RNG

(picture courtesy of the girlfriend)

Inspired by some epic photographs on Birdguides we finally took the trip down the A38 to Foremark Reservoir, a bit south of Derby, to catch this long staying Red-necked Grebe that's more or less reached full summer plumage. Real glamour bird this one, a rare specimen of Russian chic and proper little show-off drifting around 20 yards in front of the car park (this beats the pale distant RNGs you usually freeze your bits of for in the mid-winter at Rutland Water).
Also picked up my first Wheatear of '09, hopefully to be met with again in July if all plans for a week on the Isle of Mull come together.

What's missing from this entry? Oh yes, the dodgy digi-video-scope effort...

Dipper at'Mill

Nice bird in the village today, unusual this far east in Derbyshire, it's a Dipper, of course. Well worth all of that 5 minute walk down to the mill. Looked territorial too, so fingers crossed on that, even if it means a hard time for the regular Grey Wagtails.
Technically a good county bird for Nottinghamshire listers when it flits onto the opposite bank of the Meden.

Also, while a Coal Tit calls outside my window, a couple of good birdy articles in the Independent this week, well, one good, one bad:

Triumph of the Bumbarrel - AKA the Long-tailed Tit

The Sound of Silence - The Cuckoo is Vanishing

Through the car window

A shot of Redwings the girlfriend took last week on her way to work in Derbyshire. Won't be seeing these birds for too much longer now, not until the autumn anyway.
She tells me in China they have a very similar bird the Eyebrowed Thrush, which is commonly sold as a sweet swinging cagebirds. I think we both prefer to see them in (or usually over) the fields.

In other news frogsprawn has appeared in our new garden pond. Can hardly describe how thrilled we are. It's the simple things when you're into nature, isn't it?