Jinxed not jynxed

As Wrynecks continue to rain down on every other county in the UK, Gwent remains stubbornly at two with Scandinavian sub-rares. A brief, post-work, visit to the storm-tossed inland seas of Llareggub also failed to conjure up a Grey Phalarope. Actually, it failed to produce anything of real note.


The tumultuous scene at the hurricane-lashed reservoir (it's a pity I don't live in Alaska or I could have snuck in 'williwaw-whipped' at this point. Note to self: must move to Lipstick-pig Land to further my use of blog-based aeolian alliteration).


The slightly contrasting, limpid waters of Green Pool, so called because it is a pool and it is green, can you see what they did there?

Quiet but dry

A morning at Uskmouth and and quick stop at Saltmarsh Lane proved to be a pretty quiet affair. A few migrants were passing over (most going west) but nothing to rival yesterday. The highlights were probably 35 Siskin, 2 Tree Pipits and 10 Yellow Wags, if you think that was dull there was even less in the scrub, reeds and hedgerows.

Found this pic of Wales Atlantis to post (I meant to stick it up a couple of days ago), it gives you some idea as to why I got saturated whilst taking the dog down the canal on Friday evening. Did get a Kingfisher and a possible Otter kill though (an unidentified dead mammal, turned inside out, floating mid-stream).

It's kicking off Pru!

Despite not getting out till 09:30, due to another woefully inaccurate weather forecast, I ended up having one of my better mornings birding in Gwentcestershire today. High-tide at Goldcliff was, due to the high water levels, predictably slow until a 1st-year Osprey flopped in from the NW and out to the NE. The only other semi-notables were one Barwit, three Yellow Wag and a Swift.

Then came the news that a Long-tailed Skua had flown down channel off Slimbridge - to the point! Get to the point! Well, two Ringed Plovers, one Knot, one torrential downpour and half an hour later and we were ready to leave. Indeed, we had just started clambering back along the sea-wall when,... more news, the skua had just passed New Passage. Back the sodden sods shuffled to slump expectantly on the sea-wall.

A minute passed, mostly filled with an attempt to remove water from optics,... another minute passed, water/eye-piece battle raged on,... another minute came and went only to be followed,... by another, then quite unexpectedly a minute passed, then another and, hot on the heels of the last, another almost identical to the one before. Then, whilst a few large gulls fannied about on the water, another minute came and, at exactly the same pace, went, only to be followed by two more at a slightly faster rate (which was odd because, by now, my mind was wandering to the moistness of my jeans, the increasing difficulty of finding a dry section of T-shirt with which to dry my scope, and the increasingly pressing need to take a pee). Then, out of the murk to our left, flew a vision of elegance and lithe-loveliness in the form of a juvenile Long-tailed Skua - Gwent-tick! Kerr-ching!

PS. Also had juv Arctic and Common Tern at Goldcliff on the way back but I didn't want to undercut the dramatic ending penned above,... oops.

Brittle bins syndrome

Are today's hyper-lightweight, magnesium alloy bins getting easier to knock out of alignment or am I treating 'em too rough? The view through mine at the mo is squiffy to say the least, good timing though, thank little baby Jeebus it didn't happen at the start of the rarity season,... wait a minute!

Adolescent dog

Seemingly Jack is passing through an adolescent phase; he shows off all the time, can't stay put for longer than five minutes, rollercoaster emotions, etc., etc. Today he was seeking attention by means of a series of impressions; first he did the postman, then his agility/obedience tutor, then several comedians/satirists culminating in a sequence incorporating all the regular members (past and present) of the 'I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue' team. I tried to ignore him but it was rather good.

A sight for sore eyes

It would appear that, after a hard day worrying about crucified frogs and the son of God’s stiffy, Pope Benedict XVI likes to relax with a spot of eye-ball juggling.

Mockingbird at Uskmouth

Thanks to the guys working on the pylons, today's birding was accompanied by Eminem/Marshall Mathers. Tree Pipits and Yellow Wags trickled westwards to the tune of 'My name is'; a small mixed hirundine flock appeared as 'Sing for the moment' took to the air; and the odd sylvia 'tacked' along to 'Like toy soldiers'. The highlight, however, was 'Mockingbird'; unfortunately, it only heralded the appearance of a Redstart.

If I may put in a request, should you ever feel the need to inflict planet Gwent with your music, please have the good sense to play an original album as opposed to a record label cashing-in compilation; and, if it absolutely positively has to be Eminem, try The Slim Shady LP, at least it possesses momentary flashes of wit (and lacks any intervention by Dido).


This is the face a Reed Warbler makes when pondering the possibility that Marshall Mathers is second only to Elvis in the Top 10 of opportunist white boys who have successfully plundered black music traditions.

SPOFL

If you are stuck in traffic between the M4 and the Bassaleg/Pye Corner roundabout at some point during the next day or two, keep an eye out, one of the roadside wires had a Spot Fly sat on it this morning. The magic of migration in the raw,... the excitement is bordering on the perceptible.

Footy/Birding Crossover

For those of you who were on the Scillies when Gerrard, Voronin, Ballack, Anderson, Viera, etc., descended; the upshot of their visit (including a starring role for Spider) is now on the Adidas website here. Unfortunately I was on the Azores at the time (receiving increasingly unbelievable texts about the footballing-folk wandering the streets of St. Mary's).

Goldcliff mit demi-fence

A stop at Goldcliff for high-tide produced a few waders (Ruff, Greenshank, Knot and Green Sand being the best) but the two Whinchat, making use of the wonderful array of new fence-posts, were probably the highlight that or the good number of Yellow Wags knocking around. The wind got up a bit, more than the weathermen predicted, but a brief peer of the sea-wall resulted in zilch. Also had a Spotted Fly near Redwick this afternoon.