Madagascar Squacco Heron - Ardeola idae
Collecting is my theme today. The joy of a little collection. Another type of of Squacco Heron - much more stripey. It has an overlapping range in Africa with the "Common" Squacco Heron which I posted up in the last week. These birds don't breed on the African mainland but single birds visit in the Summer months in the Northern hemisphere. I was probably lucky to see this. "fairly regular" is a euphamism - thats not ''common''.
I have had a good burst of posting this morning. I couldn't sleep and got up at 4.15 am - 3 1/2 hours later the NDB counter has lept foward by 4 birds and I have some learnt some stuff. Time well spent and it frees up lunchtime for some Xmas shopping and a Fatburger in the Mall. Oh how proud of this posting I will be as I sit in my rocking chair at 90. I have new posting technique - bang up 5-10 pictures and draft posts without texts and from the pc and then I can actually fill in the odd posting wherever I am. Its the delay loading up the pictures that takes the time - the chore as it were. Unfortunately I have taken to reading my posts from every bird of a certain family so that slows me down. I wander in my library and get lost in Sri Lanka or get lured into the Karnataka Hills. Its been a good year ! Some solid work done on the Task. I am not birding every free moment - but I am chalking some good ticks and shots with some intense weekends and mornings. I have probaly only spent the equivalent of 2-3 weeks of freetime in the field, if that and a week of that was family holiday. I have probably spent more time coaching and watching junior rugby with the odd game refereeing at tournaments etc. so it isn't taking over. We do of course spend 5/7ths of 11 months in our places of work. I personally spend 1/24th of all my time as a minimum eating.
162 birds this year in 2012. I didn't hit any targets and the Bird Rate has gone nowhere. I probably got slowed up by the amount of time the posting has taken from the India and Tanzania trips - I am nowhere finished with the African shots and still have quite a few Dubai shots tucked away. Posting is almost becoming a limiting factor as I do go on.
75 of you read this a couple of days ago. I think I will have 1000 hits this month (and not mine as I can filter those out). Its in the top 50 birding websites in the world by traffic can you believe although I have not linked it to Fatbirder as yet (yes there is a bird portal named after my favourite burger chain). So in number terms I am happy - but I would be happy with 5 people reading or even noone but Mrs C and just 5 more birds if they were good ones. Like this. Taken during one of the most intense 20 minutes of watching stuff in my life !
I asked my son if he read my blog - Nah I don't really like birds as much as you do he said. Fair enough. Perhaps the younger one will take to reading it as he gets older. It is really just something for me but I do like sharing the pictures and a few thoughts.
I think I might "go dark" until after Xmas and focus on getting ship shape for the holidays at work and at home. I will spend some time sorting through the remaining pictures and then spend one day posting everything thats left from 2012 prior to the New Year - start 2013 naked of birds in my little stash !! That will really drive me out of the door. I am not sure what I still have tucked away. In the words of Sir Brucey though "didn't he do well". Pat on the back for me - 162 birds ! Thats a new one on average every 2.5 days which is lot better than 2012. And what birds.
I'd like to get one of those rolling slide show things on the top of the page. A bit of a redesign - and a travel map ?? So much I could do. Still its working as it is. Posting about posting - you know you have doen enough for a day when it introverts like that. Have a good Xmas - feed those birds !
Lake Manyara, Tanzania
July 2012
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