TIME: 14:00 - 14:40
WEATHER: Very cold, light wind, sunny
HOLD THE BACK PAGE! I'M BACK IN THE BIRD HIDE!!!!! WOOOOO!!!!!
Oh wow, how good did that little excursion to Freiston Shore feel? ENORMOUSLY GOOD!!!!! It is such a relief to be able to do short visits now; I have been driving my parents crazy with my twitterings-on about how I wanted to get back to Freiston and Frampton!
** EMITS LONG, CONTENTED SIGH OF RELIEF **
First time back after the operation and everything seemed refreshed, renewed, vibrant and exciting, even the really common birds! I wasn't allowed to carry the telescope as my abdominal muscles are still knitting together post-op and my incision site wound is still healing (and bandaged and dressed) so Dad did the heavy lifting of said scope.
Managed 40 minutes (hide, feeders and new viewing area) before becoming tired and cold. But that was enough. What a sweet, brilliant 'welcome back' present I got in the form of the BARN OWL!!!!!!
OK, so I know the Barn Owl was only out hunting and couldn't have cared less about whether I was there or not, but it was THE bird I wanted to see on my return!
OTHER SPECIES SEEN:
Lapwing - 200
Redshank - 10 probing around lagoon edges
Snipe - 2 mixed in with Lapwings
Black-tailed Godwit - 15
Curlew - 3
Shelduck - 10
Mallards - usual near car park
Canada Goose - 300
Brent Goose - 2 enormous skeins overhead
Mute Swan - 2 juveniles
Little Grebe - 3
Moorhen - 1
Goldfinch - 5
Blackbird - 6
Starling - 50
Tree Sparrow - 10
House Sparrow - 9
Chaffinch - 3
Greenfinch - 4 overhead
Robin - 5, 3 scrapping for territory
Wren - 2
Black-headed Gull - 30
Herring Gull - 2
Lesser Black-backed Gull - 2
Magpie - 4
Pheasant - 5 in fields
Carrion Crow - 8
Usual Doves and 'feral' Pigeons
No new lifers, but it didn't matter. What a marvellous wonder Ornithological Therapy is! I'm off to celebrate my return with a Mars bar and a cup of tea!
NEWS FROM THE GARDEN: 5 Blue Tits at fat balls and suet feeder today. Highest number I've seen at any one time together in the garden! Mob of Starlings arrived 2 minutes later and barged the Blue Tits off! Also Blackbird, Goldfinch, Greenfinch, Dunnock, House Sparrow, Robin and Great Tit.