A new year dawns ... and time to get a new yearlist going again ...
Did the two main areas on foot today. Got a little overexcited or otherwise overestimated how long it would take to walk to Pendennis Point from home, as I arrived at about 7:15 and it was still far too dark to actually see any birds, let alone identify them ... Doh!
. Had a pretty amazing purple 'ten minutes' at the point with new birds flying in left, right and centre, including two new patch ticks for me. Then the walk along the seafront to Swanpool, one circuit, and then up the valley and through town to the Penryn river. The tide rising now, and so seeming relatively quiet on the wader front. Through Penryn and up to College Reservoir, around Argal Reservoir, and through the fields back home by 15:45. Dipped on all the good birds from 2 days ago, of course, although of course there were some compensations ... like yet more jolly happy people saying hello and wishing you a happy new year ... Bah! Disturbing all my birds ... Covered about 12 miles in total, totally knackered now, but considering I haven't walked anything like that for ages, and a distinct lack of sleep not too bad an effort at all really.
After the good start (40 species by the time I'd left Pendennis), things slowed considerably,and lots of gaps for what have been everyday birds just up until recently (eg Chiffchaff and Firecrest, Raven and Rook, Sprawk and Feral Pigeon). But you lose some, you gain some. 74 Species or so in total. And even a couple of cameos from the invertebrates too - a Silverfish in the bathroom before I left (!), and a Red Admiral flying through Falmouth mid-morning.