2008 |
July - December |
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ADRIAN'S PHOTO'S |
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July:
2nd We should have moved house today, instead my wife loaded up the car with both our cats and girls whilst myself and Wayne loaded up the removal van only to be told late in the afternoon that the solicitors of the people buying our house hadn't transferred the money in time so the sale wouldn't go ahead! This meant unloading our bed and cot and spending the night all together in our living room. The only bonus to this was watching Friendly and her cub through the patio doors from our bed!
3rd We finally moved after another stressful day. Many thanks to Wayne.
4th Had a rather restless night's sleep being kept awake by a horse with a cough and a noisy cockerel - welcome to the countryside!!!! Went back to our old house to pick up final bits and bobs from garage only to see that the new owners had blocked off the back gate leading into the wood with my old bird table and pieces of wood, after me telling them all about Friendly and the cub and outlining her life history! They obviously lied saying they loved wildlife etc..... I was gutted. Poor Friendly, least the cub is big enough to jump the wall and its at a the time of year where they can find food elsewhere. I really dislike these people after the problems with moving and now this!
5th Put up some feeders in a large conifer tree at the bottom of the garden. I am missing Friendly but loving the lack of buildings and open farmland, although I should imagine that foxes are not on the list of favorite mammals around here! The new garden has alot of plants suitable for birds and insects so should be good once I get the time to take some pictures.
18th Just managed to enter 5 pictures in the SWT photo competition this year, struggled a bit this year but thought I would still enter (with 5 minutes to spare!)
23rd Crops were being harvested today from field next to stables.
25th Left for Bempton Cliffs at 5am this morning, with Wayne. We spent all day taking pictures of Gannet, before carrying on up to Sea Houses.
26th Went across to the Farne Islands but unfortunately they were covered in mist so trying to photograph Puffin and Terns didn't turn out to be very easy.
27th Headed back to Bempton in the hope of avoiding the mist but instead it was worse so in an attempt to salvage the day we photographed Tree Sparrow slightly shielded from the mist by hedges. Still despite the weather it was a very enjoyable break and Wayne as always supplied tea and homemade cake!
August:
2nd Had over a dozen House Sparrows, Goldfinches, Greenfinches and 1 Turtle Dove in the garden today.
3rd Could hear shots from a 12 bore all day long presumably after Pigeon's - haven't seen the Turtle Dove today!
4th Farmer is ploughing the field today but hopefully I will be able to still walk around edge as I want to start checking for Badgers soon.
23rd Went to Minsmere to photograph Dragonflies and Butterflies.
29th Saw 7 Tortoiseshell butterflies and a Hummingbird Hawk Moth in the garden.
31st A Hobby flew over the fields at bottom of garden.
September:
6th Went to Alton water to do a pre Badger AGM survey. Good badger activity and we also found 3 Harvest Mouse nests which was good. Whilst looking for the nests I spotted a Wasp Spider. It looked very impressive and was the first one I believe to have been recorded at Alton Water. Didn't have my camera with me which was annoying! I had to return later to find another spider to Photograph.
12th Whilst out walking my dog Taz, I found a dead Great Crested Newt on the road. It was the first one I'd seen but very unmistakable.
19th After getting called out late in the evening I was rewarded with seeing a Tawny Owl in Wakes Colne and a Muntjac Deer in the estate at Parkfield.
October:
5th On the way home in the late evening I saw a badger running up the road in Crowfield. It was only probably 2 miles from my home so there may be some hope of finding a local sett.
6th Attended Suffolk Badger working Group Meeting at the Suffolk Wildlife Trust HQ.
7th Saw 2 Buzzard's in Suffolk.
8th Saw 2 Foxes and a badger whilst out on call.
29th Attended NEEBG committee meeting.
November:
8th It was Suffolk's Badger group AGM today. In the morning the group was split into 2 and one half surveyed for Harvest Mouse nests whilst I, with the help Of Arthur, took the other half to look for badger signs at a sett. In the afternoon we had a very interesting talk from Steve Piotrowsky about Barn owls and members were able to dissect some pellets. This technique will be used to help and locate Harvest mice in Suffolk so should be interesting next year. After Steve, we had an update from Paul Cantwell from English Nature (DEFRA) and then I gave my first very nervous talk / update on badger rta's and rescues. After a very shaky start I began to relax and not have to read my notes. I felt alot better once I'd finished so the experience hasn't put me off.
27th I received an email from the BBC to say I had been selected for the first stage of the casting process for a program called "To the Ends of the Earth" however I had to reply by 6pm today and it was 2100 before I even read the email! The interview was to of been held on saturday in London.
December:
3rd Saw a Barn Owl very close to my home at around about 1630.