Found myself out and about a few days ago. Family duties meant I couldn't do my normal patchwork. Instead, and spurned on again by my guilty conscience, I decided to complete my core survey square for the BTO's winter thrush survey. While the other areas I've been surveying were local, and my own choice, this core square was chosen for me. Caught up in the wave of enthusiasm, I heartily agreed to it, only latterly realising it was miles from anywhere.
What is it they say about the road to ruin being paved with good intentions? I had sadly neglected to print off a map of the 1 km square I was to survey. i forgot to take note of any directions, other than vague place names. Planning, preparation, method? I had none of them.....
Anyway, after an hour of driving randomly, and fed up with being in a car rather than a field, I found a wood which looked promising, at least to get out and walk in. Overtown Wood, by name. Lucky enough in the hour I was there to get three year ticks, some decent photos of bullfinches, and a couple of fieldfares.
Emboldened by this, and with no great desire to go home, I headed from Lanarkshire to the Clyde Estuary. N ormally, such a trip would involve planning, preparation, method...I had done none of them. The tide was in, and thus the waders and seabirds I had hoped to find were long gone. The wind was also picking up speed, with the sea getting decidedly choppy. Out of desperation, I decided to make the best out of a bad situation. Walking from Parklea to Finlaystone Point got me my first coal tits of the year and my first treecreeper. Better still, a lone redshank flew up from the sea wall to my side, and flew along the shore. Trying to ignore the very boggy, squelchy conditions underfoot, I followed its flight path, when, a few hundred feet ahead, I got my first pintail for more than 2 years. A distant view, but I knew it instinctively. All those long evenings spent reading books, looking at websites, and just talking to other birders, meant I knew right away what I was looking at. A result for the day, and an object lesson in the benefits of doing your homework.
What is it they say about the road to ruin being paved with good intentions? I had sadly neglected to print off a map of the 1 km square I was to survey. i forgot to take note of any directions, other than vague place names. Planning, preparation, method? I had none of them.....
Anyway, after an hour of driving randomly, and fed up with being in a car rather than a field, I found a wood which looked promising, at least to get out and walk in. Overtown Wood, by name. Lucky enough in the hour I was there to get three year ticks, some decent photos of bullfinches, and a couple of fieldfares.
Emboldened by this, and with no great desire to go home, I headed from Lanarkshire to the Clyde Estuary. N ormally, such a trip would involve planning, preparation, method...I had done none of them. The tide was in, and thus the waders and seabirds I had hoped to find were long gone. The wind was also picking up speed, with the sea getting decidedly choppy. Out of desperation, I decided to make the best out of a bad situation. Walking from Parklea to Finlaystone Point got me my first coal tits of the year and my first treecreeper. Better still, a lone redshank flew up from the sea wall to my side, and flew along the shore. Trying to ignore the very boggy, squelchy conditions underfoot, I followed its flight path, when, a few hundred feet ahead, I got my first pintail for more than 2 years. A distant view, but I knew it instinctively. All those long evenings spent reading books, looking at websites, and just talking to other birders, meant I knew right away what I was looking at. A result for the day, and an object lesson in the benefits of doing your homework.
