Monday 5 March 2012

Monday 5th. March 2012

On Friday , a recommended update flashed up on the screen , so to get rid of the flashing , I clicked upload and thought nothing more about it . Went hedgelaying Saturday , last laying day of the season , and when I got home switched on the computer , only to get an error message stating that 'a problem had been detected and Windows had been shut down to prevent damage to the computer' , and I couldn't find a way around it . By Sunday , I was ready to chuck the whole thing out of the window . Eventually , after speaking to several people , I was able to turn the clock back to before I downloaded the update . The computer switched off and restarted , and everything has worked fine since , fingers crossed . Today , I did my Monday visit to a very windy Sevenoaks Reserve , in sunshine . Mind you , just a couple of miles further East , a bank of thick grey cloud was threateningly close . A look from the viewpoint showed a large number of Gulls along the side of the
East Lake , and on looking through them , found Greater Black-backed , Herring and Black-headed
in one area , and Lesser Black-backed , Common and more Black-headed in another , I hope ! The water level was noticeably higher after the rain , and it looked like the Great Crested Grebe's nest had been swamped and there was no sign of them . Most of the Common Snipe were missing too , with just a handful seen , mind you that wind was far from inviting . Heading towards Tower Hide , I
found one pair of GCGs in the sheltered bay displaying to each other . I managed to get behind a tree without being seen , and shortly afterwards , the pair went into their 'weed dance' . Only trouble was
the tree between us , and the dance seemed to be a bit half hearted this time , but twice in two visits can't be bad . As soon as they finished , they headed out into deep water , presumably to feed , so I left them to it . Just a few Canada Geese and Coots from Tower Hide , the usual 'sentry' at Slingsby ,
and a male Dunnock who was singing his heart out on one of the screen posts outside . Plenty of
Chaffinches on the way back to the viewpoint , then the chattering of Siskins in the Alders , along with just a couple of Lesser Redpolls who managed to evade the viewfinder before the whole group
flew off . No Kingfisher sighting today , nor the Bittern , but in it's reedbed was an adult and juvenile Grey Heron . But , Spring was in the air around Snipe Bog Lake , or at least I think that was what the
male Mallard was telling his female . Behind the lake , no sign of the lambs today , but a large number of Geese were noisily grazing , their number including at least six Egyptian Geese . By lunchtime , the bank of cloud had rolled nearer and was starting to blot out the sun , so my plan to look for reptiles on the Downs on the way home went out the window . I did stop and look for any
sign of Early Purple Orchid though , and found several spotted rosettes , it looks like it will be a good
year . Also , amongst the grass , the first Common Dog Violets / Viola riviniana of the year . In the
hedgerows , the flowers of Blackthorn , always before the leaf , are doing their best to brighten things up . On the way home , I got back into sunshine , but it was short lived as the cloud moved further Westward .

4 comments:

Warren Baker said...

All that lovely sunshine, and just a few miles away! It was cruel and bleak here.....

Kingsdowner said...

Nice dunnock!

ShySongbird said...

My first Violet of the year! Well done Greenie, a very welcome sight :-)

Lovely Dunnock photo and always nice to see the Herons.

Hope the computer continues to behave!

Alan Pavey said...

Nice post Greenie, lots going on, computers do have that affect sometimes, where throwing them seems like a good option!!