The tide had already been coming in by the time I reached the little shingle strand, even though I did go straight there, without lingering on the little back road, which I left for my return. Often I find the Grey Herons in the little corner of the bay where the strand is. Only two Mute Swans were here to greet me; and thus I discovered that their little cygnet must have come to its end much too soon.
While I was sitting at the bridge over the little brook which ends into the bay where the Swans were feeding. I was sitting on the bridge and over the next hour or so, while I was switching sides of the bridge and taking photos of the many Wild Flowers I found here. The Swans closed in meanwhile and swam towards the bridge, as far as possible.
There was no sign of any of the Grey Wagtail, neither of the Chaffinches, often calling out of a tree, nearby. Even the Starlings were qiet, perhaps being occupied by the many visitors to one of the 5 Open Gardens along the South side of the peninsula. A Robin called out from a few metres away on te bridge, challenging me to take a picture.
Across from the Swans, I was leaning over for a few pictures of the Herb Roberts I noticed low at the ground, and as I did so I also discovered a lovely little white flower, which turned out to be a Wild Strawberry. In fact there were enough to make a Strawberry mousse. Of course I’d heard of these, yet I don’t think I have seen one before while knowing what I was looking at.
The last two weeks of mainly rain and {too} windy weather, had, together with time, changed the road sides in colour, shape and sizes; all signs of faded Ragged Robins had gone, and in its place was an array of Meadowsweet, Thistle, Brambles, and many more.
The wind was playing a game with the Thistle’s seed-hairs, which tried to hang on as long as possible to its mother plant spines.
From somewhere I heard the call of a Rook, the first I’d heard in quite some time. I failed to spot one though.
Herring Gulls were taking advantage of the increasing and freshening breeze, floating on air at a good height too. Still, I failed to get a picture again. Swallows were flying over too. As it was warm and Sunny, they’d started off flying high in the air, one of Nature’s great weather forecasters, but with the fresh winds they stayed lower and near landing strips in trees or on telephone/electricity cables.
Also I got an opportunity to get a few photos of Hooded Crows; I’d told myself I wanted to see if I would be able to get some for “Crow, who’d not heard of them before. Usually I see them where they are well camouflaged; on the mud of the bay. This time, two had landed on the cables above me and soon six were flying to and fro, crossing the road above me between the fields and the bay below. I tried finding out what the attraction was in the fields and I think it must have been some outbuildings near a few new houses.
I think many of them were juveniles with their light chests, in one almost white even. The black mark on their breast was virtually missing, only a vague darkening was visible there,
Back at the Church of Ireland at the bay, I stopped at tall Dandelions growing at the inside of the bay, just over the wall. They were massive and stood their yellow heads were finding it hard to stay erect in the wind. In the village I stopped to get a few pictures of Swallows.
Back home I was back to not only trying to keep the Jackdaws from eating all my peanut cake, the two Magpies also were attempting to raid as soon as my attention was elsewhere.
Single strand
Mute Swanns, Synchronized swimming
Herring Gull
Blackheaded Gull stll in full breeding plumage
!metre high Dandelions in the wind
Bindweed
Meadowsweet
Little Herb Robert
Buttercup and Bird'sfoot?
Young Hooded Crows
A Look back towards the Bay
Swallows in the village
Ah crows, glorious crows. One of my favorite birds. So dark and mysterious and brilliant as well.
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