Hey up folks, little of note at Utch this mornin but I did bump into the manager and he was tellin' me that the next excavations will force the birds nearer to the main path because that's where all the water is now bein' pumped to!! Brilliant, just in time for the juv' Wilsons Phal' and no worries about gettin' a good view.
Hobby 1, Green Sand' 4, Curlew 1, Oyst' 1, Common Sand' 1, LRP 16.
A spot of prunin' was called for this evenin' on the viewpoint at Croxden, yep that's right prunin', well what's the point of a viewpoint if there's no view? So I whipped out the old secateurs and did it me self! And not a bad job too, even if I do say so me self. Once the view was restored I settled in for a spot of gullin' and soon picked up the juv YLG among the hordes of Lesser's below the VP. Then jolly old RP turned up and while we were havin' a moan about the Doxey Cattle Egret guess what came on the pager? Would you Adam and Eve it, "Staff's, juv' Cattle Egret showin' well from the main hide at Doxey".
If I'd been at home there's no way I would have gone for it tonight but minutes after tellin' RP I'd pick him up en route after droppin' Moll' off at home we were racin' along narrow country lanes with Scandinavian Symphonic Metalers "NIGHTWISH" beltin' out of the speakers. Not that RP was any the wiser, he thought we were listenin' to Kiri Te Kanawa the Kiwi warbler of posh tunes. At one point as we sped round a bend like"The Stig" in a reasonably priced car, we had a huge slice of luck when the bobbies sittin' waitin' for unsuspectin' Staffs birders completely missed us when they were lookin' the wrong way!! Result or what?
By the time we got to Doxey the light was fadin' fast but thankfully North Staffs RSPB's head honcho John Booth was leadin' the way and lite up the path with the sparks comin' from his slippers as he blazed a trail towards the main hide. Half way along the path we bumped into up and comin' young twitchers Steven Turnippers and Russ "car" Toon who yelled something about RP and logs as we raced past.
Once in the hide a quick glance across the water brought us down to earth rather quickly. The egret that had been showin' well now resembled a white plastic bag as it sat preenin' at the back of the bush and that's where it stopped apart from a brief moment when it stretched it's neck and wings! I've never been so underwhelmed since I "ticked" a Black-throated Blob in a Bush through a nice Mr Gantletts Questar somewhere in Norfolk many moons ago.
A major surprise tonight while I was earwiggin' in the hide was the revelation that a top mid's lister had recently moved into sheltered accomodation after bein' turfed out by his old dear. Thankfully he's settled in well and has made friends with "thwarden".
That's all folks.
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