Normally don't go in for the 'nice pics' type posting but I must say Martin that is a damn good picture of the Iceland gull.
Whilst it seems as though the sun will never shine again - it hasn't much since I got the camera, I thought I'd try and cheer everyone up as I've just seen Spring - it's only one hour fifty minutes away.
I visited my daughter in Porto, and she has a friend who owns a massive farm near Viana in the north. I had licence to wander round the farm at will.
It was our Spring only a few weeks earlier - the Sheep all had lambs. Several swallows had just arrived chasing each other round before settling down to roost. Serin were in song everywhere. Blackcap were in song, and these were taking advantage of pollen in early flowers. A Brimstone was on the wing, plus several what I assumed were Large Whites. All these years of birding and it was the first time I'd heard Black Redstart sing - for those who haven't heard it, it's odd - there's a bit at the end where it sounds like someone is crunching up a paper bag.
It was a fresh Spring-like warmth. When the sun came out at timers you'd have been happy with the weather as English summer weather. However, there were also spells when it was freezing - sitting in the stand watching FC Porto being one of them - but generally just like our Spring.
Going back to the farm in May so looking forward to that.
I looked at the photos before I read the text. A Serin in Yorkshire is pretty exciting but Iberian Wall Lizards would be off the scale!
Mike I knew you'd know - are these not Common Lizard then? One seemed much greener than the other, so not sure if same species
I went for the slav last Saturday. Couldn't see it better than a little blob that dived a lot. Viewed from Caroline Bridge the wind didn't help at all, could have done with a bigger magnification than 48x though.
Having read your earlier post on Lotherton Hall Keith, I gave the new bike a run out there yesterday. Didn't go to the bird garden, just had a quick look for anything in the outlying fields. (Don't like carrying bins when there are kids around) I didn't stay too long but had a pair of little owls and buzzards. The owls were at the knackered tree on the other side of the fence to where the car park booth is.
No sign of early migrants.
Chris I can only get 40x mag on my scope but with the light today you could see the bird very well. I could even make it out (just) with 8x bins.
I twitched the slav grebe at Swillington Ings this afternoon, slightly disappointed to find that it wasn't frequenting Astley Lake but rather Bowers Lake which is just about as far away from the car park as you can get without leaving the area. So I set off on the long walk to the other end of St Aidan's, lots of gulls and waterfowl seen on the way but very little in the way of passerines. A couple of long tailed tits, blue tits etc and I heard a couple of chaffinches but otherwise very little around. I met people on the way back from seeing the grebe who gave me the gen on where to be looking.
I arrived at the slipway and set up the scope to scan Bowers Lake which is the furthest patch of water from you at this point. Nothing visible other than a couple of coot and a black headed gull. I'd settled down for a long wait when I noticed 2 blokes walking along the edge of the Lake, with a springer spaniel bounding along in front of them. I almost gave up at that point, as I was sure the dog would spook the bird. However as they passed along the edge of the Lake in front of me and then away to the left I had one last scan of the Lake with my bins. Way off to the right I saw a small black and white bird on the water, I got the scope onto it and confirmed it's id as the Slavonian grebe. I was able to watch the bird out on open water for almost 15 minutes before it moved back to the right hand side of the Lake and the shielding of the bank. So thanks to 2 trespassers who shouldn't have been there I got to see the bird quite easily.