Here goes then!!!

My son's been telling me for years that technology is leaving me behind and I'm losing touch with the world. So having recently embraced Twitter, here I go striding boldly into the 21st Century with my very own blog.

As usual I got out birding this weekend with birding pal Sharpy. We met up at Maple Cross at 07.30 Saturday morning with snow steadily falling around us and both questioned why we hadn't stayed in bed. Agreeing that it was foolhardy to even think about birding in these conditions we duly set off for Bray Gravel Pits to look for a Drake Ring-necked Duck. I was feeling quite cocky as I had seen this bird a couple of days earlier and assured Sharpy I could get him straight on it. WRONG. After scouring the lake for the best part of 2 hours I had to concede that my confidence was misplaced.
Pic below from the the week before.

As we were cursing our luck re the duck, news came through that there were 2 Serins at Gunners Park in Shoeburyness. Time was still on our side and this was a no-brainer as Serin was a much wanted lifer for both of us. We were soon on the M25 heading for Essex. We arrived to be told that the birds hadn't been seen for nearly 2 hours but our luck had changed and within 15 mins we were salivating over cracking views of these stunning little finches.

We spent the next half hour or so enjoying these beauties as they fed around the car park area before they disappeared over the local houses.

As we headed for home feeling very well rewarded for braving the weather, we stopped briefly on Southend seafront where we were entertained by the comical antics of a small flock of Sanderling 

......and a fine looking Med Gull.