I met Bob out on the Flats early morning. Actually he met Mrs L on our drive and inquired as to where I was. Upstairs pulling my jeans on was the answer as it happened but I made short work of this and met him at the end of the road before he'd even seen a bird. Together we meandered across the Flats looking for winter flocks of Lapwing or Golden Plover. Together we saw nothing, but it was good to shoot the breeze as it feels like I've barely seen another birder this year.
We were at Alex when the hoped-for event happened. I was photographing the dodgy Greylag when I noticed a small flock of Lapwing coming in from the east. Bob did the counting, I did the papping. I've not managed to squeeze them all in , but there were 18 (count 'em!). I didn't get Lapwing last year at all, the first time for about forever, so this was very pleasing. Less pleasing was the small spaniel thing whose owners think it is perfectly acceptable for it to hare around chasing birds. If you happen to be reading this, not that you care, but it just isn't on to disturb birds in cold weather like this. They need to conserve all the energy that they can, and to have a dog needlessly scatter them all into the air when you could have prevented that is a disgrace.
Other than the Lapwing it was quite quiet, as it has been all week really. Decent numbers of Reed Bunting - I saw 4, James had 5 in a different area, I wonder how many we have. Linnets around Jubilee and loads and loads of Common Gulls including one of the Norwegian ones.
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| My new muse |
Dog walkers (owners?) are a law unto themselves. Here, on Thanet, we have a particularly odious version. Dog shit is everywhere, in the parks, on the beach and all along the public footpaths. I once, rather stupidly, asked a woman to refrain from letting her dog terrorize a roosting Turnstone flock. The abuse I received was worthy of the factory floor. Live and let live eh? Dylan
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