The first count of the new year is under our belt, but not without a few problems, firstly i went down with a bad bout of the flu and was unable to take part, but i did manage to get down to drop off the tally sheets and the walkie-talkies and i new then that trouble was afoot. There was poor Bob surrounded by 4 women, i put my trust in Kurlene to run the route and make sure that all went smoothly. Not sure if it was the medicines that i was taking for the flu or the thought of Bob being left in the lions den, but i had nightmares that night which involved thousands of swans in Somenos attacking the group and dragging them off.
I awoke in the morning and was relieved to find a e-mail from Kurlene with details of the count. It appears that they had found high numbers of swans this week with over 550 birds in total. The two best areas were once again Sahilton and Bench Roads.
The trouble is that when the cats away the mice will play as was the case this week as the group went off the route to a location just up off the Crofton Road where they added over 50 swans, they also appear to have had so much fun that the count took nearly 2 hours longer to complete. Add to this the total disruption of traffic flow somewhere when they all vacated the vehicle in the middle of the road with doors wide open to view a Coopers Hawk, this in turn caused some road rage as drivers voiced their opinion of the birders.
The group also failed to register the locations of the raptors so when you view the attachments you will note a few gaps as too the whereabouts of just under 100 hawks and eagles.
There is also a gap for the 1st of January as i have yet to complete the Christmas Bird Count numbers, hopefully all will be back to some normality next week
This is a short report this week as i am still suffering from the affects of the flu and the lack of information about what really took place this past Wednesday. But i hope to be well enough for next weeks count where i will attempt to whip the troops back into shape, i think we will start with a few pushups in the dog park before we leave for the count.
Take care and a Happy New Year to all