Sunday 22 January 2012

Patchlisting - 22nd January

Well the plan was to spend the day on my patch, but since I’ve been wittering on about the immature Iceland Gull at Camber Dock, Portsmouth, and given that stupidly I’ve voiced an opinion based on low res pics on the net, I thought I really should go and see it, maybe take some photos and set my mind at ease. General opinion seems to be that it is a 2nd winter bird and I'm pretty sure that is the case but to me at least it didn’t seem 100% clear cut. Anyway there was no sign of it and a flyby blue lightening bolt of a Kingfisher was no consolation, however the Old Speckled Hen was!

By early afternoon it was back to plan A, out on the patch a very quiet Binswood did produce Nuthatch, Coal Tit and Marsh Tit all of which were patch year ticks somehow! However still not a sniff of Siskin, Redpoll or Brambling. The Green Sandpiper was still present on King Johns pond and as I headed back towards Kingsley sandpits a Little Egret flew over my head and I later relocated it on KSP south, nice one! Next I decided to target Owls over dusk, Little Owl and Tawny were as expected not a problem but I am quite concerned that the Barn Owls I’ve been watching in this area for maybe a decade have been obliterated by the harsh winter periods of the last two years, snow cover was thick and complete up here and that must make hunting very hard.

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