Honoured to be a photographer and a contributor to this investigation into multi-billion pound Viridor/KKR & Co Inc that uncovers a national scandal involving false environmental claims, ecological destruction at Beddington Farmlands, multi-million pound tax breaks, back room deals and oppression of local communities.
Back in London working at the moment. Was hoping to get over the farmlands but could only manage a few minutes at lunch and after work staring out the window over the farmlands. A very productive few minutes- I had the first-winter Iceland Gull flying round the incinerator and the White Stork was flying round too.
I put the moth trap at the window last night- had Beautiful Plume, another Spring Usher and an Acleris sp.
Here's a post about the highlights I've had from the window over the years including a few local megas: HERE
The Big Garden Birdwatch has broken me. I'm sick of all this local stuff. 15 species, highlight being a Stock Dove and...
Posted by Peter Alfrey on Sunday, January 31, 2021
I've had the LED on at the Beddington 'obs' in the week and had 3 Spring Ushers one night and an Agonopterix alstromeriana on another. When I arrived at the 'country retreat' at the Old Vic yesterday there was an Early moth on the wall. Unlike others who have bothered putting the trap out in deepest darkest winter I have not had Chestnuts, Pale Brindled Beauty, any Acleris sp and of course not the slightest sniff of the deep winter speciality Black-spotted Chestnut which has been caught not too far away from the Old Vic recently HERE.
A couple of presumed Yellow-legged Gulls from Beddington this week. More on Yellow-legged Gulls that have featured on this blog HERE.
I also did some scoring of recent Caspian Gulls at Beddington using British Birds scoring system HERE. The non-classic first winter that has been around for a while HERE came out with a score of 21- just on the line of an acceptable Caspian. Interestingly as I was scoring the bird and going through the paper it was interesting to confirm that the dark mask and head and body streaking and the dark triangles in the scapulars were at the variation limit of pure Caspian, and not necessarily indicative of hybridisation although the bird was right on the line.
Had to get another full day in at Otmoor during mid-winter and what with the wintery conditions at the moment seemed like no better day than today. Ebird list HERE. Highlights included a single Crane, 75 White-fronted Goose, a passage of Skylarks moving low southwest (204 counted by mid-afternoon), Hen and Marsh Harriers, at least 150 Snipe and 90 Pintail, Redwings and Fieldfares on the move and a couple of Marsh Tit. Golden Plover numbers seemed lower than usual (about 1500) and for the first time this winter seemed like they were out numbered by Lapwings (approx 2000).
