Nestcam Update

My wrist is still extremely sore and to write a post of any length is very difficult so I'm just going to put on the small video clip I should have posted yesterday. The update is, there are now six eggs.

Then there was Three

No shot of the day today just an update on the nestcam. When I looked at nestcam this morning both Blue Tits had left the nest leaving the eggs neatly covered up. I'm not sure how long they leave them but I suspect it is for long periods at a time. In the evening the female was back on the nest by 5:30. As she sat on the eggs the male tenderly fed her sunflower seeds from the feeders in the garden. At about 5:45 she briefly left the nest box revealing a third egg. This was similar to the time she revealed the eggs yesterday.

By the time I came in from the Moorland Quiz Night that was held in the Eskdale Hotel, both birds had settled down for the night. The quiz was to help raise money to purchase feed for the moorland feeder station. On reflection I think I need to look at what is at my feet as much as what is in the air. My knowledge of wild flowers was appalling. 

A Day of Surprises

Shot of the Day

Looking quite cosy

The first thing I did when I got up this morning was to check if any eggs had been laid in the nesting box but  unfortunately there wasn't. Apart from a brief period of nest building in the morning there was little sign of the Blue Tits for most of the day until just after tea time. (watch the video at the end of the blog)

I had just settled back with a mug off coffee when Tootlepedal rang to see if I fancied a trip up to the Moorland Feeder Station.  

I managed to get a couple of shots of Mrs Tootlepedals tulips before we left

When we arrived at the station there was already someone there watching from the comfort of their car so rather than disturb them we headed for Whita hill to see if there was any action from the Hen Harriers. The only action we saw was a lone goat and the intermittent swiping of the windscreen wipers. After a short while we decided to head back to Wauchope Cottage for a cup of coffee. 

I left Tootlepedal waiting for some B & B guests on the arrangement that we would meet later if the rain had faired up and the guests had arrived. 

I intended to spend some time on the Common Riding films but I got distracted and ended up in the green house for a while potting up Begonias. 

These were part of the distraction

I was well entertained by this little energetic Field Mouse.

The Collared Dove and Nuthatch were also welcome visitors

I had just returned from picking up the painting from the Town Hall Gallery when I got a phone call from Tootlepedal suggesting a quick visit to the Moorland Feeder Station as the weather had faired up and was looking a bit brighter.

There was little activity in the nest box for most of the day until about 6:30 when the female returned. She did lots of shuffling about in the nest, arranging herself this way and that, suddenly the male appeared and presented her with a sunflower seed and flew  off again. She tucked the seed into the side of the nest and shortly after flew off herself giving the nest cam a good shot of the two eggs she had just laid. she returned a couple of minutes later and settled down on the eggs. Later he appeared again did the same thing as before but when she left the nest momentarily there were still only two eggs. 

Cutting It

Shot of the Day

I think Spring has arrived at last, the sun appeared about mid morning and stayed with us for the rest of the day and for once it was nice and warm. When I arrived home from work I put some frozen fish and chips in the oven, Whilst my tea was cooking I set about cutting the front lawn before it got out of hand. 

After tea I connected the nestcam to the TV to see if there was any action. Lately the Blue Tits have roosting at night but there has been little activity in the box through the day. I was just about to disconnect and head up the hill to see if there was any  sign of the Hen Harriers when I noticed the female was sitting and was moving around quite busily, hopefully laying eggs. I set my camera on movie mode and recorded the following clip.

Eventually I managed to drag myself away. When I arrived at the usual viewing spot I discovered I had left my binoculars behind and with my eyes it would be a waste of time attempting to see any Hen Harrier activity, but it wasn't a wasted journey by any means. A short distance along the road there were a group of people cutting peat and I thought this was an excellent photo opportunity. As busy as they were they made me very welcome and were quite chatty.  

everyone gets mucked in

With lots of effort and teamwork there seems to be a good system operating

The peat is laid out to dry over the summer months 

A future cutter perhaps

This traditional activity has changed little over the centuries and provides an excellent source of heat during the winter months. Click here to find out more about peat cutting.

Keeping Busy

Shot of the Day

It would have been Anne's birthday today so it hasn't been the easiest of weekends but I've managed to keep busy, starting with a walk at Longtown with Tootlepedal. It's a nice even walk of approximately two miles following the course of the river Esk, then round some old gravel beds where there is plenty of wild life.

I regard this one of the finest bridges in the area.

It was nice to see buds appearing on some trees along the river bank.

I like the wind turbines in the distance.

 I'm still trying to work this one out!

The bridge catching the last light of the sun on our return.

On Saturday morning I was up nice and early as I was going to Wauchope Cottage to watch Cat Barlow do some bird ringing. She had already started when I arrived and was carefully untangling the first batch. Cat shows great skill, patience and dexterity, never at any time putting the little creatures under any undue stress. When they are taken out of the net they are carefully put into cloth bags which keeps them calm. She then checks the condition of their feathers, this can give her an indication of their age among other things. Then they are weighed and wings are measured all this is recorded and put onto a data base later. Which is then downloaded to a national data base. If you want to see more photos and a more detailed description of Cat's bird ringing day, please visit Tootlepedal's blog

Mrs Tootlepedal's tools of trade

Later in the afternoon I went and picked up Tootlepedal and we headed for the moorland feeder station as neither of us were up to a walk.

I started off with some hand shots

Then I got the tripod out and concentrated on the niger seed feeder where a place on the feeder was highly contested.

Later I moved the tripod to a feeder near the screen and focused on the branch above. There weren't may visitors but I was pleased with the shots I got.

There has been no activity at the nest cam for about a week now but I was told that Bluetits sometimes build more than one nest before they settle for one. So maybe they have chosen somewhere more discrete.

In the evening I went to quiz night at the Masonic hall with Mark Grieve his wife Kirsty and his mum Avril and as I am a distant relative you could say it was a family effort. We came second by one point. It was a good quiz with no categories just a mixed bag of questions. there were eleven teams of four and one team of two. No guessing for which team won.

This morning I received a visit from fellow blogger Gavin and his wife Gaye. They brought a lovely gift of a rose plant for me to plant in the garden in memory of Anne. I now have to decide where it will be best sighted. I then spent the rest of the day preparing this blog except for a quick visit to see Tootlepedal. He told me had had a full day of rest doing nothing except making a batch of Chelsea buns which I was aloud to sample. They were delicious! 

I must apologise about the quality of some of the pictures. I have been fiddling about with image sizes and lost quality in quite a few and I'm to tired to repost them.