coots there was a single moorhen pottering about near the reed bed ,skidding along on the ice.In nearby trees were some crows ,about half a dozen lapwings and a couple of mippits flew over ,at last something to look at.I can honestly say that I have never seen the place so quiet,the birds are elsewhere or out of sight of course.A snipe flew over before landing briefley ,thinking better of it ,flew into the reed bedI wondered if this was the same fellow that had flown over our garden earlier.A single wren was out in the open oblivious to my standing a few feet away and probably desperately trying to find some food.The numbersof other birds that I saw were low too for example,two green woodpeckers,four bullfinch ,one yellowhammer,one fieldfare,two redwings ,one kestrel.The jackdaws and lapwings being the most numerous ,and of course the goldfinch charm ,which has split into several differant groups,not even many gulls or pigeons about.

Noticing that the traffic was at a standstill on the road heading towards Glapwell ,I could see through my scope an ambulance ,and two police cars,there had obviously been an accident.Whilst I was looking at this ,I couldnt help but notice someone with their cock out ,being tossed off by someone else.In the snow? the most sensitive to the cold part of your body? They seemed to be enjoying themselves anyway ,so I carried on looking for the green woodpecker that I had seen out the corner of my eye.

How to waste 3 million quid by Defra

Sat, 19 Dec 2009 15:03:00 -0500

The ruddy duck cull has always been controversial.Now its happening at Kingsmill reservoir very soon .Since this sickening cull has been ongoing ,18 hybrids have been found in the British Isles.Meanwhile in its native Spain ,white headed duck numbers are showing signs of recovery.What value for money then ,well done Defra,almost as futile as Natural Englands grey squirrel cull ,both these projects achieve absolutely nothing and cost vasts amounts of money ,that would be far more productively spent on conservation proper.There are 18 Ruddys at Kingsmill currently ,not for much longer.I took this picture of this ruddy duck at Kingsmill ,an innocent scapegoat,a beautiful creature ,a shocking waste of life.

Cold ears at Carr Vale 18/12/09

Sat, 19 Dec 2009 14:47:00 -0500

Snow on the ground and a nip in the air ,as soon as I got home from Carr Vale ,I fell asleep when the cosyness of the indoors hit me.A kestrel was giving a superb close range display of his hunting prowess.The lapwings were few in numbers -they just wont stay put when its this cold.The field below the model village was devoid of the expected winter thrushes ,only a single mistle and a redwing in nearby trees.On the bird table by the main viewing screen ,there was a dozen reed buntings feeding at a time ,at two of the feeding stations I watched a busy queue to get a nibble including willowtits,bullfinch ,blue,and great tits ,blackbirds,robins,chaffinchs,and dunocks all keen to get a look in and slow to fly off when passers by appeared,I took this to mean that they were all hungrier than usual.Another goldfinch charm ,they have had a good year.Headed back after a couple of hours as the wind was starting to bite ,my eyes streamed,my nose ran and despite wearing gloves ,my hands were the same colour as a pink footed gooses emm feet.The TWO hats didnt stop the ears from getting cold ,although these jews ears fungus look even colder!

Mystery and drama at Brierley Forest Park 17/12/09

Thu, 17 Dec 2009 14:02:00 -0500

Desperately cold today ,the sun was shining so that meant it was time to get away from four walls.At BFP there were lots of bullfinch ,looking splendid in the sunshine as were the charm of goldfinch c200 strong ,closer inspection revealed the hoped for siskin and redpoll in their number.Redwings flew past severel times,lots of LTTs too,glimpsed a sparrowhawk in flight before the sky quickly and dramatically darkened as it began to snow,proper settling on the ground white stuff as opposed the half hearted nonsense that had fallen from the sky earlier in the day.Despite the arctic like conditions ,I managed to have a chat with a couple of friendly local bird watchers and ask them about this site .

The reasons for my doing this will become clear later .Dying for a brew and a pee at the same time ,the visitor centre cafe was closed .It doesnt need to be Minsmere to equal an enjoyable time watching birds is the moral of this tale.

same old 15/12/09

Tue, 15 Dec 2009 11:39:00 -0500

At work last week ,I watched Sparrowhawks,buzzards,kestrels,winter thrushes like mistle and fieldfare,wrens,and lots of other more common birds,if I didnt smoke I wouldnt have seen any of these as they were watched whilst slipping out for a QF.Lets hear it for good old tobacco! In my next blog ,I will be extoling the virtues of alcohol and cocaine .

Through the gloom at Pleasley Pit today ,I made out a kingfisher landing on its favourite perch,even that seemed dull in the near darkness!Some of the Snipe were out in the open mingling with the lapwings.Ducks present were: mallard,teal,gadwall,pochard and tufted.Usual person with dogs in the water disturbing the birds,this still irritates me ,however I simply couldnt be arsed telling yet another person to stop doing this,the lack of daylight never mind sunshine had dampened my spirits.On the end of my nose was a huge dew drop,in fact the half dozen locals and others that I spoke to had similarly massive nose dew drops.Went home and am now too hot with the heating on.

The pit building is covered in scaffolding .The village was unusually noisy today with more noise comng from where the road is being rersurfaced where the new houses have been built.Normally you can hear a pin drop up on the former pit tip.The pit building itself ,finally apparently undergoing restoration wanted either this or demolishing before it rotted away any further,making a mockery of its listed building status.I hope it one day will be fully restored .Theres a generation now ,who mining seems alien to,burning fossil fuels seems with the benefit of hind sight to have been an environmentally disasterous idea.Theres poetic justice when former coal pits are restored to allow nature to return,albeit to a lesser extent than if the coal pit had never been built in the first place. I crave the sweet song of skylarks from this siteand some vitamin D bringing sunshine.May emigrate..The goldfinch charm if anything seems to have lessened in numbersand despite their fancy multicoloured-ness still looked drab.Bullfinch in the garden ,he looked dull too in the gloom!

Sickening Sight

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 05:12:00 -0500

Driving home from work at the weekend ,I saw a pheasant shoot in action.This was near Clowne ,in a field were people holding flags above their heads ,they were walking slowly in order to flush the pheasants and partridges ,in the background I could see tweed suited twats with shotguns in their hands.I felt sick to the pit of my stomach ,followed by feeling incredibly angry.Please see the dont shoot birds page on this site.If you are a member of the local RSPB group,please see my letter in their latest newsletter.Better still visit the websites of Animal Aid and the League Against Cruel Sports.

Its frightening the number of senior Tory MPs who are denial about Climate Change.Its even more worrying that these enemies of conservation are likely to form our next government.Heres some examples of what I mean ,these are quotes .Nigel Lawson said: We have entered an age of unreason,which threatens to be as economically harmful as it is disquietening.Heres what Douglas Carswell said: When I was a member of Friends of the Earth,I did believe human CO2 emmisssions were responsible for global warming.Its just that the facts seem to have changed and so I have changed my mind.Philip Davies said: Everyone has gone completely mad on this .Anyone who says hang on a minute is completely decried and and is treated like a holoccaust denier.John Redwood said We will benefit from the better weather for tourism,agriculture and outdoor sport.(Anyone remember John Redwoods failed leadership coup ,during the John Major era?)The Deputy Chairman of the Conservatives ,John Maples said : The only argument for acting radically now if there is a tipping point of no return .None of the scientists whom I have read predicts that.

I will say only this ,you decide if these people are fit to govern our country.

Donna Nook /Rimac 7/12/09

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 04:22:00 -0500

The day before yesterday was nice and sunny ,unlike yesterday which could be described as being dull,almost dark ,windy and rainy.Today of course the sun is out ,we had put off going to Donna Nook once this year as the weather had been similarly crap.No matter the common seals were there in huge numbers ,most of the pups getting quite big now and very CUTE.Surrounding bushes were full of tree sparrows.The snow Buntings ,mixed with Twite ,diverted our attention on the beach from the seals .A suspect Water Pipit remains unidentified.In amongst the Brent Geese was allegedly a Black Brant ,we saw it but I am not counting it as I am not 100% certain.The wife hassled me for spending too much time looking for the BB ,tummys rumbled and a pub meal beckoned Had to tear myself away.The pub turned out to be food less ,so it was shitty chips from the Mablethorpe ( -what a depressing dump).Of the 200 or so bird species Ive seen in this country this year ,Im not counting crap views like this one of a distant Black Brant ,nor of course ones that Ive only heard and not seen.Anyway ,we enjoyed watching a huge flock of curlew fly over ,another even bigger of redshanks calling loudly and a field with hundreds of Golden Plover in.A peregrine put everything up at once ,tens of thousands of birds from the already metioned waders and other small waders (Dunlin? Knott? too distant to identify),to the Brent Geese,Shelduck ,starlings ,goldfinch ,twite ,mippits ,snobs ,you name it ,it was in theair at the same time ,creating a wow moment .I was too engroused in the spectacle to actually look for the peregrine.The MOD who own the land had restricted acccess today as they like blowing things up here apparently ,so the combination of explosions and bird watchers or members of the public looking at seals ,not being a sensible one.On a previous visit we had walked out towards the sea and been surrounded by thousands of waders .Some greater black backed gulls fed on a couple of seal pup carcasses.Most of the adult seals were on a thin strip of land nearer the sea than the beach ,the pups were mainly on the beach still ,perhaps the parents were getting their new off spring used to the idea of being on their own.Missed the shore Lark.The pied waggies had very yellow faces. See the Donna Nook page for more pics of cute seals!

At Rimac ,which we have been told and read is an excellent place to see Hen Harriers ,Short Eared Owl and Merlin at dusk ,was windy ,rainy and devoid of any of these birds.It had a lot of expectation to live up to ,as always with birding ,you need to put in the hours to see the birds.A water Rail flew past us at close range ,whilst I was trying to figure out wheather a pair of distant Little Egrets were Spoon bills or not.

charming 30/11/09

Mon, 30 Nov 2009 10:53:00 -0500

The goldfinch charm at Pleasley pit ,is building up in numbers again and a delight to watch they are too.The wind is icy cold today ,some nice sunshine though.May go up there with some nyger seed and see if they will come anywhere near my camera.On return from the pit ,the garden was full of goldfinches....Saw a fox the other night driving home ,wife spotted a weazel dashing out in front of the car ,I was too busy driving at the time ,well actually I was looking at a bird at that moment ,so missed it.

no mention of jack snipe 17/11/09

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 14:08:00 -0500

Not even going to mention the jack snipe that come getting dark time ,having lost the use of my extra pink hands,had not appeared at Pleasley pit this afternoon.The several hundred gulls had departed from the main pond ,off to roost (kingsmill res? ,River Meden?) A green woodpecker seemed surprised to see me and rapidly dissapeared,as did three grey partridge.Whilst staring at a reed bed for several hours ,out popped a kingfisher,who perched on a post for a few seconds,a few moments later it flew ,low across the water,they always look like they are in a great hurry too.Ive got a collection of rubbish kingfisher pictures ,Im sure that you dont want to see another here.

Old Moor again 16/11/09

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 14:11:00 -0500

On the way to work a couple of days ago ,a female merlin flew out in front of the car ,I almost crashed,getting as good a look as possible .Wow what was all that about I wondered , actually I uttered the words fuck me! despite the fact that I was the only one in the car.If theres anyone at all who has been paying attention ,in my blog last week I told tales of not seeing jack snipe at William Thorpe ,depite knowing that they were in a reed bed that I was staring at .This is mentioned as my wife ,yesterday strolled up to Pleasley pit ,our local patch and saw a jack snipe...In the garden she had ben watching a greater spotted woodpecker ,before seeing a a pair of green woodys at the pit.When she toId me,I swore again ,in jealousy ,Iam of course glad that she got this elusive bird ,even better locally.

Today at Old Moor ,I was fully thermalled and waterproofed and looked a twat in my wellies ,rain and wind ,bring it on I thought .I rather smugly watched many people ill prepared getting a good soaking .Watched a little grebe flying and the thought occurted that you dont often see these little beauties fly ,I dont anyway,a rare treat then.The star of the show bird for me ,being the beautiful golden plover ,counted a few hundred of these special birds,last year in october the numbers were in their thousands.Plenty of waterfowl about at this time of year as can be expected the drakes of teal and wigeon looking superb during the blasts of sunshine between showers and near torrential downpours.Got an extreme close up of a wren who was apparently unconcerned or oblivious to my being there.Similarly in the garden this morning ,a collared dove was watching me from a tree just a few feet away ,I thought he will fly away in a moment -he didnt .The tree sparrows at Old Moor are always a pleasure,some of them having the indignity of wearing pink rings.The squizzers were doing their best to wreck the feeders that are supposed to be squirrel proof.Under the feeders were pheasants pottering around ,have you ever noticed how gorgeous a pheasants eyes are?how anyone could look into these eyes before pulling a trigger and blowing away an exquisite creature ,I will never understand.The golden plover and lapwing were extremely skittish ,up and down more often than a slappers knickers,could have been the wind,could have been the peregrine that was about .The Highland Cattle are very inquiitive when you open a hide window ,they come right up to you and see what you are doing ,well at the time I was trying to get a picture of a pied wagtail ,not easy when theres a big shaggy brown chap staring at you.Wondered why Im still pissing around digiscoping when I was shown some pictures a guy had taken on his nice digital SLR (of a grey waggie),oh yes I ve remembered now ,I cant afford one.The best things in life are free,mind you this crap website was free.Most off putting when photographing wagtails (pictured below)

Thrush nightingale indeed 9/11/09

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 14:33:00 -0500

It could be described as being a wee bit chilly out ,we have had some marvelous sunshine today to compensate.Been to Sutton Lawns to look for the bramblings that werent there again.Met a woman there who interegated me about pied wagtails ,apparently she wrote a poem about a pied wagtail that was in her garden that got published in the local newspaper.It would be fair to say that Sutton lawns was absolutely teeming with birds, large and small this morning ,it was lovely and peaceful until the dog walkers started arriving and I departed,before watching mistle thrushes chasing each other around and starlings that like poking their heads into a crevice in a tree to name but two.

At William Thorpe ponds ,yesterday ten whooper swans had been seen .I could hear water rails squeeling from the reed beds ,seeing them was another matter though-in other words I stared into a reed bed for longer than usual before not seeing them.Talking of which ,the local council ranger was telling me that a couple of jack snipe had been ringed here this morning .This would explain the two guys walking through the reed beds ,they were taking down the nets when I was there.I watched ,anticipating a couple of jack snipe to be flushed in dramatic fashion ,instead three common snipe casually wandered out of the reed bed into the open and proceeded to impersonate a sewing machine .Emm a sewing machine that has a big beak and pipes mud ,oh never mind.The ringers did scare a bunny (who ran off)Glimpsed a kingfisher.

At Carr Vale a couple of weeks ago ,I had been watching pinkfooted geese on visible migration and had admired golden plover.Today I was highly amused to watch a squirrel ,with a mouth full of leaves ,pop into the little owls nestbox ,right under the nose of the little owl.On emerging from the nestbox ,the squirrel attempted to depart ,but not before the little owl had karate chopped him around the head,flying through the air ,talons first to deliver a well placed blow to the cheeky squizzers boat race.I was quite happily watching a cormorant wrestling with a huge fish ,when annoying person number two of the day appeared.Incidently the first pillock was at William Thorpe ponds ,made the mistake of moaning to me about the fact that cormorants steal all the fishermans fish.The fish belong to you do they? I asked .No its artificially stocked isnt it so you can play your fish injuring/killing game isnt it? The cormorant isnt eating fun ,he is doing it in order to survive.No hint was taken and the dullard droned on ,while my stomach rumbled in need of sustanance ,so I just walked away wishing him good luck with whatever he was hoping to achieve.Anyway I digress,bufoon number twos wife felt the need to tell me that she only liked robins in the winter(?) ,and that her mother felt the same way ,Im not making any of this up by the way.The straight man of this particular comedy duo piped up with a tale about how having left a pub in the wee small hours on a freezing cold winter day ,heard a amazing bird song ,that he couldnt identify it before coming to the conclusion that it could only have been a thrush nightingale.Hmmm,not a blackbird then I offerd .Then he had to tell me about the time that he caught a lanner falcon in his garden (whatever)and how the RSPB werent interested.I ignored them long enough for their tiny attention span to be exhausted and carried on looking at (some more ) snipe and a nice drake goosander.The willow tit seen in the carpark brought a smile ,the mistle thrushes were just afew feet away from me as I sat in the car getting warmed up.An enjoyable days birding ,no matter the lack of bramblings /other invisible birds,I enjoyed it and thats the bottom line( that some of these ultra serious birders seem to forget)

Frankie Boyle makes me piss my pants

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 13:56:00 -0500

As the Nottingham Anglers' Association bailiff on King's Mill Reservoir, I must say something about the amount of bread being fed to the ducks, geese and swans. I, for one, know what pleasure grown-ups and children get from feeding the birds, but please try to feed wheat or corn instead of bread, particularly white, which is unnatural food and is really quite harmful to the birds. The bread also has effects on water quality, plus it attracts vermin if any is left lying around. I hope that consideration and a little thought for the welfare of the birds will be used. PAM HALLAM,

This letter (above)appeared in the Mansfield Chad newspaper.The one below ,written by my nice wife will hopefully be appearing soon

Dear Madam,

Many people enjoy feeding bread to ducks, swans and geese at our local parksand reservoirs and like to encourage their children to do so as itbrings them closer to some of our most common forms of wildlife. Although it is well intentioned, I wonder how many people realise thatthey are doing more harm than good? Kingsmill Reservoir attracts alotof wildfowl such as mallards, tufted ducks, canada and greylag geese with numbers increasing during the winter months when the birds are looking for food. However, feeding bread to birds causes many problems not only to the birds themselves but also adversely affects the ecology of the water.

Modern manufactured white bread contains bleached flour and artificial preservatives, making it unsuitable for small animals and birds. It causes malnutrition in birds by swelling up in their stomachs making them feel full and preventing them from eating a natural healthy diet. It also creates a vitamin E deficiency and a build up of protein resulting in an excessive growth of feathers in the wings of geese. This is a condition known as 'Angel wing'where the bird's wings droop and turn outwards, eventually preventingthe bird from flying. Imagine then, the scale of the problem if everyone visiting the reservoir decidesto bring one or more loaves of bread to feed the ducks and geese.Walking around Kingsmill I have often seen an excess of uneaten bread,sometimes whole unbroken loaves left to rot. Rotten bread causesenteritis in ducks and one single outbreak can kill all the birds inone area. Bread can also cause serious impaction in the bird's crop(gullet) If this were not bad enough, a build up of uneaten breadfloating about on the surface of the reservoir causes a type of water pollution called eutrophication.

Thisis when an excessive amount of nutrients in the water creates thegrowth of poisonous algae, dangerous to both humans and animals. Thistoxic algae reduces the oxygen levels in the water resulting in thedeath of fish and a reduction in the number of insects. The algal bloomsmay also potentially block sunlight and prevent the photosynthesis of plants below the water. I'm sure your readers will agree that none of this is good for our wildlife.

So what should we feed the birds?

In the wild, swans, ducks and geese will eat a variety of plants, seeds, grains and insects.

If you feel you must supplement their natural diet then the kindest thing to do is to feed them corn, wheat, pearl barley or sunflower seeds.There are small bags of waterfowl seed on sale in the Strawberry Fayrecafe at Kingsmill reservoir exactly for this purpose. Not only is thisa more environmentally friendly way of feeding the birds, but by buyingthis seed you will also be supporting the work of The Friends ofKingsmill Res. Please also think aboutfeeding locations and consider other users of the reservoir. There arefeeding stages situated at various points around the reservoir soplease do use them. Boat jetties are nota suitable place for throwing food to the birds. Sutton In AshfieldSailing Club have politely requested that the public do not throwbirdfood onto the jetties for health and safety reasons.

TheRoyal Society for the Protection of Birds does not advocate the feedingof bread to wild birds. If you require further advice or information onany aspect of feeding wildbirds then there are a series of leafletsavailable which can be obtained from the RSPB Mansfield Local Group. We can be contacted online at www.rspb.org.uk/groups/mansfield

Anne Sommerville RSPB Mansfield Local Group

So whats this got to do with Frankie Boyle ? Well nothing really ,he is an extremelely funny guy ,recently on the telly,on Mock the week to be precise ,he took the piss out of Mansfield Munter Rebecca Adlington,I remember it amusing me at the time.The Chad has published an arcticle about how offended Rebbecas mum is by Frankie Boyles comments about her daughters appearance.Rebbecca is a local hero ,when she won her gold medals at the Olympics ,I thought fantastic ,Mansfield can be rightly proud of her .Im afraid Frankie was right however when he made reference to her having a face like a bulldog chewing a wasp (or whatever it was he said) Fair enough.The Chad by the way ,while I am libeling people is usually a thoroughly depressing read ,a typical edition will be highlighting the woefully inept non league football teams latest defeat at the hands of modest opposition.The rest of the newspaper is basically a list of local crime or adverts for tat that any right minded person wouldnt give house room to.The most hillarious section being the local jobs that are available ,both of them and one of them is at Macdonalds .Next weeks blog: why you should boycott Macdonalds.

Oh hang on ,Ive remembered that this is meant to be about birds and stuff.Today at Pleasley Pit ,I watched several green woodpeckers ,while a kestel hovered in mid air, a huge charm of goldfinch floated by .This years charm ,being about 100 strong at present ,hopefully some siskin will join them again.Lots of Mippits about .

Albert Ross

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 14:58:00 -0500

This life sized model of a Royal Albertross ,was kindly loaned to me for a week by Alan Bailey from the Mansfield RSPB group.Thanks Alan ,Im sure you will agree ,Alans creation is something special.I made as many members of the public aware through out the week of the ongoing RSPB campaign working in partnership with Birdlife International to Save the Albertross.Some of the stuff I was telling people included that 100,000 Albertross s around the globe are killed needlessly annually.At least they were .What are the RSPB doing about it ? I would ask before mentioning that for example in Argentina this time last year aproximately 1500 Albratross s drowned in longline fishing nets ,due to a simple measure like working with the local fishermen to redesign the fishing hook that is getting caught in their beaks and drowning them ,before adding that the deaths have been reduced in South Africa by 84% .Of the 23 species of Albie around the world ,21 are threatened with extinction -they would almost definately become extinct were it not for the RSPB/Birdlife International intiative.are you collecting stamps for the Save the Albatross appeal? Hassle everyone you know to do this please,pass them onto your local RSPB group.I thank you.

Merula mystery 6/11/09

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 14:05:00 -0500

Anyone that knows the horrible dump that is Sutton In Ashfield town Centre,will know where Asda is ,this evening in their car park ,a blackbird wassinging beautifully from a tree in this spot.Earliest I have heard them sing before is in december .

My ten year old niece, Megan is showing encouraging signs of becoming a bird watcher.We were on a bike ride and she wanted to go to the river Meden from the village to see the ducks,after we had done that she wanted to ride (my wifes) bike to Pleasley Pit to see some more birds (who was I to argue) We stopped at the park on the way there where she was interested enough to ask me about the sparrows in the hedges.At the pit a skein of geese landed close by on a small pond ,she loved this and when I told her there is a bird hide nearby ,she was keen to go.In the hide ,she asked me if she should write down on a list of the birds that she had seen ,yes what a good idea I agreed!The leader of the Pleasley Pit Nature Study Group looked on ,She is going to be a member of the new Wildlife Exploreres group thats starting locally soon I offered.I wish that my parents had been interested in wildlife ,they taught me nothing about natural history ,shocking parenting,if in the unlikely event that my mother reads this ,I hope that she gets the message ,that she severely effected the size of my bird list...

At work ,I watched a sparrowhawk lunge at and miss a house sparrow,the day before in the garden another sprawk had given a blackbird the fright of its life.Talking of blackbirds cant help but wondering about the early singer,is it sedentry and resisted the temptation to go to Ireland ? or has it come from a Scandanavian or Eastern European country ?Either way its keen to stake a claim to that tree as a territory in a grotty part of Sutton.Redwings are definately getting more numerous now ,seen over our garden a couple of times recently .At work again ,there were some Mistle Thrushes about and I heard a Kestrel ,making a peculiar squeeking noise in flight and whilst hunting ,hovering and squeeking! Later on again unusually ,two kestrels hunted mid air just a few feet apart,opposite each other mid hover.Is one of these birds a fledgling from this year? asked apal who offered this theory ,to be honest ,I was puzzled by it .Have in the past seen occasionally two kestrels hunting nearby ,but not like these two...On the way to work today ,a cock pheasant flew out in front of me ,beautiful looking bird ,lousy flier though and desperately unfair that some one is likely to blow him away .We have on the one hand ,organisations like the RSPB for example doing vital conservation work meanwhile about 35 million innocent so called game birds pay with their lives to amuse posh people.Its high time that this barbaric slaughter is made illegal -permanently.

Talking of the RSPB ,theHarapan forest ,according to the most recent estimate has only 25 tigers .Its desperately important that these magical creatures are protected.There have been horrendous forest fires in Sumatra recently.More and more orangutang habitat is being lost for palm oil plantations.Support the RSPB in this venture-you know it makes sense.

Ginger cat that I know ,murdered a wren yesterday ,the wife prised his jaws open to spit out the wriggling wren ,who sadly died a traumatic death .Ever looked at a wren in minute detail? They are a work of art, not bad for Britains most common bird ,and what a song for its size!Surely ,in the winter at least ,blackbirds become our most numerous bird? If not ,how about woodpigeons ,I think that someone should do a quick count and get back to me .

Carr Vale 26/10/09

Mon, 26 Oct 2009 14:38:00 -0400

Watching corvids get out of a tree in their hundreds had me fascinated ,they had seen a couple of buzzards and a ridiculas number of them immediately mobbed the offending raptor.Then the wiffling kicked in and they were back to their lofty perch again ,many corvid conversations going on at once,they were probably saying to each other something along the lines of: did you see that bloody buzzard ,thinks he can fly past us without regreting it? oh I know what a liberty,Id hate to be as stupid as a buzzard.The buzzard was probably thinking ,neurotic rooks ,I was quite happily riding the thermals day dreaming about rabbits when these psychos appear from nowhere....anyway

A quick blast around Sutton Lawns failed to uncover any bramblings,there was a greater spotted woodpecker in the trees where if you are lucky there are bramblings.

At Carr vale the previous day there had been a cattle egret ,not today however.Cattle egrets are breeding in Dorset ,they look likely to colonise in the same way that little egrets have( and hopefully glossy ibis too) trouble is ,Ive never actually seen one in this country before.Last time I clapped eyes on a cattle egret it was in Egypt ,where it would be fair to say that they are common along the Nile Delta.The pink footed geese more than made up for a lack of cattle egrets .Before I had got to the viewing platform ,several people had told me that two huge skeins of PFs had been over .I saw the third huge skein -and the forth.There were lots of twitcher types around ,between the half dozen of them ,they counted over 400 each time.I started counting them ,but gave up and instead enjoyed watching them -something the twitchers apparently forgot to do .Its magical witnessing migration en masse ,as its in progress,its right up there as one of my most enjoyable moments bird watching this year ,even competing with the 60 000 puffins on Farne.The kingfisher sat on a post seemed an anti climax ,almost un noticed were the buzzard and huge flock of two my favourites golden plover and lapwings sharing a field to feed in before getting into the air together.And of course Ive always got my first UK Cattle Egret to look forward to preferably hanging around with some spoonbills , which would be nice...

Carsington (and stuff)

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 14:08:00 -0400

Keep seeing green woodpeckers -which is good ,not just on my home patch either.

At Carsington today the water fowl were reaching rather large numbers with many duck species present including goldeneye,pintail,scaup and most notably as many wigeon to look at as you would want.An injured mute swan was being hassled mercilessly by a crow ,the Rangers were informed.The barnacle geese are building in numbers ,they are as my wife would say a dainty goose.One of those days when nothing unusual was about ,but was none the less enjoyable watching familiar birds.A rumoured marsh harrier ,eluded me as did the great northern diver and the scoters that have recently been seen here.A kestrel landed on a dead tree ,regulars at the sheepwash hide will know this particular tree,anyway two magpies immediately hassled the kestrel ,who dived into the hollow trunk persued by the pied corvids before admiting defeat and taking off in a huff.The lapwings looked absolutely splendid in the sunshine ,each time I get a good view ,close up of one of these beauties I think the same thing that they are delightful,I enjoyed watching their acrobatic ariel displays and listening to them making their unique peewit noise ,their restlessness always provides a spectacle as they launch themselves into the air en masse before circling and landing again in more or less the same spot ,maybe a leave had fallen off a tree a few miles away and spooked them ,ironically they stayed put when a sparrowhawk swooped down onto a nearby spit of land.Missed a kingfisher ,too busy yaking.

On the way to work this morning a magpie lunged at a squirrel on a grassy bank that I was driving past at the time ,the squirrel shot into the air in a comedy fashion.Noticable is the number of buzzards around ,some of them give you cracking views.

Pleasley pit on a sunny day again 12/10/09

Mon, 12 Oct 2009 10:20:00 -0400

Its true,the sun was shining today ,in fact it was almost warm at one point . A good day then to have a stroll around the local patch ,having worked seven days in a row and going slightly mad.A bullfinch shot out of a tree and flew over my head while I was thinking that would make a nice picture .A male kestrel sat on the pit buildings chimney.A solitary redwing whoosed past A charm of goldfinch numbered about a hundred,I watched some of them drinking from a puddle.In the surrounding fields amongst the many lapwing were about a dozen golden plover ,they took flight while I was watching half a dozen yellowhammers feeding in a nearer field.Another kestrel had landed in a tree a few feet away from where we had been standing,when it took off a black headed gull persued him ,mobbing the kestrel relentlessly.A sparrowhawk put in an apperance,before I headed up the path known as longhedge locally ,where I stopped and watched a dunnock taking a bath in another puddle.a green wood pecker shot by , a song thrush apparently surprised to see me flew out of a bush and past me -twice.I could hear a jay ,one took flight from a tree that I didnt realise he was in ,quickly followed by another jay.The stock doves and jackdaws proved that sometimes they leave the roof of the pit building.Another green woodpecker flew by in undulating flight.From the hide I was admiring some teal and could see movement in the reeds behind one of them ,snipe? looked more like jack snipe ,too small for snipe ,watched it preen breifly ,partially obscured by the reeds ,the beak too looked too short for snipe,before I could decide for certain ,it dissapeared into the reed bed.

Spurn Point 4/10/09

Tue, 06 Oct 2009 13:56:00 -0400

It was strange to see a couple of Swallows over the river Meden ,then a few haundred yards later in sunny Pleasley to see some redwings.The temperature first thing in the morning definately felt Autumna,its only a small village but its a twenty minute walk to Pleasley hill.Pleasley Hill hopefully will be demolished soon-they could put something useful ints place.The usual grey wagtail was by the dam ,no sign of the dipper...Highlight of this RSPB local group trip to Spurn point for me at least was the Kestrels.Yes we did get a not very good view of an Arctic Skua out at sea and a distant Hobby,some Whimbrel,and the usual assortment of waders,the Kestrels I could have watched all day.A female in hovering mode ,swooped ,went for and got a weazel,which she scooped up in her talons and flew off with the wriggling, writhing & protesting weazel.I watched this drama unfold wondering if she could handle prey that large.The weazel somehow wriggled free of her grip and dropped about eight foot in the air,promptly running into a bush and hiding.A few seconds later and the kestrel was hovering over the same spot again ,almost unbelievably the weazel emerged from the bush to run past again ,did a u turn and ran instead in the opposite direction ,clearly in a state of distressbut other wise unharmed?A little later in another spot ,I watched a male kestrel this time hunting ,he saw a vole ,dived ,swooped and scooped .Successfully apparently as he flew into some cover to polish off the unfortunate vole .I love watching these birds (see a previous Carr Vale blog for my picture of a Kestrel with a vole hanging out of his chops) .There were good numbers of Admirals about still ,it was nice to see them feeding on some windfall apples ,hopefully they were getting a buzz from the fermenting fruit.Im not going to mention the snow buntings that we walked about twelfty miles to not see,never mind we got great views of snobs earlier in the year.Im not mentioning either the hawfinch or the lapland bunting that were similarly invisible.Good to see so many tree sparrows .Last time we did Spurn a guy came running up to me shouting have you seen it? What the wryneck? I asked him ,no the honey buzzard (therewas a tiny speck in the sky that we never counted).Spurn is always good.

genuinely upset

Fri, 02 Oct 2009 14:42:00 -0400

Call me a sentimental old fool ,call me me a big girls blouse call me what you will ,but I was saddened by the death of two collared doves in our garden.We have been down this road many times ,sparrowhawks have demolised them ,this I can accept as a part of nature ,I can rationalise this ,it needs to happen .Sparrowhawks are great to see anywhere and their killing prey dosent even scratch the surface of for example collared dove populations ,nature has of course allowed for this.Ok you may argue that collared doves are an alien species have only colonised the British Isles very recently (1955) It would be fair to say that they are doing extrremely well and are welcome in our garden ,anyway I digress.Cats killing them annoys me ,many instances of this in our garden.What I felt guilty about was that these two ,on consequetive days had flown into a window ,the penny dropped when I noticed the collared dove shaped splodges on the windows upstairs.At the time I wondered ,dove number one was festering under the bird table ,I walked up to him and he made no attemot to fly off,I picked him up gently ,it was obvious that something was seriously wrong -see the picture ,its not digiscoped. I put the poor fellow in a box and placed him in the garage where its quiet and dark. He looked into my eyes and he was asking me help me , Im not going to make it .When we returned home a few hours later that evening he had sadly died.The following day we found another -no teeth marks from a cat ,very dead only later I figured out how they had both died.Doent matter how many times this happens ,I still feel saddened.