Thursday 9 September 2010

It Never Rains But it Pours!!


Just as I thought everything was back on track it has all gone haywire again! My husband went for the results of some blood tests on Tuesday and was told he had to be admitted to hospital then and there. I won't go into details but it was found that his kidney function levels were much too low. Needless to say our local hospital couldn't deal with the problem and we had to make the twenty five, or so, mile journey to Oxford! They had quite a job to find him a bed and he was moved from unit to unit and bed to bed before finally being put in the right place. Thankfully he seems to be improving now and I hope it won't be too long before he is back home.

Consequently this post, which I was starting to put together before the emergency, is not quite my usual one and time doesn't allow me to sort out any verse or quotes.

However, we were back at Draycote twice recently and this post and the next contains photos of what I saw there.

The long staying Egyptian Goose was still present when we visited last week, it has been there since about the 3rd of June and certainly seems to have enjoyed its stay.

Egyptian Goose

I think it is very handsome and its plumage is beautiful.

I have two poor record shots of a small wader next which I am sure someone will be able to ID, I do find waders difficult. Living in such a landlocked county, about as far from the sea as it is possible to be in this country, I haven't had much experience with waders etc but am taking a guess at a Common Sandpiper.

Common Sandpiper?

I don't think we have ever been to Draycote without seeing lots of Pied Wagtails, such busy little birds, always flitting about. This one had a beak full of food, as did the one at the beginning of this post.

Inevitably there are always Coots and Moorhens there too.

Moorhen

I was very pleased to see Little Egrets there as they are rare vagrants at Draycote.

Little Egret

I love those yellow feet!

Sadly the hide is out of use at the moment due to mindless vandalism! However the feeders at the side of it are always busy and this Great Tit looked very smart I thought.

Great Tit

While this Squirrel was partaking in a little vandalism of its own :)

Grey Squirrel

Just as we were coming to the end of our visit I was thrilled to see a bird which we don't usually see anywhere near my area and which I had never seen before.

Wheatear

What a dainty little bird it is and not too camera shy. Unfortunately as it was at the end of our visit the light wasn't as good as it had been.

Incidentally, I checked the Draycote website just now and they have had a Red Necked Phalarope there for the last couple of days!!

Well, I'm afraid I am going to have to leave it there for now but if all goes well I hope to be able to post again before too long and I will probably need some more help with wader ID when I do.
I will try to visit you all when I can but please bear with me...

Enjoy the beauty of Nature, wherever you are.
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33 comments:

  1. Phil and Mandy9 September 2010 at 20:37

    Looks like a Common Sandpiper to me, good spot. Phil

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  2. Bob Bushell9 September 2010 at 20:54

    Sorry about your hubby, I do hope that he's better soon. It is the Common Sandpiper, and the ones that you caught, Egyptian Geese are one my favourites.

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  3. Liz9 September 2010 at 21:08

    Hi Jan,

    Sorry to hear about your husband, I hope he's better soon and you can relax!

    Lovely photos and very nice to see the wheatear :)

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  4. Anonymous9 September 2010 at 22:22

    Hi Shy, I sure hope hubby is doing better and we'll certainly keep him in our thoughts.
    I'm always amazed when I see your photos, not just exceptionally beautiful but some of the poses you get. Like the second picture of the Egyptian Goose, love that. I sure wish I knew of somewhere close by here to find lots of birds. I've been asking around.

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  5. Kelly10 September 2010 at 00:22

    My goodness, I hope your hubby gets to come home soon. What a scare.

    ...lovely photos. The last is my favorite...beautiful autumn-looking colors, and I love the Little Egret as well!

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  6. holdingmoments10 September 2010 at 04:29

    I hope your husband makes a speedy and full recovery Jan. That must have been quite a scare for the both of you.

    Cracking shots of the Wheatear. I had surprise visit to my local from one of those.
    Egyptian Goose and the Little Egret make up a great trio there.

    Still not got back there myself lol

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  7. denzil10 September 2010 at 06:27

    hi jan, sorry to hear about your husband's illness, hope he makes a full and swift recovery, beautiful photos, never seen a wheatear before, lovely little bird.

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  8. Greenie10 September 2010 at 07:32

    ShySongbird ,
    Just what you could do without after your own worries . I sincerely hope things get back on an even keel very quickly .
    Great shots of the Wheatear , a super find . Also confirm Common Sandpiper , white bib and braces being the clincher for the ID .

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  9. Monts10 September 2010 at 08:10

    Hi Jan
    Sorry to hear about your husband , hope all is well and he's back home soon.
    Smashing post with some super images esp that Egyptian Goose never seen one, Geese are on the scarce side down here in Cornwall with only a few turning up in winter. We do have plenty of resident Canada's though.
    Take care and looking forward to the next posts.

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  10. Midmarsh John10 September 2010 at 08:53

    It is very alarming Jan when the medical profession say we want you in hospital, now! I trust all goes well. Hopefully it won't take them long to get things back in balance.

    Lovely collection of bird photos as always.

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  11. Warren Baker10 September 2010 at 13:47

    Hope the 'old man ' is home soon, fit and well songbird.

    Well done on the lovely Wheatear and the Common Sand

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  12. Pam10 September 2010 at 15:04

    Sorry to hear about your husbands problems, but pleased to hear he is on the mend. You have some beautiful shots of some lovely birds. I'm quite jealous of the Egret i've yet to see one in the UK.
    Pam

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  13. Phil10 September 2010 at 15:38

    Hi Jan.
    Hope your next post brings the news of a speedy and full recovery for hubby.
    Nice Egyptian Goose shots, I have to say that in my few short years of birdwatching I haven't seen one although i've heard of one or two locally. Lovely Wheatears too and the Little Egrets always makes me think they've stood in a pot of yellow paint!

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  14. Carole Barkett11 September 2010 at 01:47

    that is a beautiful goose and the other photos are wonderful as I'm not familiar with many of them. Hope all is well with your husband.

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  15. Rose11 September 2010 at 02:45

    So sorry to hear about your husband, Songbird; I do hope he is doing better by now.

    I know you've shown the Egyptian goose before, but it really is a beautiful bird. But my favorite has to be the Wheatear--what a sweet, colorful little bird!

    Take care.

    Rose

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  16. Sondra11 September 2010 at 23:55

    Give your husband my regards for a speedy recovery!!
    Lovely series of photos in this post, I love that Goose--a real beauty!!

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  17. John13 September 2010 at 20:45

    Hi Jan,

    I hope your Husband is making a speedy recovery and is home with you.

    Sorry for getting to the posts late, it is good to have you back with us.

    A lovely post and wonderful photos, A Common Sand in my view. Always a great find well done.

    John

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  18. The Wessex Reiver14 September 2010 at 10:46

    Fingers crossed on the home front and your husband is on the mend soon. Worrying times this year for you both. I'll add to the confirmation of a common sandpiper too :-)

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  19. ShySongbird14 September 2010 at 19:15

    Phil and Mandy

    Thanks very much for the confirmation, Phil :)


    Bob Bushell

    Thank you very much for your kind comments and good wishes and for the ID confirmation :)


    Liz

    Thanks, Liz for the comment and good wishes. I was thrilled to see the Wheatear :)


    RainGardener

    Thank you for your very kind comments and good wishes. Husband is home again now and improving steadily :)
    I hope you find somewhere to see some nice birds. I think Draycote is a great place but a little too far for you to travel I think :)

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  20. Shirley14 September 2010 at 23:01

    Oh dear Jan, hopefully your husband will be home by now and is recovering well. Perhaps soon you will both will be able to get out to enjoy the beauty of Nature down your way.

    I can see why Draycote is such a fav place to visit. What a variety of birds and wildlife you manage to see there. What a great place to visit with a camera. Nice shots here once again. Love that Egyptian Goose but my favs here would be between the Egret and the Wheatear and I think the wheatear would take it. What lovely captures.

    Sending best wishes to you both, Shirley xo

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  21. ShySongbird15 September 2010 at 12:38

    Kelly

    Thank you very much, Kelly it certainly was a frightening time but thankfully he is home now and progressing steadily.
    I had never seen a Little Egret until this year when I have seen them in two different locations.


    holdingmoments

    Thank you for your kind comments and good wishes, Keith. It was a very frightening experience!
    I was very pleased to see the Wheatear, a pretty little bird :)


    denzil

    Thank you for your very kind comments and good wishes, Denis. He is back home and progressing steadily now, thank goodness.
    I had never seen a Wheatear before either so I was very pleased :)


    Greenie

    Thank you for your kind words, Greenie and for confirmation of the Common Sandpiper ID. I was very pleased with that and the Wheatear :)

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  22. Glo18 September 2010 at 19:36

    I'm pleased to hear that your husband is back home after such a shock to you both. I enjoyed your wonderful nature shots, and hope everything continues to go well. Looking forward to more photos :)

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  23. Shady Gardener20 September 2010 at 04:49

    It's a relief that your husband is already home and doing well. Hopefully that will continue!!

    Your photos are always wonderful. :-)

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  24. oldcrow6120 September 2010 at 10:58

    I do hope your husband is better soon. Lovely photos.

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  25. ShySongbird21 September 2010 at 13:51

    Monts

    Thank you for your very kind comments and good wishes, Monty :) Yes, he is indeed home and making good progress, thank goodness.
    The Egyptian Goose is quite a feature at Draycote! I think most people thought it would have gone by now but I saw on the website that it was still there a few days ago :)


    Midmarsh John

    It certainly was very alarming, John and rather like being in some strange nightmare for a time, however things are gradually returning to normal.
    Thank you for your kind words.


    Warren Baker

    Thank you very much, Warren :)
    I was very pleased with the Wheatear...and that I managed to ID the Common Sandpiper correctly :)


    Pam

    Thank you very much, Pam. I hadn't seen a Little Egret at all until this year but have seen them in two locations this Summer :)


    Phil

    Thank you very much, Phil :) I had never seen an Egyptian Goose myself until this one turned up at Draycote and yes, I agree, I love those yellow Egret feet :)


    Country Mouse Studio

    Thank you for your kind comments and good wishes :)


    Rose

    Thank you, Rose he is progressing well :)
    It was a real thrill to see the Wheatear as I had only ever seen them in pictures, it really was a sweet little thing.


    Dixxe

    Thank you very much, Dixee. I passed your message on, for which many thanks :)
    The goose is very handsome and certainly enjoys its stay at Draycote!


    John

    Thank you very much, John and yes he is :)
    Thank you for helping to confirm the Common Sand, hopefully I will be sure of what I am looking at next time :


    The Wessex Reiver

    Thank you very much, Andrew. It has certainly been a strange old year one way and another.
    Thanks for your help with the Common Sand too :)


    shirl

    Thank you very much, Shirl. Yes, thankfully he is indeed home and making good progress :)
    I really have grown to love Draycote, living so far from the sea it is the next best thing and on a nice sunny day really does have that seaside atmosphere. The other reason I love it of course is the abundance of wildlife it has to offer, there is generally something of interest to be found.
    I hope all is well with you and yours and I wish you a good week :)

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  26. ShySongbird21 September 2010 at 19:39

    Glo

    Thank you for your very kind words, Glo :)


    Shady Gardener

    Thank you very much, Shady. It is a huge relief :)


    oldcrow61

    Thank you very much, OC :)

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  27. Poppy23 September 2010 at 20:14

    Hello Jan, it is so lovely to be visiting you again. I hope all is ok with hubby now? I have nearly given up on wildlife photography…it is so hard. ;-)

    Take care, Lou xxx

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  28. Q23 September 2010 at 23:41

    Dear Jan,
    Happy to know hubby is doing well at home now. Always scary to be in hospital.
    Your photographs are a delight! I am getting to know the birds of England! Maybe one of these days my husband and I will come to the UK and do some birding. I also would love to see your butterflies.
    Your photographs of the Wheatear are amazing. A very charming little bird.
    Happy Autumn.
    Happy Harvest Moon.
    Sherry

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  29. Sharon26 September 2010 at 21:29

    Hi ShySongbird - I'm so glad to hear your hubby is back at home & doing well :)
    Sorry I haven't been around for a while but I see nothing has changed - you're still taking gorgeous photos! Keep up the good work!

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  30. Q29 September 2010 at 21:22

    Sending a hug,
    Sherry

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  31. Dan30 September 2010 at 20:34

    Hello! Hope everything is OK with you.
    Dan
    -x-

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  32. Cheryl30 September 2010 at 20:59

    Hi Jan, I hope hubby is improving and that things are coming together.
    These times are always so difficult, especially if they happen without any warning.

    With best wishes and thinking of you.......

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  33. ShySongbird4 October 2010 at 19:10

    Poppy

    Welcome back, Lou :) So nice to hear from you again and to know you are back in blogland.
    I think wildlife photography is the most difficult there is and can be so frustrating but it is also fun and can be rewarding. Lots of love and XXXX to you and Poppy.


    Q

    Thank you very much, Sherry. If you do ever get to England you will find we have some very pretty butterflies but nothing quite as exotic as many of yours are.
    Thank you also for the very welcome hug on your other comment and I am sending one back :)


    Sharon

    Thank you very much for your kind comments and good wishes :)


    Dan

    Thank you Dan, things are improving now thank goodness, it has been a funny old year!


    Cheryl

    Thank you very much, Cheryl. It was all rather a shock but things are settling down now. It has been good to have the support of my blogland friends such as yourself :)

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