After acknowledging some obvious improvement, and indulging in a couple of tentative driving "experiments", I decided enough was enough and that even bad backs had to be subjugated in the cause of necessity and sanity!! So I spent the afternoon and evening at the meeting, and then dinner, of the Argyll Bird Club, who were visiting Islay for the weekend and incorporating their Spring Meeting whilst here. I thoroughly enjoyed seeing, finally, many of the members whom I'd never had the opportunity of meeting previously as it's so difficult to get to day meetings on the mainland from here, and then get back again in the single day. The lecture programme was good with presentations about RSPB Reserves on Islay, Choughs and geese.
And so,after four days of being cooped up, I'm ready to launch into fieldwork once again, particularly after learning of what had been picked up on the field trips today.......Marsh Harrier, Dotterel and Sandwich Tern. I suspect this week has been good for passage generally which, regrettably, I've missed!! The feedback from the Solway shows Pomarine, Arctic and Great Skuas to be on the move with some similar reports emanating from the Outer Hebrides too. Much closer to home, i.e. on the Rinns, reports of Short-eared Owls suggests several pairs may now be present after a number of very "lean" years.
No comments:
Post a Comment