Bird-watching at work.....

No photos today as I was at work, and although I have taken my camera in when I've known it to be a quiet day, today was not a quiet day work-wise. It doesnt matter too much though as I've taken my old pair of bins to work, so even if I am stuck behind the desk, I can still get a 'bird-fix'.

I'm quite lucky where I work. It may be a dusty dirty lorry yard, but all down two sides of the yard are mature conifers, behind one row of them is a dis-used fishing lake and at the back of the yard are three very large horse paddocks with mature oaks and birch trees.

Cormorants, swans, geese, ducks, herons and gulls are seen all day long flying over the yard to go the lake. There's a small nature reserve opposite the work entrance gates, and two resident Kestrels and a male Sparrowhawk are regular visitors to the yard coming from that direction.

I've hung a few fatball feeders in the conifers, which are now attracting numerous Blue and Great Tits and the yard Robin, who has learnt to hang upside down off the nearest feeder. I've seen two Goldcrests recently chasing each other in and out of the tops of the furtherest conifers.

Magpies, Collared Doves and Woodpigs take advantage of the deep pot-holes to bathe and drink. In the summer I had five Goldfinches batheing in the nearest pot-hole to my office window, and in August I saw my first ever Yellow Wagtail come down for a drink. The yard is big enough to accomodate at least three pairs of Blackbirds at the moment. A lot of dawn singing and territorial behavhiour is going on.

When we first moved into the yard last June, my night drivers were reporting back to me they had heard owls hooting, seen foxes and one rescued a hedgehog that had wandered under his truck. Last August I was seeing a Hobby nearly every day for over a week, and a Little Owl was regularly seen sitting sentry like in the corner where the conifers meet. We even had a Heron who liked to sit on top of the parked up trucks.

My recent 'excitement' is continously watching a male Chaffinch following a male Kestrel around. Not entirely sure what that behavhiour means. No other little birds 'mobs' the Kestrel like the little Chaffinch does. And today I watched the Chaffinch 'mob' the Kestrel, who in turn 'mobbed' a Buzzard.

So I may not be out and about, but I'm watching the work birds whilst getting paid for working........