Hard to Swallow

Several, quick local sessions over the weekend had me;

• Searching for a reported nesting Common Buzzard pair, without success
• Watching a battle between a Short-eared Owl and a male Sparrowhawk at Arcot
• Noting Arcot's three Exmoor Ponies have increased to five and an impressive sparring session between two, involving rearing-up, biting and general equine thuggery
• Recording my first hirundine of 2012 (at last!!) with a Swallow low and northwards over West Hartford's brickhouse
• Travelling south on the A189 on Saturday morning when a male Ring Ouzel flew left to right in front of the car here.

Green Sand

One of Tringa ochropus in the NW corner of Arcot Pond this evening and still there at dusk.  Liked the wee bay in the far corner and so was out of sight for a few periods of up to ten minutes if viewed from the south shore.  When I left it was on the north shore at the west end.

FFOFFH

Four Fotos On Foot From Home, of course.

In search of something new, a walk to here from Chez Nous this afternoon yielded three of these:

Two of these:

And several of these (answers on a post card, please, I am no botanist):