It was Albert Einstein who said that the definition of insanity was "doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different answers". This statement crossed my mind as we left Warblington and made the short journey onto Thorney Island. This was the fourth visit to the island and if you include the trip to Elmley in the middle of December the fifth week running I had gone after acceptable views of Short-eared Owls.
Driving down to the parking place it was clear there were many more people about this afternoon. Cars were parked along the roadside and as I pulled into the parking spot near Ebbsfleet Yacht makers there were no spaces. However two cars were just about to leave and I managed to get us two spots, so far so good.
The sun was out, the wind was light, everything felt good, today was going to be the day. We passed Tufted Duck on the first lake, and with the tide rising there were Dunlin, Redshank and Turnstone feeding at the edge of the mud as the tide rose. Groups of Brent Geese were scattered across the water, their calls filling the air and adding to the expectations.
The many cars had produced many people on the sea wall, some birders and photographers and others just out walking and enjoying the sunshine after the dreadful conditions on Saturday. Some of the birders and photographers stood around talking while others scanned the fields in hope of that first glimpse of a "Shortie" as it glides over the long straw like grass.
It was early, just after 13:00, I wanted to walk to the Deeps to check the lake their for duck, there was plenty of time before we expected the owls to emerge and on the previous visits they had not appeared before 14:30. Ian was a short way behind me when I heard him call me back. He pointed out into the field and said that he had an owl. This is what I saw.
But after some directions I could see what he had incredibly found.
A Short-eared Owl was in the grass and keeping an eye on a group of Canada Geese. It was very distant and an amazing find. We continued to watch as it preened and wing stretched while keeping an eye on the geese. Then at just before 13:30 it was up and flying, heading across the field to the area of gorse close to the sea wall.
As is usually the case as it flew over the long grass it flushed out another owl. This owl did not seem to like being woken up and there ensued some calling of names and mid air clashes before they settled on going their own ways.
Considering you always seem to find groups of Short-eared Owls in the same place, they are very intolerant of each other. The squabble over one owl dropped back into the grass while the other proceed to land at the top of a bramble bush to survey what else was around it.
Apparently there is some correlation between the eye colour and time of
active hunting in owls. Owls with orange
eyes such as the Long-eared, tend to hunt around dawn and dusk (crepuscular). Those with brown and
black eyes such as the Tawny, hunt during the night (nocturnal) and those with yellow eyes like these Short-eared Owls, are
daytime hunters (diurnal).
From the bramble it then took off and flew around the back of the field once again, pulling out another owl that wasn't happy. That was three owls and a little later possibly another to make four, but we only saw three at any one time. The hunting in the field was interspersed with drops into the grass and rests on the ground.
Eventually one came back closer to us on the sea wall, making its way through the gorse.
At no time did we see it catch anything, it covered a lot of ground and would twist and turn to check everything out, but no actual drop that looked like a kill.
At the end of my last blog I referred to the message that I sent Ian regarding this day's outing. I referred to the Purple Sandpipers in early morning light and then to seeing Short-eared Owls in the golden afternoon light. Well that too was coming true but we were still not getting that killer picture.
The sun was dropping and a bank of cloud was going to obscure it as we approached sunset. There were a lot of people on the sea wall and this was probably one of the reasons why the owls were keeping there distance. There was nobody watching from the road and we decided to walk around there, the low sunlight would not be a problem now and who knows, nothing ventured nothing gained.
Walking along the road a female kestrel was sat at the top of one of the street lights, it looks like this is a regular perch.
As we edged too close it moved to one of the road side trees
The gap in the hedge was well trampled down and as we settled in we could see one owl sat on one of the posts that ran alongside the stream. This was a distant post when we watched from the sea wall, but from this side it seemed to be close to the people on the sea wall.
A second owl was also seen in a bramble bush, but this didn't appear to be that close. As we watched both birds a familiar call from behind the hedge alerted us to a Raven as it eventually appeared over our heads.
The owl on the post then started to hunt the long grass around the gorse bushes and we had to keep telling ourselves that when we watched it from the sea wall this are was still along way off and the photographers on the sea wall were not getting crippling views.
We watched as it flew back and around a patch of long grass the road side of the stream which left us happy that it wasn't close to the sea wall.
Our position was OK to watch the area we had left, but to the south was obscured by trees. The sentry post didn't allow us to get the best views, but there was another gap in the hedge that did allow clear views across the field. I watched one owl drop into the grass and called Ian over. The bird we had been watching started to head towards us. Was this going to be the views we hoped for? Well not at first but they were good.
It would tease, flying past us and then twisting and turning back and away from us.
Gaining height and then coming back again.
Then it did come close, the light fading but still good enough for some quality shots.
Once again this drop into the grass failed to come up with anything.
Look at the intensity in the those eyes
It was acase of keep shooting away as it cruised past once more getting ever closer.
Then it turned, as if alerted by the camera shutter and you get the full impact of those "flammeus" eyes, the Latin meaning
flame coloured.
Then it turned away and we thought that it was off, but it did make one more pass.
Then it continued on its way to join another owl on the far side of the Deeps away to the south. One kept going over the fence, no security control for owls, while the other settled in a tree. We waited but that is where they stayed. With the gloom getting darker we decided that was it. We had finally got the views we wanted, views we had envied of those we had seen on previous visits who were standing where we were.
As we walked back to the cars we met another birder who said those on the sea wall were cursing us, for once it was nice to be one of those that others envied.
I don't feel the need for an immediate return to Thorney Island, but who knows if they remain and the interest wains we may be back.
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