Thursday July 16

Today has not been a good day. My poor old dad had a fall last night and has ended up, for the first time in his 86 years, as a reluctant guest of the QE in Birmingham. Naturally all plans were shelved and we spent most of the day keeping him company.

This evening I was back home and decided on some "ornitherapy" to try to cheer myself up. Mike had texted the presence of a Redstart on his patch at Middle Spernal, so I was hoping for something similar as we entered the more interesting end of July.

Sadly there was little new to see. The Flashes continue to be hopeless (too high, and too dry respectively) so only the main pool offered any hope. But even this could only boast five Green Sandpipers, which at least allowed reasonable views.

Green Sandpiper

In the end I resorted to photographing a few wild flowers, including White Melilot and Lucerne, which I have added to my flower page. A couple of Common Darter dragonflies were on the wing, and a Sparrowhawk shot passed when I reached the road.

At least I didn't make the mistake of listening to the Test Match today.