Spring!

26th February - 9th March

Spring has come!

The grass is riz!

I wonder where the daisies iz!

At least that's the version I remember from my childhood. There are many others, some probably better but I like mine because it takes me back to my younger days.

February 26th: A quiet day at home until Sheila announced there was a cock pheasant in the garden. I got the camera ready and crept down the garden. The bird was very nervous but I managed to position myself to take some shots.

Better views

February28th: Black-necked grebe at St. Aidan's RSPB. I managed to not see it after walking three-quarters of the way round Bowers Lake. I asked a birder if he'd seen the bird. It was hiding at the water's edge on the quarter I hadn't visited. Inevitably I went back.

March 6th: A trip to Bempton. Razorbills were absent from the cliffs and RSPB observers said they couldn't positively identify any on the water in the current misty conditions. They were probably out there somewhere!

A pair of puffins were present along with a single kittiwake on the section I visited. Plus a very vocal fulmar.

March 8th: Overnight in the garden...

In the happy, bucolic world of the hedgehog one imagines two hogs coming together to rub noses and discuss the weather or the availability of slugs and worms. It isn't always like that.

March 9th: I spotted a message on the pager that a red-necked grebe had been spotted at Burton Riggs YWT, Scarborough. I got myself ready and set off. Only a couple of birders present. The bird was soon located - hiding in some willows. It was perhaps scared off by a group of canada geese close by.

First views. After taking a good number of photos in the heavily shaded section of the north pool it eventually gave splendid views in the sunshine. Well worth the long wait. It's been a while since I had a really special encounter like this one. The descriptor 'Wow. What a bird!' was fully deserved.

127 UK 2024