Shetland Misfit: White-tailed Nuthatch

Showing posts with label White-tailed Nuthatch. Show all posts

Friday, 13 March 2015

Lava - Neora Valley Upper Trail

Decided to do the upper trail at Neora, got a Jeep driver to drop me off at the top though as a lot of the track is around 45 degrees, it's a lot easier going downhill than up! At the top of the hill a big area has now been cleared and is just scrub, this was where I started off with 20 Maroon-backed Accentors, 3 Stripe-throated Yuhinas, 2 Olive-backed Pipits and 6 Rufous-breasted Accentors. I then slowly walked down the trail through the forest adding 20 Chestnut-tailed Minla, 2 Golden-spectacled Warblers, 26 Striated Bulbul, a Mountain Hawk Eagle, 2 White-browed Fulvettas and 2 White-tailed Nuthatch. There seems to have been a bit of an influx of Ashy-throated Warblers the last few days, as I've gone from seeing none a week ago and today there was a flock of 40+ at the end of the trail.

Ashy-throated Warbler

Golden Spectacled Warbler

Mountain Hawk Eagle

White-tailed Nuthatch

Some more Moths from last night

The views from the Upper Trail

Sunday, 8 March 2015

Lava Upper Jeep Track

Decided to give this track a go, as if it turned out to be crap, I could always drop back down onto the Lava-Kalimpong road. I needn't have worried. As this one was pretty steep, I concentrated on getting to the top as soon as possible, and then the plan was to bird all the way back down at a more leisurely pace. I reached the top after about 90 minutes and completely knackered and in need of a good rest. The top area is pretty flat and the loggers have noticed this too and have taken a fair few big trees out from there, on the up side it does make it that little bit easier to see the moss covered trees descending down the north slope.The first scan I did down the north slope and Bingo – Cutia, not one but four! They all put on a bit of a show for about 20 minutes as they climbed around the moss covered branches looking something like a cross between a Pitta and a Nuthatch.
The birds seen on the way back down were – 1 Great Barbet, 4 Blue-fronted Redstarts, 1 White-tailed Nuthatch, 28 White-throated Laughingthrush, 2 Broad-billed Warblers, 10 Chestnut-tailed Minla, 1 Brown-throated Treecreeper, 2 Striated Bulbul, 5 Red-billed Blue Magpies, 1 Slaty-blue Flycatcher and a female Rufous-breasted Bush Robin.

Cutias

Chestnut-crowned Warbler

White-tailed Nuthatch

The Upper Jeep Track

About Me

Sometimes I try to do things but it just doesn't work out the way I want it to, and I get real frustrated and then like I try hard to do it, and I like, take my time but it just doesn't work out the way I want it to. It's like, I concentrate on it real hard, but it just doesn't work out. And everything I do and everything I try, it never turns out. It's like, I need time to figure these things out, but there's always someone there going “hey Steve, you know we've been noticing you've been having a lot of problems lately, you know? You need to maybe get away. And like, maybe you should talk about it, you'll feel a lot better.” And I'm all like “oh, nah, it's ok, you know. I'll figure it out. Just leave me alone, I'll figure it out, you know? I'm just working on it by myself.” And they go “well, you know, if you wanna talk about it, I'll be here, you know? And you'll probably feel a lot better if you talk about it. So why don't you talk about it?” I go “no, I don't want to! I'm ok. I'll figure it out myself!” But they just keep bugging me, they just keep bugging me, and it builds up inside.I was in my house and I was just like staring at the walls thinking about everything, but then again I was thinking about nothing. And then my wife came in, and I didn't even know she was there. She called my name and I didn't hear her and then she started screaming “Steve, Steve !” And I go “what ? What's the matter ?” She goes “what's the matter with you?” I go “there's nothing wrong” She’s all “don't tell me that ! You're on drugs !” I go “FFS, I'm not on drugs. I'm ok, I'm just thinking, you know? Why don't you get me a Pepsi?” She goes “No! You're on drugs!” I go “I'm ok. I'm just thinking.” She goes “No! You're not thinking, you're on drugs! Normal people don't be acting that way!” I go “just get me a Pepsi ! Please, all I want is a Pepsi !” And she wouldn't give it to me! All I wanted was a Pepsi, just one Pepsi, and she wouldn't give it to me! Just a Pepsi !I'm sitting in my house, when a couple of my mates came in. they pulled up a chair and they sat down. They go “Steve, we need to talk to you.” And I go “ok, what's the matter?” They go “we've noticed that lately you've been having a lot of problems, and you've been going off on one for no reason, and we're afraid you're going to hurt somebody, and we're afraid you're going to hurt yourself. So we decided that it would be in your best interest if we put you somewhere where you could get the help that you need.” And I go “wait, what are you talking about, WE decided ? MY best interests ? How do you know what MY best interest is ? How can you say what MY best interest is ? What are you trying to say? I'm crazy ? They say they're gonna fix my brain. Alleviate my suffering and my pain. But by the time they fix my head, Mentally I'll be dead. They stuck me in an institution, said it was the only solution, to give me the needed professional help, to protect me from the enemy, myself !
Doesn't matter, I'll probably get hit by a car anyways !!!!