Common Sandpiper the Redeemer

Predictably all of the decent birds had disappeared by the time I returned to the patch this morning after a weekend away. Such is the price you pay for taking point-blank range photos of Whinchats and feldegg Wagtails in Greece. If I was truly a proper patch-worker I would never leave for fear of missing something. As it is.....

Anyway, had a great time, and thought I'd check the Alex early doors as I understood it had been pretty good over the weekend for patch gold waders, most recently a Common Sandpiper. Obviously there was nothing on it all. After sorting out a response to a fire in one of the copses, and being forced to relive all the weekend's birds by Bob (Tree Pipit, Nightingale, Hobby, Woodlark and the rest), I then pootled off to the local sorting office to pick up a parcel I'd missed. It isn't just birds. Then a message from Bob that he was looking at the Common Sandpiper on Alex. Little git. The Sandpiper, not Bob.

How it eluded me I don't know, as I had walked around the entire perimeter looking for it. Nothing I could do, work beckoned. Work was crap, I mean really crap. On my way home I discovered people were twitching the Sandpiper. It was still there! Maybe something could be salvaged from the day after all. I quickened my pace, picked up my camera on the way past, and was at Alex quicker than you can say "I drove". A short while later I was positioned in a bush waiting for the bird to walk past, which it duly did, albeit in the shade. It seems that my suit is perfect wader camouflage, whereas I thought it was for looking professional in an office. Who knew?