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ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

Withymoor - Amblecote, Stourbridge..... (4 Viewers)

Interesting Ste.....Got a text from PAL a coupla days ago and he thought he had a Fem/Juv sitting on the Sainsburys down @ Withymoor.They have a distinctive stance and one is unlikely to see perching a Common Redstart in that sort of habitat and it's also getting a tad late.....Presume the bird u saw was a male as in 'stunning'?

Laurie:t:
 
Yes male, although I didnt make a conscious effort to clock the white wing panel, could have been immature but probably too early to be as dark as it was if it was. I've only ever seen them on the continent before now so field skills went slightly out the window in the scramble for my camera. And of course it didnt fancy being papped.
 
Goatsuckers.....

Nice one - no matter what age, worth keeping eyes peeled and always carrying 'bins - which of course i do.....

Managed to catch BBC's The Living World this morning despite all this clock malarkey.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04mh74x

This was recorded in August and is a potted history of one of the most enigmatic of spp but also as a group - the Nightjar and no not theseB :) altho when i finally manage to click with either Red-Necked or Egyptian i will indulge.

These programmes are always worth a listen as there is usually a factoid to pick up. In my case the feather adaptation for silent flight consistent with Owls to which they are thought to be distantly related. I could'nt find much, if anything, on this feature available. It's been quite a while since i paid a visit to the regional stronghold over @ Cannock Chase. I had hoped for a more local breeding record from either Kinver or Hartlebury but as yet.....If they knocked a few more decent sized clearings in the Million Wood that would be a better bet as there are not the masses of dog-walkers that you get on other suitable heathland sites around here. I have fond memories of humid, sweaty sessions (!) up on 'the chase' in the 80's with one or two of the 'crew' listening to them calling and displaying along with roding Woodcock and 'creaking' LEO's.

An article from Birdwatch - http://www.birdwatch.co.uk/categories/articleitem.asp?cate=26&topic=136&item=496

The programme touches on the birds 'stealthy' design and it is no accident that the Lockheed Martin F117 'Stealth Bomber' was designated the Nighthawk. Altho the type saw initial service in Grenada it was not unveiled until the first Gulf War where screenshots of Laser-Guided munitions entering windows and doorways became the norm.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lockheed_F-117_Nighthawk

The type, sadly, quietly went out of service. It's revolutionary faceted radar-dodging shape being replaced by the hi-tech and shapely compound-curves of the B2 - sadly missed as i saw the F117 display a number of times in the 1990's:C

A nice narrative anecdote that i like to trot out when discussing stealth, aircraft or birds came from a book of stories from the first Gulf War. One of the pilots the night before the first attacks on Baghdad understandably was nervous and wondered whether these aircraft could really do what it said on the tin and be undetectable by Iraqi radar? An understandable concern when faced with flying into the most heavily defended AAA city in the world. A high pucker factor to say the least!. A number of F117's were based at a military airbase in Sandy Arabia in humidity controlled hangars. Due to the heat etc and the very dry conditions the ground crews decided to leave the hanger doors at either end open to let in a light air-flow. The pilot got up early and went down to check over his aircraft and relieve some tension etc. He got to his F117 and the floor had dead bats lying around , as did the other planes. these unfortunate creatures had flown into the fuselage of the parked aircraft. The pilot thought well if these bats can't detect them the omens look good and the rest, as they say, is history.

Laurie:t:

Below - Nighthawks and Nightjars.
 

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Remember them well.....

A lovely Summers day, i was sitting outside the Cross @ Kinver when i heard a dull roar, looking skywards i could'nt see anything. Military aviation activity is virtually unknown at weekends apart from passage to and from air shows and civilian-owned aircraft such as the Hunters/Gnats/Strikemasters that used to be based at former RAF Kemble in the Cotswolds.

I then heard the noise again and looking up (without 'bins) i saw a dark 'line' with a slight bump on it. A quick blink and the 'line' changed angle to reveal the distinct 'sawtooth' triangle of a B2 'Stealth' bomber. I shouted to the bride who had been sent to replenish the ale pots and as i pointed to it i clocked another one close behind - IIRC you were still in you car faffing with something and Justin had to run back to get his binoculars. We managed to prise all the folk out of the pub for some views of this unique sighting:eek!:

These aircraft were on there way back to their dedicated base at Whiteman, Missouri having left the combat base of Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean. They were holding pattern allowing long views thru the bins, i could even read off the serial number. They were awaiting re-fueling, prior to crossing 'The Pond' from air-to-air tankers from RAF Mildenhall in Suffolk.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northrop_Grumman_B-2_Spirit

Perhaps not as infrequent as one might think? I did'nt manage any pictures but below is one from a local Hereford paper of a B2 this June taken over the town by some lucky git.....

Oh, while i'm at it........some birds!

Spent an hour or so ystda at the Wildmoor landfill, have'nt been since April. Virtually no large gulls but about a dozen Ravens initially, they then moved to the edge of the wood and mixed with about a dozen or so making a minimum of 25 birds. They tend to stay aloof from the mixed Jackdaws and Carrion Crows. Nothing else apart from a couple of Buzzards and Linnets etc. A quick glance over at the pools on the other side yielded a 200 BHG's, virtually all adults, a handfull of Mallard and a pair of Teal. An hour around the West Hagley Fields produced Linnets, Mipits and Yellowhammers plus a hunting male Sprawk in addition a couple of flocks of Starling totalling about 400 birds feeding around the stubble fields - a lot of potatoes remain unharvested?. Finished @ Mary Stevens Park with 300+ BHG's and a single ad LBB.

Laurie:t:

Below - B2 and The Cross PH.
 

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Birds, Broaches, Heiroglyphs and Hoards.....

A bit bizzy this week so apart from daily visits to Mary Stevens Park not much daylight time for local birding. Nothing of note apart from singing Nuthatch and overflying Redwings, BHG's steady at around 250. PAL has been down to Withymoor several times with, again, nothing of note - i shall visit at the weekend. I can't remember the last time i saw Starlings flycatching at the end of October but there was a party of about 50 ystda over Stourbridge town centre until a very large female Sprawk put in a marauding appearance.

Moving off the subject of birds but tenuously linked i had an illusion shattered a few days ago. I am old enuff to remember the roaming Tutankhamun exhibition of 1972 (i was 15 at the time and about to leave school in the Summer). Having had a childhood interest in Egyptology thanks to the Horniman Museum which was only down the road from my house in Forest Hill.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horniman_Museum

I, along with thousands of others, queued outside the British Museum for 6 hours IIRC and for about 2 at the end of the tour for another view several months later. The artifacts and particularly the Gold and Blue sarcophagus (not technically true) that contained the remains of the 'boy king' made an indelible impression on me.....to this day. Thanks to modern CGI and MRI scans with a dash of DNA analysis it's never been easier to shatter illusions:C

It turns out that 'Tut' was the product of an incestuous relationship between a brother and sister. Not uncommon amongst Egyptian royals at the time (our own sail, genetically, a bit close to the wind, Blue blood and all that). He really was dealt a shitty hand and must have spent a lot of his brief 19 years in pain and suffering as the genetic clock tick-tocked. On the plus side he had a cleft-palate, overshot upper jaw, physical female characteristics and man-boobs and the bad side a leg with necrosis of the bone (there is not a good use of the word necro) which led to imflammation and an inability to walk unaided without at least a stick (he was interred with many of them). There were signs of malaria and immune-related problems!

So - buck teeth, tits and a club foot, not much of a catch. It reminds me of that joke about the dog answering to the name of 'Lucky'.

The exhibition, all those years ago, reminded me about our own 'Saxon Hoard'. This is, arguably, the most important single collection of ancient artifacts ever found on these shores. I did'nt queue in Brum but wished i had, instead i visited at the end and it left me wanting more. When the collection gets its own dedicated museum i'll be there.

The linking thread with both these exhibitions is artistry and depiction of the natural world. To the ancient Egyptians the Nile was a gift from the gods and all life depended on it. Animals and birds are frequently depicted in the Heiroglyphic (ancient writings) alphabet. The Herons. Egrets, Ibis and Duck can be specifically identified due to the attention to detail and birds of prey from Vultures to Falcons were morphed with humans to become god-like. The Hoard on the other hand has animals and birds symbolically depicted and altho beautifully crafted are icons to be worn.

All ancient cultures had a strong bond to the landscape and the animals found in it whether it be the cave paintings @ Lascaux, Aboriginal pteroglyphs or Central American Mayan obsession and reverence for the Quetzal.

This brings me (finally) to the Dumfrieshire find.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dumfriesshire_Hoard

Found on mainland Scotland by a keen and proven metal detectorist (he's not a metal detector the tool he is using is) Note the picture of him on the Wiki page he even has the detector covered in camouflage! A collection of Viking objects but what caught my eye was the gold pin. Not only beautiful in its simplicity but the addition of a semi-precious inlay sets it off.

What intrigues me is that the bird depicted is obviously a Flamingo! Even down to its sieve beak which has the two mandibles seperated. Now for somebody to have made this with the obvious attention to detail they must have had familiar experience with the species.....but where? Where would the ancient Vikings have come across, presumably Greater, Flamingo's?

Answers on a postcard pls.

Looks like those who missed out on the last/first Eastern Crowned Warbler have another bite of the cherry until they become annual. Some nice photos on Martin Garners site.....http://birdingfrontiers.com/latest-posts/ but the photo that caught my eye is in his Twitter feed to the right. None other than Mick 'Wath Ings' Turton, nice to see he is still around, presumably his partner-in-crime John Hewitt is as well? Less of these NGB's and more OGB's please.

Below - Flamingo bird-pin, King Tutenkalmond, Saxon Hoard, stuff from elsewhere and...........Lucky;)

Laurie:t:
 

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Tut

I remember going and found it fascinating. What a wonderful resource Hornimans Museum was! Just down the road and it was free! Reminds me of the 'joke' that was going round at the time. Knock knock who's there? Tut (toot)? Tut who? Tut and come in.
Remember having a poster on the bedroom wall of the Death Mask along with the music and an iconic image of the time.
 

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A quick pre-work visit to Withymoor ystda just to see if the reported (PAL) Little Grebe that has been present for 6+ weeks was still there - it was.....easily the longest staying bird to date. I know it does'nt sound much but believe me it is for that place. A further post-work visit to Mary Stevens Park yielded about 300 BHG's, i shall take some pics today and use the bit of software i downloaded to compare estimates. I think i shall be using this nice bit of kit fairly frequently. The only problem is that it is limited to a total of 30k. If used on flocks of estuarine waders of Starling-type scenarios i would envisage a series of shots broken down into chunks for analysis.

Irritatingly, tantalisingly i have a high-pitched 'crest feeding in a row of conifers just around the corner. A couple of visits and stake-outs have yet to reveal more than a feeding silhouette. Maybe i should resort to an iphone and beguile the critter into coming closer and revealing itself but we don't do that sort of thing around here;)

The site for the software is http://rsbweb.nih.gov/ij/download.html i downloaded the Windows 32-bit version and for a tutorial http://alpenglow.info/2012/08/07/how-to-count-the-birds-in-a-photo-of-a-flock-automatically/.

It's pretty straightforward, if anybody wants a walk-thru just ask here or PM me.

I have limited experience of Albatross's. I did make the trek to Hermaness for Albert and i had some medium-distance but quite long views of a, presumed, Black-Browed whilst seawatching @ Saltfleetby in Lincolnshire in the late-70's. I thought nothing of it as i lacked the experience to submit records with no supporting photographic evidence but i later heard a couple of reports on the same day from further South including off of Gibraltar Point so who knows?

Last nights BBC Radio 4's Shared Planet was devoted to the group and the conservation issues related to fishing and long lines etc. It seems like things are getting better.....slowly. Factoid of the programme, for me, was a Laysan Albatross laying a clutch of eggs last year somewhere in the Pacific - so what's so special about that you say? Apart from the fact that the bird was, wait for it, 63 years old!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04mcmnj

Bonfire night is nearly upon us.....So apart from worrying about my one remaining Staffie i am left wondering whether the night is going to live up to the pre-emptive freebie events that have been taking place in the media?

By that i mean the impromptu display at the Stafford fireworks factory, NASA's aborted Space Station delivery package and Virgins latest attempt that ended in disaster somewhere over the Mojave desert. It is important to bear in mind that people lost their lives in two of these incidents:C All this with India making it's first attempt at sending an orbiter to Mars.....and succeeding all for less than the cost of making the Sci-Fi thriller Gravity - i kid you not.

I must say that i find Branstons obsession with this project sitting uncomfortably with his passion for the environment. Rich A-Z list 'slebz' who spend their lives metaphorically looking down at us can soon be able to do it, physically, several miles from space. I for one hope the project finishes with a whimper and not a bang so that no more lives are lost and funds expended.

Maybe his next attempt will not be made of feathers and wax.....

Laurie:t:

Below - Fireworks displays from Stafford, Virginia, New Mexico and Icarus.
 

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Gooney Birds, Flocks and Murmurations.......

I have been playing about with the bit of bird-counting software that i linked on a previous post.

It works best on aerial flocks with no buildings or vegetation to clutter up the readings imo. Removal of unwanted areas can be attempted with the options available but i prefer to put the image in Photoshop, crop the unwanted areas and then analyze as will be explained. I made the mistake on my initial image of Knot by reading the wrong table which gave me 255, when i did another photo it gave the same reading when it was patently obvious that it was far more birds. I should have been reading the left hand side of the statistics which also gives a corresponding number to every bird/group contained within the image. As stated the upper limit is 30k so an image estimated to contain more individuals than this should be enlarged and then broken down into chunks for analysis. Bear in mind that 'clumps' of birds will be ascribed a single number so concentrations of, for example, a Starling roost might contain several hundred individuals if the picture is taken at some distance. Large groups like this can be isolated, enlarged (if the definition allows) and analysed independently of the main image - like the birds, those Winter evenings will just fly;)

5 examples, including the original Knot image are reproduced at the end of the post but here are the details.....

The first image is of the Knot flock with the revised number of birds which was 1822!

The second image is of a flock of Starlings, note the concentration towards the right-hand end and in particular one dense area. The reading gave me 5022 birds this will be a minimum.

Image number 3 is of a loose flock of larger birds with far fewer individuals to contend with and yielded 130.

Pictures 4/5 is of a party of Red-Billed Queleas flocking around a water hole in South Africa. Reproduced here is the original image which shows background scrub which also contains flying birds. I was intrigued as to what the software was going to do with this one. It gave me a reading of 4604 birds. I then put the image on Photoshop, cut out just the birds above the tree-line and then pasted the image onto a plain Blue background (which bears an uncanny resemblance to Australia?). The re-analysed image gave an estimate of 4127 - nearly 500 less, were these birds, little branches, leaves? Hard to say but an interesting excercise. Both images are reproduced here.

Further to the Laysan Albatross. The island in question was Midway, i should have remembered that from the War film section of my head! Midway was the turning point in the Pacific conflict when the US Navy sunk a number of Japanese aircraft carriers thus gaining air superiority then the writing was on the wall and from that day the Rising Sun was on the wane. The Yanks established an airfield on Midway but had constant trouble with returning Laysan Albatrosses (they initially shot a lot of them:C) They nick-named them.....Gooney Birds because of their landing style and their nuptial displays. To think that the bird in question nested there in 1951 and is still able to synthesise Calcium.

I take my hat off to her and feel suitably humbled.

The Guardians take.....http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/feb/12/albatross-aged-62-hatches-chick

The birds themselves.....https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DxwIk3prdDI

Midway for the military-minded.....http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Midway

A bit self-indulgent but a scene from Steven Spielbergs' 'Empire of the Sun' where Jamie, the schoolboy (played by an incredibly young Christian Bale), whilst working on the new airfield with other ex-pat conscript labour is drawn to the repair facilities on the far side and despite being challenged by a guard is shown mutual respect by soon-to-be Kamikaze (Divine Wind) pilots, bonded by their shared love of both flying and aircraft.....enjoy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJ1wE7Fx9a8

It's the time of year for 'murmurations'. I have little time for this Victorian habit of collective nouning of birds based on human perception. The term for these large, seasonal gatherings of Starlings is, for me, an exception. The term is very apt and its' etymology is probably from the low murmur or grumbling that the flocks make whilst wheeling around in pre-roost flocks or mobbing a predator intent on a last snack.

Here is a link to the BBC's Dylan Winter with his local murmuration somewhere down South. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88UVJpQGi88

I shall be posting, with the estimated number of birds, a murmuration of the day (probably every other day) when suitable images from this seasons birds are found. I have to follow up a local roost i was told about in Cradley asap.

Laurie:t:

Below - Knot, Starlings, flock and both Quelea images.
 

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Interesting stuff there, Laurie.......

especially the 62 year Albatross that can synthesize a chemical element - if it can do that, it must truly be a STAR ;):-O

- I think we all know what you mean, though. :t:
 
I think i mean through chemical synthesis as opposed to stellar nucleosynthesis but you're the chemist? But agreed, they do'nt actually make Calcium or Carbon.

Who would have thought that a combination of Elements and Allotropes would end up as an egg containing a baby Laysan Albatross - 'aint naychur wunnerfull

It's a test to the resilience of the bird that it has survived the depredations of local harvesting, hurricanes, the Battle of Midway and the US SeeBees (CB - Construction Battalion).

For more on Laysan.....http://www.papahanaumokuakea.gov/visit/laysan.html

Laurie:t:

Below - Elements, Allotropes and Eggs.
 

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Hi Laurie,

I guess it comes down to semantics, really. Calcium is an element so it cannot be chemically 'synthesized' because an element is the most fundamental chemical unit and synthesis is defined as the process of combining simple parts to make a more complex whole. Elements can only be synthesized via nuclear fusion in stellar media (massive stars and supernovae) or nuclear reactors.

Biological entities can only carry out chemical transformations - they can assimilate and metabolize Calcium but they cannot synthesize it. Elemental Calcium doesn't exist in nature and the chemical species that are commonly referred to as biological 'Calcium' are actually Calcium compounds, such as Calcium carbonate and Calcium phosphate. The Calcium is present as a divalent cation.

The Calcium carbonate in eggshells is assimilated from the bird's diet and metabolized (chemically transformed) - I guess it could be correctly said that the Calcium carbonate eggshell is 'synthesized' and I know this is really what you meant - I was just being very pedantic. Sorry about that - I'll just let it go next time.:t:
 
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Agreed Dave.....and don't let it go, there is a fine line between pedantic and getting things right and i speak as an uber pedant;)

You might or might not believe it but as soon as i wrote that i thought (thought bubble here) the bird is'nt actually making either Calcium or Carbon but utilising the elements to make a compound of organically-produced carbonate and then i thought sod it 'to synthesize' in laymans terms is to produce something by mixing ingredients and only that Woodchat bloke will pick up on it and the rest, as they say, as history;)

Find something decent down the Goldfish Bowl, i could do with a day out!

I'll get back to counting Starlings (he murmured).

Laurie:t:

The cure for boredom is curiosity - there is no cure for curiosity.....
 
A (mutation) flock of c15 Mistle Thrush at the Merry Hill Centre early this morning feeding on the last few remaining berries on the trees by Sainsburys was I feel a notable sighting, so here it is duly noted!:bounce:
 
It will have to pass muster by the 'duly noted' committee Pam, i can't promise acceptance because of the lack of field notes and/or a photo and i hope you did'nt tape-lure them?!.....

I have emailed the details to the BBRC - Bloody Boring Records Committee;)

Laurie:t:
 
It will have to pass muster by the 'duly noted' committee Pam, i can't promise acceptance because of the lack of field notes and/or a photo and i hope you did'nt tape-lure them?!.....

I have emailed the details to the BBRC - Bloody Boring Records Committee;)

Laurie:t:

Absolutely no tape-luring involved Laurie!:eek!: I will take my camera on my next shopping trip!;)
 
Always take camera and 'bins Pam - you never know when evidence of sightings will be needed.....

My work committments finish today and as the weather has been fairly inclement of late i don't suppose i have missed much, daily visits to Mary Stevens Park have not yielded a great deal. BHG's have dropped off this week with less than 100 birds on any day. I watched a 1w bird swimming after an adult begging for food the other day, some just don't want to leave the nest - we have the brides' 28 year old still in residence, more or less the same scenario!

Still no returning Goosander or Tufties which is a surprise. PAL informs me that the Little Grebe is still present down at the Golden Puddle and that the first of the Winter have turned up including the very distinctive 'Scaup-faced' female.

I'm still having fun tinkering with the bird-counting software but have given up with the Starling flocks as it is impossible to estimate accurately. The dense areas of the images simply cannot be counted so it's best to enjoy them for what they are imo. The software will be very useful for loose flocks in the hundreds to low thousands.

There has been an intriguing record of a Common Bulbul in the Slimbridge area:eek!: They do have a toe(claw)hold on the European landmass with a single pair breeding West of Gibraltar @ Tarifa https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_-m81YLpQgI. I watched one of the adults feeding young this September and thought that i had 'found' them - they've been there for a couple of years i heard later:C Of more trusting provenance was a recent Penduline Tit that called briefly in flight along the Sharpness canal.

Worth keeping eyes open and ears for that distinct call.....

http://www.xeno-canto.org/200044

Laurie:t:

Murmuration compilation.
 

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Eric 'Winkle' Brown.....

This week is a better bet to get 'out and about', after a short bout of work (i like to make it sound like an illness) there seems to be a window in the weather i.e. no rain. A morning visit, with the dog, down to the Golden Puddle will be in order with a cycle ride to other locations in the afternoon finishing @ Mary Stevens Park in the afternoon.

3 visits down to Withymoor since Friday has seen little change but in the level of the water. PAL reports what appears to be a brief adult Yellow Legged Gull:eek!: and has pictures to further the case;). Tufties have varied from a steady 3 pairs to 4males/3females ystda. The Little Grebe was present over the weekend but not noted on my last visit but can prove elusive and well camoflauged. Grey Wagtails, GSPWoodpeckers and Nuthatch also seen and heard. I have noted the first 2 spp at a number of locations over the last few weeks, not surprisingly birds wander during the Winter. Interestingly PAL bumped into somebody down at the pool who reported and described a Firecrest in his garden. The chap lives local and only a stones throw from where i had the feeding and sharp-calling elusive silhouette a couple of weeks ago - the plot thickens.....

Cycled over to Stakenbridge, some 3/4 miles distant for a couple of hours yesterday afternoon. Walked up adjacent to the series of pools to Brake Mill and Firecrest cottage (remember them?). 2 redhead Goosanders on BMPool. A couple of Ravens and the usual Nuthatch/Peckers etc. The West Hagley fields proved unproductive but the light was closing in. Finished at MSP with a couple of hundred BHG's and still no Tufties or Goosander seen this Autumn.

I don't normally catch Radio 4's Desert Island Discs but it caught my ear when i heard that the 3,000th edition featured Captain Eric 'Winkle' Brown. He is a former Fleet Air Arm/Royal Navy aviator and his career spans almost the entire era of powered flight. He is a dour Scot and a delightful listen. At 95 he has just bought himself a sports car! What's his dying wish, to be shot by a jealous husband?! He has the distinction of having flown more aircraft types than anybody else - well over 400+. He became the countrys' foremost test pilot and also flew all of the captured German marques when they fell into Allied hands. Being a Navy pilot he also pioneered carrier landings acknowledged as the most dangerous and challenging. The Yanks were so jealous that they targeted his carrier-landing record in order to beat it.

Their boy had a nervous breakdown in the attempt.....

I loaned one of EB's many books from Dudley Library years ago, 'Wings of the Luftwaffe', an enthralling account of a number of captured Axis types. If you like flight and flying with a hint of military then i would reccomend a listen.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/features/desert-island-discs/castaway/d01755cf#b04nvgq1

His Wiki profile is extensive.....http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_Brown_(pilot)

A YouTube link to the first carrier landing of a jet.....https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i0DDkzS6p7E

The Beeb also did a one-hour special on the life and career of this remarkable pilot.....https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=szten4iypCM

He popped up like a Woody Allen Zietgeist-type, having attended the Munich Olympics, as a schoolboy he went on to meet Goering, many elite combat pilots, Yuri Gagarin and his US equivalent (also still alive) the great Chuck Yeager - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chuck_Yeager.

Most of us just live thru and are witnesses to history a few, like Eric, are actually part of making it.

A flurry of Southern spp have set the pulses racing with Roller, Black Kite, Black Stork and now a Little Bustard:eek!: Sadly i need all of them for Blighty:C of more local interest is a couple of Black Redstarts in Kidderminster - there you are, back to earth with a bump!

Laurie:t:
 

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