It's Here

Northern Wheatears on BirdGuides today - furthest north being Staffs, an LRP in London and White Wagtail up at Berwick.  And Sand Martins too as far as Suffolk

Summer's comin'!!!!!!

Summery Summary?

For those with my welfare in mind, I am still here!  My birding over the last few days has been made up of:

• Taking the Chief Spotter to Teesside on Friday for a busy few hours, but nothing added to the year's list.  Lots of what we did not see as opposed to what we did, if you understand.
• Two hops across the patch to hear Tawny Owls.  The first drew a blank and the second success (but as I only record what I see, as pleasant as it was to note the calls, it was hardly pulse-racing).
• Travelling to Doncaster to see some friends and a few hours at Potteric Carr on Saturday afternoon.  As with Teesside, lots of birds we did not see (LSW, Bittern, Green Woodpecker), but plenty of activity nonetheless.

Highlight?  Red Kite over a field next to the A1M as we drove back yesterday afternoon, where the A1 and M1 meet in West Yorks.

Hardly summery weather, but looking out of the window, it's not far away!

Peaks and Troughs

Last night at West Hartford?  The same as the night before; only without the partridges!  So pretty flat really.

After that trough, the peak. 

Arrived at work this morning at 07:10 and as I parked the car (Ponteland) I noticed a long, skinny bird (no, not a female colleague) fly into a tall, distant conifer ahead.  'Looks a bit like a parakeet', thinks I.

Then a call I did not recognise, so a short walk to the trees and voila, Ring-necked Parakeet (-2 degrees so a bit chilly for the poor thing).

So the early worm catches the bird!