spring is on the way

everyone knows it.spring is here.this is the time for the unexpected.where winter visitors meet summer.
14/03/09
the weekend started for me early saturday mourning.after a very uncomfortable sleep no the sofa after watching comic relief and falling asleap.got a rude awakening at 6:30 in the morning by the twittering of a flock of siskins.after an hour of watching the feeders.i gave up and started playing on the ps2.at about 8 my dad got up. and told me what was on the feeders.all commons.
32 siskin
1 dunnock
2 blackbird
1 robin
3 goldfinch
1 blue tit
1 chaffinch
1 coal tit
then at around 9:30 i got a shout from dad saying the lesserpolls were back.as i was in the middle of a race onNFS PROSTREET i just paused the game and ran to look.again he told me they were on the floor.but when i got a look alarm bells were ringing.2 MEALY POLLS in the garden they fed on birch seeds from the tree and always kept there distance from the siskins they were with.they were so close i found it hard to lock onto them with my bins.the second they took to the tree i grabbed last months BIRDWATCH mag(issue 201) as i remembered it had an article of haw to id mealys with confidence.i skim read it and found all details to be in order so i txt the news out.i also txt it to birdguides but forgot that the txting service was bost and so i presume my record wasent put on the website.to anyone who gets this mag turn to page 33 and look at the image in the top right.this pic shows the birds we had in the garden.just add more white on the face.they were about the same size as the siskins if slightly smaller.remember this is only the 3rd site record and the first time a record has involved more than 1 bird.the closeness to the record in jan sudgests that the same bird is involved.just that another bird has joined it.my dad said that these are the birds that have been visiting the feeders since last tuesday.this is a lifer for my dad and a 2nd record this year for me.then over to earlswood for a gardening jod ive got over there.got onto at least 12 buzzards along the motorway and the fields surrounding norton lane.not much else apart from a fieldfare flock on the opposite field where i counted at least 60 of these birds.on the way back on the m42 near j2 i had 4 houase martins fly over(year tick).this is the earliest ive ever seen one and the first year ive seen one before sand martin.then to the almighty upton warren.
only the flashes though as i had a massive urge to tick avocet and LRP.as we was pushing time and didnt have long before dusk we went straight to the tower hide but checked the sailing pool for the sand martin that had been reported.no sign but the g c grebes gave great views in summer plumage at around 4 metres.now onto the flashes.right ok.this is going to be a harder job than i thought.there were tons af black heads-and a lot of them had there brown hoods.i scanned the back of the flash and found an avocet(year tick).then behind it a small movement.a closer inspection turned it out to be the LRP(year tick) giving the worst views ive ever seen.then my dad got in the hide.i told him where the avocet and the LRP was and he exclaimed hed got 2 avocets.then all 3 joined together and gave good views.sorry for the video quality,taken in bad light at full zoom.

then a birder came in.i think i saw him at the waxie twitch.he asked whats about and we told him.then at that point 4 oystercatchers came in and landed calling

this video shows all 4 and a few other birds after

the stonechat that was reported wasent seen.then everything got spooked and the avocets moved closer

the highlights were:

little grebe

3 greylag geese

1 shelduck(3rd flash)

1 shoveler

10-20 teal

1 perigrine

4 oystercatcher

3 avocet

1 LRP

70c lapwing

12+ curlew

2 snipe

2 l b b gulls (on ground)

1 little owl

1 cettis warbler

100-200 starlings(pre roost)