Shetland Misfit

Friday, 26 July 2013

Vagrant, migrant and Scarce Moths

With the South-easterly winds over the last week mothing is starting to look good with around 100 moths trapped on most nights. The highlights so far - 27 Diamond-backs, 2 Flame Shoulders, a Mother of Pearl, a cracking Garden Tiger (second record for the garden) and a Bordered Sallow. The Bordered Sallow is the third record for Shetland, amazingly, I also caught the second record of this species on 2nd July last year !

Bordered Sallow

Flame Shoulder

Garden Tiger

Wednesday, 10 July 2013

Caspos

Had a walk along the banks of the river Wisla up to Katy and back - 2 Golden Orioles, a Green Woodpecker, 4 Great Reed Warblers, a Common Rosefinch, 20 Caspian Gulls, 3 Common Sandpipers, 5 Black Redstarts and a Buzzard - stinkin' hot all day until a massive thunder storm early evening cooled things down a bit.

Black Redstart

Caspian Gulls

Common Sandpiper

Tuesday, 9 July 2013

Peckers

Spent two days around Wolski Forest looking mainly for woodpeckers, a difficult but not impossible task in July, I hadn't banked on the evil Polish mozzies though ! So after two days I had to give up before I ran out of blood ! I did manage to get several of Grey-headed, Middle Spotted and Great Spotted, and heard a few Greens and one Black. As well as the Woodpeckers there were lots of Spotted Flycatchers, Nuthatches and Treecreepers, 4 Hawfinch, 2 Wood Warblers and a Red-backed Shrike.

Grey-headed Woodpecker

Great Spotted Woodpecker

Middle Spotted Woodpeckers

Nuthatch

Red-backed Shrike

Sunday, 7 July 2013

Hotel Birding

Having been travelling since Friday evening, totally knackered arriving in Krakow, managed a few hours along the river Wisla. Tree Sparrows everywhere, checked out a small willow area near to the hotel, amazingly it held 2 Serins, 10 Goldfinches, 3 Stonechats, 6 Icterine Warblers, umpteen Marsh Warblers and a Sparrowhawk. Also from the hotel - 2 flyover Black Storks and a few Caspian Gulls and Common Terns.

Serin

Tree Sparrow

Saturday, 6 July 2013

Little Terns

A few Little Tern pics from the Ythan today, and yes, it really was that sunny in Aberdeenshire !

Saturday, 29 June 2013

Bits

A few shots from on the patch today -

Arctic Skuas

Saanderling - 10 birds still present on Moast Beach

Wheatears

Saturday, 22 June 2013

Rain

Rain and mist all day, so a few pics of rain drops in the garden. The only things of note today were 2 Black-tailed Godwits over the house at 6 am, and I did manage to see a Pilot Whale from the sitting room window - OK, it's a dead one washed up on Quendale Beach.

Migrant Moths

A few migrant Moths trapped this week - 3 Diamond Backs, a Dark Swordgrass, 5 Angle Shades and 19 Silver Ys.

Angle Shades

Dark Swordgrass

Silver Y

Thursday, 20 June 2013

Late Update

A few bits and bobs from the patch over the last fortnight

Canada Goose

Curlew Sandpipers - present for 3 days

Eider

Oystercatcher

Spotted Flycatcher in the garden

Saturday, 8 June 2013

Black & White

Arctic Terns in black and white, taken on the patch this morning.

Friday, 7 June 2013

Debris

A few shots from South Mainland over the last week.

Pied Flycatcher - Hoswick

Snow Buntings - Scatness

Spotted Flycatcher - Swinister

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 !!!!