I was away last week for work but I did not miss a great deal. A Lesser Spotted Woodpecker was found in the Park, good to see that these are still clinging on, and a drake Mandarin Duck has been hanging around. Somebody might have seen a Swallow I think, oh and Bob's microphone has been going great guns overnight with passage waders, but generally migrants have been desperately thin on the ground. I was worried that whilst in Budapest the flood gates would open and the patch would be drenched in migrants. Nope, it has been strangely quiet with barely any movement. No doubt the high pressure has seen everything soar straight over?
Louis's triumpant Wheatear on March 22nd has so far been the only Wheatear. Thank God for all the training, had he not been so alert we might still not have seen one. And we are not sure what a blank March might mean for the Wanstead Wheatear Trophy, perhaps it would see it simply retained by whoever had won it last year, with the finder's cup presumably changing hands regardless as this is not date dependent. Let's hope it never comes to that, what a damp squib that would be!
After a short period all dipping Lesser Spot in the Park we all gathered at VizMig on Saturday morning. Louis was dressed up as expected, he set the standard a number of years ago and this has become something of a tradition. What we were not expecting was for Tony to whip off his coat to also reveal a dress shirt, tuxedo and a bow tie. Most excellent. Speeches were made, fizz was drunk, and the charity total from the entrance fee of nearly £200 was revealed taking us to something like £1000 over the years. This year we are giving it to the South Essex Wildlife Hospital in Orsett, a fine choice from Mary.
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