Long-distance owling!

Peter 'phoned to tell me that one of the Little Owl family that we can both see from our gardens had flown in and was dozing on a favoured branch. I've discovered that I can use a stepladder to look at the nest tree from the patio, so I took a few photos. From Google Map, I discover that the tree is 460m away across the field: see how quickly you can pick the Little Owl out from the increasingly cropped pictures below!

Evening patch walk

Just for a change (and in the vain hope that there'd be fewer walkers about) I set off at 7.00pm for my usual circuit of the Heath. To be honest, the variety of wildlife was more or less as usual: Great Spots, Nuthatch, Blackcap, Chiffchaff and so on. No sign of the Wheatears tonight, nor the Fieldfares, but the Roe Deer were in exactly the same place!

"Houston? We've had a problem..."

Is it really fifty years since the launch of Apollo 13? I've been fortunate enough to have met two of the three members of the ill-fated mission, James Lovell and Fred Haise on numerous occasions. Additionally, I've spent time with the mission's EECOM (electrical, environmental and communication system) controller, Sy Liebergott.

The consensus from all three was that the phrase above (not the usual misquote!) were said first by Jack Swigert, being repeated to Mission Control by Jim Lovell. Lovell and Haise were both somewhat dismissive about the accuracy of the film 'Apollo 13', particularly in relation to Ken Mattingley's contribution to finding a solution.(In the film, he comes up with several 'fixes' that Lovell states were devised by the flight crew themselves)

More lockdown ticks! Marsh Tit and Wheatear...

Today's circular walk was notable for the almost complete absence of any traffic, meaning I could plod along a road that would normally be far too dangerous for pedestrians. (Having said which, on the first part of my route round to the reservoir, I was looking at the rear end of a couple of horses for half a mile, before they moved aside to let me overtake!)

First new birds were a pair of Marsh Tits in the old Oaks near the reservoir. Two Song Thrushes and a Nuthatch were on territory still, and I heard numerous Blackcaps and Chiffchaffs. Local birder Keith B rode up on his bike: we chatted for a minute or two at a suitable distance, discussing the fact that in past years we'd both encountered Wheatears on the 'Golden Plover field'. Several more Yellowhammers in new locations were good to see, before I caught up with Keith at the top of the Heath. Amazingly, he'd pinned down a pair of Wheatears! Somewhat distant, but great to see: once he'd pointed out these delightful migrants, Keith sped away: I wonder if he noticed the three Roe Deer on the other side of the road?

The last leg back towards my village added a few Buzzards, more Nuthatches and a Blackcap. To my surprise, the ploughed fields just before 'Heathlands' still held a large flock (over 200!) of Fieldfares.

Garden work...

With Spring well and truly in the air, Linda and I spent time pruning, staking and weeding: if we're going to be spending the next three weeks (at least!) locked down, then gardening is a worthwhile time investment!

Living, as we do, on a ridge between two river valleys (the Yare and the Bure) raptor passage is frequently quite good. Additionally, we have a decent (and improving) population of resident species. Today I kept having to run indoors for the camera as Buzzards and Sparrowhawks drifted overhead.

Ah! I see now: rules are only meant for some of us!

The Government lockdown regulations state quite clearly that car journeys must be for essentials like work, food shopping and so on, not for recreation. Dogs must be kept under close control on leads in the countryside and walked from the front door, not driven somewhere rural.
Tick them off in the photos below:

1) Let's take doggy for a drive 

2) Let's let doggy off the lead in the woods

3) Let's let doggy take a dump and not clear it up

I have the unpixelated images available if anyone would like them: they were taken along the NDR during only our third drive for shopping in well over two weeks. 

If EVERYONE did as they were asked during this pandemic, it would be over sooner!

Clear skies: Comet Atlas and beautiful Moons...

The reduction in aircraft and vehicular traffic over the past couple of weeks has made a tremendous difference to what astronomers call the 'seeing': the clarity of the air above us. I have managed to find Comet Atlas with my 5" refractor on several occasions, even though it is only a fuzzy ball of around eighth magnitude. My particular interests are lunar and planetary astronomy and I have discovered that I can see - and even image - craters less than a kilometre across. But I'm afraid I'd swap all of this for a return to what passes for normality in the modern world and to be able to explore the beaches and woods of Norfolk again....