My favourite time of the year and already the breeding season is in full swing. But with one thing or another I’m finding time for fieldwork extremely tight and most days I do get a spare moment I tend to be out in my little corner of the property planting my shelterbelt which will, in a few years’ time, become one of the migrant hotspots in the whole of the county – one dreams! We also dug a small pond in the wettest corner of the field which, after 12 days, already has 27inches of water in it (this pic. was on day 6). No liner required!
The one bit of drawing I have done was from the semi-comfort of the near-completed extension. Curlew courtship seems to entail the male pursuing the female incessantly, occasionally tapping her on the rump with his bill whilst she threatens brutal retaliation and makes herself as unpleasant as possible. The little male is relentless yet she appears to give him no encouragement at all. How curlews actually manage to procreate given these circumstances is beyond me.
4 comments:
Great drawings Tim, more Ennion than Ennion! Try the back of envelopes, carboard boxes and backs of old letters :)
I agree with Stewart, great drawings, although I dont know who Ennion is.
Your work to create a little wildlife sanctuary on your land reminds me of a bird survey I participated in years ago in eastern Arizona. The forest service created some artificial wetlands using effluent from the sewage plants of nearby cities. The artificially engineered wetlands had 10 times greater abundance of wildlife populations than the local natural wetlands. Good luck with your wildlife paradise.
Very nice curlews. I hope you will provide us with a few follow ups on these birds: their nest, chicks...
Paula
great work Tim.
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