Too busy to blog

I've been really busy lately, leaving little time to blog.

Barn owls have kept me busy, checking boxes and ringing pullus. It's been a good year for owls, with broods of four the norm. I've ringed 34 owlets in a week.

There's been a lot of barn owl activity at Druridge too, with the resident pair hunting in the mornings and in the evenings in broad daylight. My camera is totally dead, so will need to buy another one, so I couldn't photograph one of the owls hunting in front of the Budge screen this morning.

Other highlights since my last post:

Sun 25th - wood sand and garganey on the Budge fields

Mon 26th - Red-legged partridge!! A unexpected addition to the year-list of  a species only previously seen during hard winters of 2010 and 2011.

Thurs 29th - Away from the patch at work, saw a hobby at Wooden Farm near Alnmouth

Friday 30th  -Ringing at Druridge - Caught 21 birds. 7 sedge warblers including a retrap first ringed as a fledgling last June, 4 juvenile chaffinches and two willow warblers. Also noted were reeling grasshopper warbler and 'chipping' snipe.

Today I had an early start. The wandering Egyptian goose was back on the Budge fields, other than that, it was just the usual.

Now, here's a thing. In East Yorks, Lincolnshire, Durham and Teesside there were some good birds today (according to Birdguides) including, Blyth's reed warbler, woodchat and red-backed shrikes, golden orioles, icterine warbler, corncrake etc...... What could Northumberland muster? A wood sandpiper at Hoppen Kiln Ponds!

Now, is this because there are no scarce birds in Northumberland or because there is nobody out looking for them?

Answers on a postcard.

128 wood sandpiper
129 arctic tern
130 red-legged partridge

PWC Score 169

I'm off to look at second-hand Canon 7D's