Surprise, Surprise

There was a surprise for me when I checked the video clips taken last night.

This visit was at twenty past eleven last night and I didn't see the Fox at all. It was before the Badgers and obviously peanuts are not on it's list of likes as it didn't touch them. The problem with Fox friendly food is that it inevitably attracts one of the many cats that seem to think my garden is part of their territory.

The coffee morning at the Village Hall for the Carers Support Group seemed to go well.

There was lots to do, for instance you could throw sticky balls at Shreck it that was your thing!

Or find a nice sticky cake to ruin your resolve to loose some weight (I'm am of course referring to me with this comment).

The ere were many interesting items on the sales stall (do you still call it a White Elephant Stall?). I hope that a reasonable amount of money was raised, it was a good effort for a worthy cause.

When I got out of the stupor that Tottenham and Fulham had induced I put the Badgers peanuts out at 7.20 p.m., early considering it must have been after midnight that they came last night.

So I was very surprised when one turned up at 7.40 p.m., with the second one not far behind.

The didn't take long over their snack, although one was a bit jumpy when I laid on the carpet, about three feet in front of his nose, to take his portrait.

The video shows then from one side, they seem quite content to eat side by side, not like the cubs, which I hope will come later in the year. The year that three came regularly they were quite quarrelsome.

I hadn't notice before, but one seems to have a broad pale stripe running down it's back.

Blackbird singing in the dead of night

I had another look at a couple of potential Owl sites this evening, one where I'd heard a Little Owl a few weeks ago.

Evening time is a period of high activity for Pheasants, or cock Pheasants at least, I didn't see a single hen on my look round.

The evening was glorious, all shepherds note they should be delighted. But no owls seen and I didn't hear the Little Owl tonight.

From a distance I saw something at the top of a tree, but when I got there it was a Kestrel. They keep on hunting well into the evening.

One of the joys of March evenings is being serenaded by Blackbirds. They are just about in full song now and carry on singing just about until it is dark.

Blackbird - The Beatles

Blackbird singing in the dead of night Take these broken wings and learn to fly All your life You were only waiting for this moment to arise Blackbird singing in the dead of night Take these sunken eyes and learn to see All your life You were only waiting for this moment to be free Blackbird fly, blackbird fly Into the light of the dark black night Blackbird fly, blackbird fly Into the light of the dark black night Blackbird singing in the dead of night Take these broken wings and learn to fly All your life You were only waiting for this moment to arise You were only waiting for this moment to arise You were only waiting for this moment to arise

Floating on air

I took these pictures of Herring Gulls using the updraught, at the end of the cliffs at Kingsdown, to hang on the wind as they patrolled the retreating tide-line looking for tit-bits. I've put my idea of the age of the gulls, but if I've got them wrong please leave a correction.

1st winter (above)

1st winter

1st winter

2nd year

adult

Blue Tit Box. Tonight we've watch this ball of fluffy Blue Tit roosting in the box out side my study. This one isn't connected to my recorder at the moment so the picture was taken of the television screen it the kitchen.

It was quite fidgety, waking up for a shuffle and a stretch every now and again.

Carer's Support - Dover District and Thanet.

If you live in the St Margaret's area do come along to the Coffee Morning at the Village Hall on Saturday.

Carers are an often forgotten part of society and Carers Support is an important charity that does a lot of much needed work.

Who is a Carer?

A Carer is someone who looks after a relative or friend in need of help because they are ill, frail or have a physical or mental disability. The care they provide is unpaid.

Carers' Support - Dover District & Thanet is a registered charity supporting those who care, unpaid, for a relative or a friend who is in need of help because they are ill, frail or have a physical or mental disability.

Flying By

I had an hour to myself in the Restharrow Scrape hide. It is amazing how close the birds come if you open the shutters very quietly and there's not talking in the hide. There was nothing exceptional, no early migrants or lingering cold weather refugees, but there were lots of Lapwings and Shovelers.

Lapwings are of course maned after their large wings and there are exceptional fliers, especially when displaying over their territories and tumbling in the air. Even when flying round their feeding and resting areas they make great subjects, with their striking patterns and formation flying.

It is interesting how the pale tips to the primaries turn up.

From this angle to wing are looks very large for the size of the bird, I guess this is what enables it to do it's rolling and tumbling when it is displaying.

Pam says it looks like a Parrot from this angle.

The way the birds fly in coordinated flocks has always amazed me. Today something seemed to be spooking various species out on the marsh at regular intervals and they formed tight flocks, mainly of individual species before settling down again.

the Shovelers were getting quite frisky today, the males deep "took took" calls echoed loudly round the scrape.

All of this prenuptial activity inevitably leads to loots of short flights and splashing down by males.

The suddenly groups take off for a proper fly round. Today it seemed to be a few circuits of the lake before all landing together and continuing the courting rituals and then noisy "tooking"

These three were pat of a larger group, but this grouping made me think of Mrs Wilson and the 10 Downing Street Ducks, but I think they were Mallards.

It's a good job that I don't use films now, it is so easy to take a few hundred pictures if you don't have to pay for them!

Getting closer, but not much!

The Water Pipit in the Bay is getting to be a bit of an obsession. I know it's there, it sits on the wall at the end of the houses, posing until I try to get close, and then it disappears onto the sloping cliff and refuses to reappear.

I did a bit better to day, the light was good and although the bird was still a long way away, the white wing bars and supercilium show up nicely. The grey on the head is developing a blueish tinge but Pam tells me that there's no hint of pink flush on the underparts or breast that are visible (not a colour that seems to register with me). I'm still hoping for a frame filler with the white outer tail feathers showing.

At this time of year the French ( Reg-legged) Partridges seem to spend a lot of time strutting about and don't see worry too much at being photographed from a car.

Badger Update: Tonight the regular visitor came at 8.10 pm and a couple of minutes later was joined by a second and slightly slimmer badger. I think that the face stripes are thinner and this may be a male and female, but I know without examination mistakes are easy.

This clip shows the two of them feeding and me trying to get in position to take a picture of them, The flash doesn't show up very brightly, and they don't take much notice.

And this is the resulting picture from the exercise above. The regular visitor is on the right. The other one has a bit of a dirty snout and a lump and scar on it. I think the new badger has rather different ear patterns, neatly trimmed with white rather than tufted.

Early supper for the Badger

A bright blue sky and a calm sea was a pleasant change in the conditions today.

The cliffs beyond the famous "White Cliffs" house, washed by the sea at the spring high tide.

The Water Pipit was still around beyond the houses, but again it didn't allow close approach.

Something was disturbing the Jackdaws and small flocks were wheeling overhead calling, but I wasn't able to find the cause of their unrest.

I decided to have a look at the cliffs at Langdon, but as I turned into Reach Road I stopped to have a quick look at what looked like a rather painful coming together of two cars. Although I do not know the cause of this accident, I have long thought that the parking in this road made it dangerous.

When I got to the Langdon I sat at a point that overlooked to sea with Fulmars inspecting the cliffs. There were a few Kittiwakes further along, but no sign of the Ravens that used to cliffs last year.

A continuous stream of Herring Gulls passing overhead proved too hard to resists and I took more Herring Gull pictures, I really ought to stop myself, I've taken so many!

As I was out in to garden as I got dark I put the Badgers supper out early. We were very surprised when he came just before 8.00 pm. as this is three hours earlier that usual. I'd move the camera so there are a couple of bits of video below.

In this clip, the badger is getting stuck into his peanuts and Pam is watching from the dining room (through the window). At first he seems aware that she's there but quickly gets down to eating.

When he'd finished he had a wander around and then left. If he comes back at his normal time he'll be unlucky, he's not getting double rations.