Hoooo?

So there I was minding my own business in the garden last night, when what did I hear but a long-eared owl calling away in the middle distance. First one I've heard on patch all year... which is a bit late truth be told, but hey, I'll take anything I can get at this stage.

Aside from that small bit of late owl action the patch has been particularly lame over the last few weeks. Nothing but the usual suspects turning up time and again, and the lake under-delivering in spectacular fashion once again. I've even been forced to tramp over Seppy's way in an attempt to see something half decent.

Twitched his Bonelli's, which was nice... and then scooted over that way again yesterday in the drizzle for a soggy short-toed lark in a carrot field just beyond his Galley patch (thank f***). Exotic or what?

Seppy's Bonelli's: lovely bird, but traipsing all the way to Galley for anything half decent wears a bit thin!

Anyway... the upshot is that The Mall tally advances to a measly 84 species... which, thanks to its incredible low-listing pedigree, translates to 96.92% on the board.

You mean this short-toed lark?

A darker side to everybody's favourite "friend"

While some of the "Irish" contingent were busy scouring patches for ticks over the weekend, one of our "friends" was doing his utmost to suppress local birding activity. One Mr Ross Geller, who is no stranger to campaigning, took to social media to call for a moratorium on finding birds in Co. Cork.

The reason? He needed to concentrate on a weekend of carousing and canoodling in Clonakilty's many hostelries of dubious repute without the risk of dipping something tasty.

Mr Geller all over the Social Interwebs conspiring to suppress local birding. After the weekend he's had lets hope online is the only place he's got a bit of viral action!

Needless to say real birders simply ignored him and headed out regardless :-).