"The last of our summer visitants has taken his departure. About a fortnight ago a Chiff-chaff was constantly to be seen hopping about the Goose-berry bushes in the garden; --the last to leave us, he is usually the first to arrive. But the Tom-tits are returning in great numbers to their old haunts in the garden, which they have deserted during the summer. They flutter about the wall and the windows of the house, I believe with a secret hope of finding a cocoa-nut waiting for them.It's fun to peer into her world and read about her love of birds and nature. I don't know why, but I like knowing that so many years ago another person loved birds and nature so much she also wanted to write about them daily. A talented artist, she captured what she saw in beautiful watercolors I admire.
Large flocks of Starlings, Sparrows and Finches are securing the stubble and grass fields now, they will soon be joined by the Redwings and Fieldfares. We have had another week of warm, rainy weather."
...and because of all of the wonderful British bird blogs I read, I know what Yellowhammers are (and Chiff-chaffs...Tom-tits...and Redwings...), so now I appreciate her book even more.
Cool to see that blogs can help you to see species you might never see in your area!! But be careful, they might migrate to you one day and at least you will be prepare... it is the same for me, I see so many new species for me on your blog that if they happen to come my way, I will get an ID on them... Thanks for that!
ReplyDeleteHi Kelly,
ReplyDeleteThanks for your kind comments on my blog.
I'll have to look up that book you've got!
Happy birding!!
Hi Kelly, when I saw Warwickshire in the title, I thought, has she come over to Britain as a surprise?!! (-: That is a fabulous book, I too will have to look it up. You'd probably also like 'A natural history of Selbourne' by Gilbert White. (I think I've got that right), trying googling it. PS:I've tried to e-mail you, but I'm not sure it's worked.
ReplyDeleteChris...I'm making plans to get over to England one of these days and Iceland too. I was in Iceland in 1985--I loved it. It was so beautiful. I'll know what to look for, that's for sure!
ReplyDeleteWarren...it's a lovely book. Great to read when you're stressed or if the weather is really bad and you want to read ahead to the "nice" months! :-)
Jenny....I just emailed you back about 30 mins ago. I have been working around the house....cleaning...fixing....organizing, and I've been away from blogging and email. Just caught up on email. If you come to the U.S. I'll definitely meet you somewhere! :-) I'll look into the book you recommended.
I'm not sure what the magic is, but it's definitely there when you read of someone's observations 100 years ago. Maybe it's the reassurance that no matter how crazy things get, the world keeps spinning, birds keep flying and life goes on.
ReplyDeleteLaure.....I think you're right. Perfectly said.....
ReplyDeleteKelly, what a wonderful looking book. And the wonderful thing about birding-it connects the centuries!
ReplyDeleteThis was such a popular book some years ago - there was Edwardian Lady mania for a while!! Beautiful watercolours aren't they?
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