DUSKY THRUSH...SAY NO MORE!

Friday/Saturday night and having just endured Piggy the movie I wander off to bed, its 1.30am in the morning and as you do I start messing with my phone. I've got 5 missed calls, 9 texts and 12 email messages all waiting to be read, instead I check twitter cos that's what I do. KABOOM!...THWACK!...OH MY GOD!!!!.........female DUSKY THRUSH...Margate Cemetery 3rd day?
As casual as I can I set my alarm for daft o'clock and attempt to sleep, tomorrow's (or is that to days) news will sort out my day.
Daft o'clock and I'm woken by Mia our dog going ape shit at some dude banging on the front door....its Groucho,'' the birds not showing yet but surely we must be heading south just in case''.
I let the dog out, brush my teeth and dress all at the same time. This young upstart is right! the old 'A Team' have lost the plot...get moving NOW!!!!
Groucho, Malc, Gregsy and I pile into Malc's car and we're off down south with no news as yet on Dusky!
As we reach the M6 joy!! the boy is still there showing well to the birders who set off early...god bless them all.
5hours later and two stops for us oldies to have a dump and coffee we arrive at Margate Cemetery. The target is surrounded on all sides as it hides in a cemetery sycamore...cue nervous wait till I get a glimpse of the Margate mega.
The rest as they say is history as the Dusky Thrush performs to its growing throng of admirers, giving tantalizing views as it rummages around the various bits of cemetery shrubbery.

twitch on!

first contact...

You beauty!....get in!

Dusky wondering what all the fuss is about.

Cheshire's finest in action plus a few others.

And by the next day it had the decency to do one...tough titties to the Sunday league'rs.

that puts me on the following:- 

World yes its a World tick...2835

WesternPal.....690 (according to Birder's Diary)

UK+Ireland (old school).....522

England.....481


one of the locals....

FANTASY LEAGUE FINAL GAME

Who would of thought I'd end up with this bunch of reprobates at the start of the season...but wow have they done the business or what.

Lindegaard a last minute replacement for De Gea who's been awesome but SAF has decided to give him the day off hence my last transfer in. I'm currently leading The Bagnall League by 27pts but anything can happen in this game cos its a funny old game what?

Head to Head League and guess who's reached the final!!!!!

Hope I can do a Wigan...come on INTER TOTTI

bizarrely I could win the league and lose the cup final or vice versa!

or win or lose both...aaahhh!!!!

PATCH DAY LIST MAY 2013 continued.

The only Teal I could find, skulking on Neumann's north island.

On No.1 the Black-headed Gulls are taking over with at least four nests. With any luck we'll have Black-necked Grebes nesting soon?

Looking out from Haydn's Hide towards Winnington and its Raven family (scope views only)

Witton Brook, not much doing bird wise.

The 'Barn Owl' nest box at the back of No.1 tank, currently under occupation by Stock Doves.

Frog bench where the Lesser Whitethroat is still rattling away, now and again.

Shit!...a Badger latrine, proof their about and great to see (Badger that is not the poo)

Sunday afternoon and no ruddy joggers!, cyclists!, pram pushers! or Red-throated Diver stringers?..bliss

Scrapyard Hide all to myself and a lone Common Sand in Mound Bay was all I got, but my was it quiet.

A fine effort on a rather overcast wet sort of day me thinks as I racked up 77 species (+Black Swan)

Don't actually know if that's an all time record but it must be close?

birds I missed out on that should be around or have been recently...

Water Rail

Hobby

Dunlin

Redshank

Common Tern

Tawny Owl

Kingfisher

Lesser Redpoll

so it looks like reaching 90 is near impossible but you never know.

TTFN

PATCH DAY LIST MAY 2013

As part of my continued participation in the PatchWork Challenge the guys in charge have decided to run a day list. Any date between the 10th and 20th of May. A wee bit late for Cheshire, we always do the first week in May but hey a challenge is a challenge.

First port of call and its into the depths of bluebell carpeted Cowards Wood passing the reed bed en route.

Reed and Sedge Warbler were singing away plus Reed Bunting also. In the wood no sound from the Lesser Pecker but I did add Bullfinch and a very showy Treecreeper.

Onto the mere side path and dip Grey Wag and Kingfisher but a mega bonus was waiting sat on a buoy just off Kid Brook spit.

Still as a pond and duck free!!

But a fly by Common Sandpiper being chased by a Magpie was most welcome if not bizarre.

Boom! one summer plum Arctic Tern had just flown in.

Naff record shot but as Jeff said ''no photo no bird''?

5 minutes later it did one and was gone, North I presume.

Some Dude! scanning the mere

 On a quest for Coal Tit (which I dipped) in the arboretum.

Onto Gibbons land (public footpath honest! Mr Farmer if you're reading this)

and a blurred piccy of a dude Rough-legged Buzzard, waying up the farmers chickens.

Ashton's Flash had this beast causing havoc with the local Lapwings. Not another wader in sight...bummer!!

Ashton's drying out rapidly...pity as it looks so inviting for waders like last weeks Greenshank.

Over on Neumann's the Little Ringed Plovers were playing hide and seek but I nailed them, thanks to my scope. Over head 100+ Swifts were zooming about surely Mr Hobby would be interested?

more to follow once I've watched the 20 times Champions sort the Welsh out!

NOW THAT'S A NEST BOX

That has to be the most ridiculous owl box in England.

How on earth did they get planning permission?

But guess what the dam things occupied!

APRIL 19th PATCHTASTIC

What a day, I was up in the eastern hills gripping Rouzels and Cuckoos and thought I was doing well when Boom! a tweet from Malc had me twitching with excitement.
He'd been down to Neumann's and found - Little Gull (actually seen yesterday and put out on the Manc Bird forum but nowhere else...thanks for nothing!), a drake Garganey roosting on Scrapyard island, a Gropper reeling by the same hide and several Whitethroats plus a big influx of Reed Warblers.
Take that and party as the saying goes, what a haul of spring goodies.

Returning to the office via Neumann's of course (lunch hour) I managed to acquire the ones I needed.

the moulting first summer Little Gull over the flashes

Back at home after work I looked up to see 4 Buzzards circling the house, more like Vultures than Buteos I could only wish they were about to feast on the dead carcass of the farmer next door who's cut down the row of trees by our house the bastard.

TTFN

WOOD WARBLER

As you may know I found the Wood Warbler at Marbury this April and its proving a very popular year tick for many Cheshire and further beyond year listers. Its been present for three days now but last night Friday 19th the skies were as clear as could be, so maybe its done one? no reports yet today Saturday.

here's a piccy by new patch birder Jeff Wood (how appropriate)...

surprisingly it looks like the deforestation that's taken place near the boat shed has actually created potential Wood Warbler habitat.
That's my forth on the patch but it still remains a rare passage bird. (unless it finds a mate and starts breeding that is)

Patch Year List now upto 117 that is top of the league form

TTFN