Yecla

On Friday 7th October Bryan Thomas and myself were in Esteppes de Yecla before the sun had broken through and it was a cool 12 degrees. We had decided again, to check the area out, and not plan another visit until early spring.

We saved a considerable amount of time by avoiding Yecla and took turnoff 171B (A31) signposted Caudette. This took us into the area via the spot where we normally exit from. We were treated to flocks of Goldfinches and then we a watched a mixed flock of about 50 Choughs with a good number of both Spotless Starlings and Jackdaws all feeding together in a field of stubble.

Here we also saw only one Common Kestrel, some Crested Larks and very little else. A few Northern Wheatears did show well, at least three perched Southern Grey Shrikes.



We moved on into the steppes really searching for Sandgrouse and hopefully Bustards. We did have some good views of larks and it was some time before we saw a flock of about two hundred Calandra Larks feeding and then flying. Theklas did not show and neither did we see any Short-toed. We had a terrific view of a Little Owl and eventually we saw four Black-bellied Sandgrouse fly to be followed by another six feeding and flying.

We checked out the Lesser Kestrel site and saw not one of that species.

I have not recorded all that we saw, but overall birds were thin on the ground.

All photographs copyright Bryan Thomas 2016

More Waders at El Hondo

WET GLISTENING MUD - AT LAST
Another morning with Bryan Thomas on Tuesday 4th saw us taking the backroads into San Felipe Neri. We saw very little on the way except Zitting Cisticolas showed very well near the ploughed up football pitch. We wanted to see what the water levels were like around the information centre. The lagoon by there had seen a drop in the level which exposed wet, glistening mud. The birds were making the most of it. I counted at least 30 Glossy Ibis with more than 40 flying over. There were also Little Ringed Plovers, Little Stints and Bryan picked out at least two Teminick's Stints, Curlew Sandpipers, Greenshank and a Snipe flew. There were numerous Little Egrets, a Little Bittern and a Squacco flew in.

As we drove down the track the electric cables were loaded with Swallows and many more were seen flying in. Among the Barn, were Redrumped and House Martins were seen among them. By the time we had left they had gone.

By the gate both Bluethroats and Zitting Cisticolas were easy to seen flitting amongst the bushes and perching.

The Marbled Duck were showing well in the enclosed pond with Coot.

During the course of the morning we saw two Booted Eagles, two Marsh Harriers and several Kestrels.

A check on El Tiempo does indicate there could be some rain in the next ten days and maybe much more afterwards. I hope so.

Common Buzzards in The Shooting Gallery!

Apparently Common Buzzards are widespread and are in sufficient numbers to cause significant losses to Pheasant Poults when they, the young pheasants, are in a controlled environment. That is, they are in their pens and unable to be predated. Okay, there will come a time when the birds will fledge and have the sufficient ability to fly and roost. These birds are bred and are in sufficient concentrations to have a detrimental affect on that environment in which they are raised. That is to the exclusion of everything else in the natural world.

I remember that the trophies of gamekeepers were hung on wire fences. Crows, Magpies, Weasels and Stoats were all there for what purpose? Probably to impress the landowner that his hard working keeper was doing his job destroying everything that he could. Add into the results of the shooting gallery with the control of rabbits - for they are pests too - but a natural food source for foxes and raptors and of course hares are a danger too! Aren't they? It was a killing spree then and it appears to be the same today.

Over the north edge of Bodmin Moor I remember seeing five Buzzards circling over our cottage on grey and misty day. To hear them calling was a wonderful sound. There was a roost for Starlings nearby and flying around them were Buzzards intent on predating a natural food source. No harm to any game bird there, was there?

Now I refer directly to the intended legal killing of Buzzards authorized by Natural England. It would be foolish to believe that gamekeepers would restrict themselves to killing only one species, but my guess would be that anything seen down the barrel of a twelve bore would be a target. I have never seen a sufficient number of raptors that would be capable of inflicting wanton damage to Pheasants. Why? That is because many birds of prey have been eradicated and, or, their habitats managed for the game bird industry.

There is so much that I could say, but Natural England, you appear to only have a small faction of our nation to keep content. Your bias is against many people who love and support wildlife.

There is already one petition in Parliament to be heard and that is in 18th October so now let's get this petition in sufficient numbers so that Parliament can discuss the intended destruction of Common Buzzards. The cynic in me would suggest that some of our Honorable Members either could not care less or go out for a days killing themselves. I hope that there will be sufficient number in 'The House' to hear a full and proper discussion.

Legal Killing of Buzzards

This article, dated 25th September, from birdwatch.co.uk

The UK Government has responded to a petition against killing Common Buzzards which garnered nearly 12,000 signatures, saying it intends to allow Pheasant breeders to kill them.

The Government responded to the petition – entitled 'Suspend Natural England licence to kill buzzards' – this week, saying that Common "Buzzards are widespread in England and the issuing of control licences has no impact on their conservation status. This approach balances conservation of wildlife and supporting the rural economy.

"Buzzards are now widespread in England with, according to the British Trust for Ornithology, over 60,000 pairs in the UK. Issuing control licences has no impact on the conservation status of buzzards and this approach strikes a balance between conserving wildlife and supporting our rural economy."

Natural England issues can issue Wildlife Licences to prevent damage to agriculture, livestock and fisheries, and says it decides whether to grant a licence within the legal framework of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981.

NE also says that it is legally unable to refuse to grant a licence if all the appropriate criteria are met, but would not issue a licence for any activity that would adversely affect wildlife conservation.

The petition became a cause célèbre when NE issued a licence recently at the behest of an unnamed gamebird breeder ot breeders to permit the 'control' of up to 10 buzzards, in order to prevent them from predating Pheasant poults in rearing pens.

The petition is still way off the 100,000 signatures needed for the Petitions Committee to put it forward to Parliament for a debate.

Stanza Mar Menor

The poets of Stanza Mar Menor met again this morning for the second time in less than week before two of our stalwarts head north. We were fortunate to have another voice around the table. Iarla is in Spain for a week or so and was able to joined us once again.

Douglas as promised brought some new work with him. 'Just a Blip' was written on 7th September after a short sojourn in hospital. It reflects his feelings, written in sonnet form and includes lines as pertinent as 'have I lost all my marbles on the way?' - to hospital - and followed by 'I was alone within my head...'.

The Doppelgänger was next where he paid tribute to the woman 'Returned to now complete old Maggie's task'. I suppose that any Tory risks the sharp edge of his words whether they be female or not! His last line reads 'Alas, I fear the future is much worse.'


On a totally different tack in 'Heroes' he lambasted the producers and script writers for meddling with characters as written with those depicted on screen. He did not like at all what he saw. We agreed with him.

His writings are examples to all of us to write 'what grabs us' and to produce some excellent pieces.

John, is still working on older ones and he asked for feedback on 'The Waking Hours' that was written in 2008. He knew that it was too wordy and needed tightening up. All comments noted and he will produce, hopefully, a better revised edition shortly, which he will circulate. Iarla made a reference to changing older ones as they maybe better to be left alone. Something to consider.

Margaret showed us four pieces instigated by her attending a workshop with Ann Sansom where key words had to be used. A general discussion on the benefits of attending a workshop took place. Margaret felt that she did less well under pressure although her results indicated otherwise with those present. Such ideas foisted upon attendees can produce something different and whether she was satisfied or not she had penned some good lines that easily created images. Well, no surprise there, that's what she does. How about 'in my solitary darkroom/the men who fish stab bright colour/on flimsy film canvas.' We discussed all four at some length although we did not offer that many suggestions. We thought well of her contribution.

We have no idea when we can next meet up and maybe not again this year. As usual the meeting was recorded and David will be sent it. Emails passed to and fro will have to suffice.

Garden of Beasts by Jeffery Deaver

Book review: Garden Of Beasts by Jeffery Deaver.

It is 'A Novel Of Berlin' as one of the title pages tells us and it was first published in 2004.

For those persons who are not 'au fait' with the happenings in Europe during the 1930's then this book, albeit a novel, will be informative. Jeffrey Deaver uses real names of the hierarchy of Hitler's Nazi Germany to give depth to the story, indicates very clearly what the ambitions of this evil collection of men wished to attain and by what means.

It highlights the suffering of ordinary people and the cruelty and depravity they and the Jewish population were subjected to, but that is only part of the story, for there is much more. Thrown into this plot is a layer of intrigue only to be topped by yet another layer. Then there is international subterfuge mixed in with internal politics; all of which is blended into the story

Paul Schumann is the character that carries this story through and on his return from the First World War he uses his skills 'to correct God's mistakes' in New York. He is ensnared by the law enforcement agencies and it is they who give him the option to have 'his slate wiped clean'. In 1936 he was sent with the American Olympics team to Berlin. His mission was to kill. This journey that he is was forced to embark on is loaded with details, information, incidents and surprises. Enjoy the twists and turns of a novel set in a period of time where I hope that history will not be allowed to be repeated.

Stanza Mar Menor

Following our end of summer meeting on 31st August three of us, Margaret, Douglas and John were able to attend for a quickly arranged couple of hours on Wednesday 21st September.

Douglas is only in Spain for a shorter period than planned, but brought with him five poems that covered topics from his observations, three on political matters and a fifth one entitled 'Not So Glorious' relating to an ongoing pursuit of John's in highlighting the true cost of the driven grouse shooting industry. This one will appear on John's blog.

Douglas's opening one, 'The Falsehood', opens with 'The world is better when we have a drink,/imbibing as we go from place to place'... We echoed his sentiments and even more so as we delved into the profound. In this political world he observed that 'The world so long ago lost Corbyn's goal' in one poem called 'Political Reality 2016' and then there was 'Training' and you can guess what this line refers to when he says 'Until I wound up crumpled on the floor.' Corbyn, of course, and he finishes with the line 'Whose lies come back to haunt him evermore.' In commiseration we know that it is a tough life when the media think that there is a 'good' story to be had. He also savaged the Tories and more of that next week.

There will be more from him and he has given us a quick introduction to more of his work with the *line 'Thatcher's back. Theresa is her shade'. Is this a doppelgänger? Oh dear, politics again, and that is the challenge for all of us. To write what is topical, what is important and the right that we have to write, to say and to protest always will be important. He is also paying attention to mis-pronounced words. I love artitecture, don't you? And skellington too. What a wonderful language we have and how to inadvertently change it.

Margaret had emailed us with a new piece of work inspired by a cemetery that she can see from her window in England and so we did have pre-read beforehand. She describes it as 'the park of the dead' and goes on to say 'There is no sadness, only grief and loss/when visited by love'. I do know what she means. She has been busy and we shall see more from her next week. Having had some spells in England she will bring with her next time some writings to be considered from a workshop with Ann Sansom.

John, likewise, had only found enough time to write one new one. He always finds that the end of summer is a 'saddish' time and a period of remembrance and so he had quickly written 'The Sound of It'. In searching for a 'sound analogy' he penned the line 'A cloud, a shroud, an insidious non-sound' when describing his feelings. With suggestions it was improved.

He had used the word re-occurrence to indicate a yearly event. This was not correct as this word only applies to an occasional re-happening where as recurrence is the correct word for something that happens every year. You can see that we play with words all the time!

Having slipped 'doppelgänger' into a paragraph I decided to see what a reliable source said. I quote. In fiction and folklore, it literally means a 'double-goer', a double of a living person and sometimes portrayed as a paranormal phenomenon and is usually seen as an harbinger of bad luck. Well, that should stir a few basic subliminal instincts, thoughts and probably words and maybe profane ones!

I will only add - bad luck to who or even whom!

Now - we meet again next Monday morning at 10.30am here in San Miguel.

* On BBC Breakfast this morning was a feature of a play called 'Dead Sheep' by Jonathan Maitland. It was about his take on Geoffrey Howe's 'farewell' speech in the House of Commons and the near end of Thatcher's reign. She, the lady, is portrayed by a man and he does a marvelous impersonations of her. It is fantastic what a man can do in a dress! I will leave you with that thought.