Of Birds & Cake the Blog of Paul: Hurst walk the Survivors Tale!

The true story of last nights walk around the village, policemen’s lane, across the fields ,skirting the bottom of Wolstonbury Hill and back through the Alpaca fields.
Started well enough couple of Greenfinch could be heard calling with the Blackbirds, Robins, Dunnocks and Chiffchaffs and the field full of Buttercups with the Hawthorn in full flower in the background looked a treat! As we hit the Brighton Road a pair of Swallows were hawking insects above our heads , as Margie chatted to a couple of residents about their garden, from a safe distance obvs, I had my first Great Spotted Woodpecker encounter of the walk, the first of 4 sightings they seem to be doing well around here.
We proceeded towards Wolstonbury Hill not really seeing much although I heard at least another 3 singing Yellowhammers which makes at least 12 territories I have located on my village wanders so far. A Common Whitethroat and a small flock of Stock Doves the best of the rest, although there were also some Red-legged Partridge which I didn’t see at the time but revealed themselves in the photos!!! I blame the fact that my beloved Zeiss Conquests are away in Germany being mended and although Margie has graciously lent me her Bins in the meantime, it’s not the same! Also, as a Birder I’m surprisingly unobservant!
We skirted the base of the hill not tempted in any way to climb it! Then headed back across the Alpaca fields,who were looking quite comical after their Haircuts although it’s got to be said I’m a bit jealous, if my Clippers don’t arrive soon I’m going to be full hippy! Haven’t had this much hair since the 80’s it wasn’t pretty then and it ain’t pretty now!

At last we started to see some action a nice flock of approx. 20 Hirundines were zooming about mainly Swallows but a couple of Housemartins in with em, a Mistle Thrush flew past and landed on a fence post, bit distant but managed a record shot, another GSW was working the posts and posed reasonably well and a Pied Wagtail strutted about close as you like. We continued across the fields admiring the large Oak Trees and I scanned regularly hoping a Cuckoo would pose in one of the dead trees although every time I found one it turned into a Woodpigeon when I got it in the bins!
So focused was I on this that I didn’t realise we had strayed into danger, for in the very field we were halfway across , 4 huge horses were loose, some distance away ,but I could see they was well frisky , rearing, snorting doing that thing when they wheel their legs about, now at this point it should be acknowledged that I have a bit of history with large farm animals, I don’t like them and they don’t like me!! From my encounters with Water Buffalo at West Rise Marsh, to the Thorney Island incident and the Rabid Bullock of Strathbeg, my dealings with em rarely ends well! So, it was remarkable that I retained my composure and strolled across the field as though nothing was amiss waiting calmly at the stile for Margie to catch up!!

{Margie’s witness statement!!)

“We entered the field at 18.40 hrs (time may be wrong) and I immediately spotted 4 horses in the far corner, they were calmly eating grass and showing no interests in us what so ever, Paul was concentrating on trying to string obvious Woodies into Cuckoos, so I hoped we’d get across before he saw them, no such luck!! Halfway across he froze, he’d seen them, dammit, we then had the usual hysterics where I point out they are not interested in us and he insists they are going to get us!! Unfortunately at this point one of the horses did look up and take about 4 steps towards us , Paul then did what he likes to call his fast walking ,although he insisted later at no point did he actually start running, although in his defence he did wait at the stile and help me across commenting on how brave he’d been!!”

Well I’m not sure what field of death she walked across, but the main thing is we survived, the next field contained some Sheep with Lambs, I’m not to bothered about Sheep as if one turned nasty I reckon I could probably wrestle it to the ground no problem!! Anyway we headed through the small strip of Woodland which on it’s edge hosted a very nice Song Thrush belting out his song this was about the last meaningful encounter of the walk ,Still no Cuckoo, Nightingale or Turtle Dove for me this year ☹ but on the Brightside a very enjoyable walk in good company ,with some good birds seen !!

Some pics below a mix taken by myself and Margie ,as a general rule mine are the Birds and Margie’s are the Landscapes and close ups of flowers and insects!! Though they are all labelled individually ,unfortunately they are not in chronological order as every time I move one they all go haywire!!