General update: Part 1

Stithians Reservoir: 16.06.07
A quick 15 minutes stop at this watery world produced a few Sedge Warblers, more Willow Warblers and the usual Dunnocks, Chiffchaffs, Blackbirds and other dreary flying creatures to which many of my trips are becoming well noted for spotting. In fact, if I see something small resembling a bird, I tend to accept my luck generally runs out the minute I wake up and announce the bird to be nothing more than a Sparrow and have done with it.

I spent 5 minutes watching the young Buzzard preening itself before deciding to head off back home.

Crowan Church: 17.06.07
Not much happening down this end today. The Jackdaws had fledged and could be seen (and more importantly heard) flying around with mummy & daddy. A Magpie was being lovingly assaulted in mid air strikes by a Collared Dove and a Chaffchiff perched on the telegraph wire for a good few minutes watching the commotion.

Home sweet home: This week.
The House Sparrows which are currently nesting around this area (including a large brood in the honeysuckle sharing our garden and a neighbour’s) have been out on mass. There must be around 8 pairs coming to the garden to feed, including young, making up to around 15 sparras at any given time.

A family of Magpies (2 young + parents) have been coming regularly to the garden to feed, which is always a lovely site. At first much of the feeding has been done with mother or father watching over them, although recently they have been coming alone. Then, much to my surprise, this morning before leaving for Redruth I counted 5 young Magpies hopping around the garden (our two plus the rogue three). I assume they have got together to start some kind of gang…

The Chaffinches have yet to return to feeding in the garden, as it is always around baby making time they head off to Patch One to breed. The same goes with the Wrens and the Bullfinches.

I’m currently filming what does make it to the garden, which tends to be the larger birds who usually arrive when they are heading back to roost over yonder somewhere…

New YouTube video

I finally got round to uploading the 2^nd (and last part for now) of the Fox Cubs in patch one. This is a shorter film and with no Japanese background music (couldn’t be bothered searching out a suitable track).

I don’t think the cubs are using this area anymore, as signs suggest they have moved on to the usual stomping ground over in a nearby field. I should, touch wood, be off filming tomorrow night (badgers… owls… foxes… reindeer… who knows… I may just get drunk instead).

New Fox Cub video (please... for the love of god... rate the bugger!)

Lanner Walk.

A good friend decided to do a sponsored walk for a feline re-homing centre (http://www.lonelypawz.org.uk : website currently not working btw). So, we joined him for a 3 mile trek around the old mining site(s) of Lanner. For birding enthusiasts there was not much present. I watched some baby Great Tits begging for food; they had fledged and were stumbling around the nesting area… there were plenty of Goldfinches knocking around and I could still hear a bleedin’ Cuckoo in the distance…

For Cuckoo fanciers, there was a reported 15 at Stithians; so says Dave (was it Dave?) from Orca Sea Faris (their website aint working either!).

Anyhoo… the walk disappointed as birding goes. A Song Thrush appeared momentarily, but nothing else was doing.

As for the Bugs, the only semi-highlight was a Large Skipper (first of the season).

Oh, Stithy and no website....

I gave up! I have done… what… 80% of the website but have run out of steam (I am currently designing another two for clients, with the aid of my partner and UK Duty Paid Cutters Choice…). So, I have not had time to spend finishing off the further 20%... so back to the blog!

Stithians Reservoir.

Tracee and a dearly befuddled friend went to Falmouth for the day and left me in the wonderfully tranquil reservoir that is Stithians. I did plan to walk around it, but as I had to stop every few meters to inspect the undergrowth for insects, I didn’t get very far.

Upon entering I was greeted with a wonderful warbling from some Willows and spent some time watching the Buzzard flitting back and too from its nest. A pair of Sparrow hawks circled one of the adjacent fields and a couple of Reed Buntings popped out now and again to see how my journey was progressing.

In the heat of the midday sun I could feel the ‘thermo insulating heat eliminating cool air system’ of the Tesco rucksack failing miserably to keep my back dry from the untold amount of sweat pouring from it but I knew I must continue, to find some illusive animal, to report back with my findings and become some overweight national hero. Well, I did continue…

I made it over the damn where I came across plenty of Drinker Moth Caterpillars. Unfortunately they were all dying... perhaps the heat or just bad season (not going into details on this)… but I managed to move a handful from the path back into the scrub.

A large group of gulls had gathered near to the ‘canoe lesson sailing club’ (does this place have a bar? I wanted a refreshing larger & lime but my reconnaissance mission to discover a licensed shed found nothing). I didn’t bother checking the gulls to see what oddities may be lurking in the gathering, but I assume there was something good I missed.

On the way back now and some Canadian Geese flew into another adjacent field and I managed to sit for 15 minutes photographing a Common Blue Damselfly.