31 December
We are at it again folks; making plans to go out. This
it’s for Saturday and we are planning to take Kile out for a day’s birding and
photo taking. We’ve settle on the London Wetland Centre and then to Richmond
Park for the deer. We shall get our 2015 year list off to a decent start from
the day. Actually, we will start it tomorrow with the birds out in the garden. One
of the Yahoo groups I subscribe to was doing well on posting of bird reports
but it tailed off later in the year. The admin is appealing for more support in
2015. I can’t grumble since I hardly posted anything last year at all.
This listing game that we birders play, can get out of
hand if we’re not careful. We only keep a life and year list; that’s a yearly
list of what we see and what we have seen since we began birding a long time
ago. Another list is a ‘patch’ list; that’s a list of a small area around where
you live. I don’t bother with that one unless you count our garden birds, which
in itself can become a list all of its own.
However, I have met birders who go on to make lists of
all kinds. One guy I met was keeps a county list. I met him when he came to see
the cattle egret Dorktown was graced with one. The reason? He hadn’t seen one
in Warwickshire before; then he was off to somewhere in Staffordshire for a med
gull, for the same reason.
Other lists I’ve heard about our birds seen on telly,
sub-divided into fictional and wildlife. Birds on cinema films. I wouldn’t
spend that much dosh to go to movies to look for birds! Then of course there is
all the content on the internet, Birdforum, and that Yahoo group are the two I
read regularly.
So from this little ‘list’ perhaps you can see just
out of hand the whole thing can get. For me though, the birding is only part of
the fun. The main thing for me is being out and about with Jan, and sometimes
with Kile, in the fresh air. The photo opps is just as big a draw as the birds themselves.
I suppose my biggest regret is that I can’t walk so well and no way near as far
as I would wish. We miss a lot of photos because of that.
Here’s another bird photo for you …
A grey heron and a
little egret in the same shot at Slimbridge.
And today’s funny …
“Oh no!
not leftovers again!” complained my older sister when she saw the leftover
meatloaf on the table from last nights supper. “Young lady” responded my father
sternly, “do you know how many people would love to have a delicious supper
like this?! You should be ashamed of yourself! Now before we start eating I
want to hear you say grace thanking the Lord for this delicious meal!” “Thank
you Lord for this delicious supper”, muttered my sister submissively “….again!”
