The way the day begins....

                                                    ....Decides the shade of everything....
                                                                                               Elbow - New York Morning

Autumn seems to be pressing on, having shrugged off the Summer....though it seems to have jumped to the end of September weather....without that end of Summer balmy two month gradual slide....mind you, nice sunrise this morning I must say!

0600 - 0830, quite cool, some mist clearing, bright

....and some rather nice colour to the morning too....

Today was brought to me by...the soundscape and shape of Chiffchaff.....!  Was it just here at Whetsted?....all of a sudden there were so many, mostly calling but some still sing-singing.  I didnt cover the whole site but I reckon there must have been around 40 at least in the areas I did cover...but it had started...er...differently...

Having been ringing earlier in the week at a reedbed near the Sussex coast, having been out of bed just after 0400 to set the nets in the dark...and it not getting light till around 0530....quite why I set my alarm for 0430 this morning I dont know....so an hour in the kitchen drinking tea and a quick visit to the garden to pick up some moths that hadnt made it to the trap....

Several Robins greeted me first.  Green Woodpecker, Crow, Woodpigeon, 9 Stock Dove, Blackcap, Magpie, Blackbird, Wren, 60 Feral Pigeon, Great Tit, 2 Turtle Dove sitting on some wires, Dunnock, Blue Tit, Jackdaw, 3 Kestrels...

Kestrel

...Rook, Long Tail Tit, 8 House Martin, 1 Swallow, Reed Bunting, 2 Hobby, Starling.

On the pits:

Canada Geese 22, 53 Mallard, 14 Coot, 1 Tufted Duck, 10 Great Crested Grebe, 10 Little Grebe (all on one pit), 21 Herring Gull, 30 Black headed Gull, 13 Mute Swan, 1 Teal, 3 Grey Heron, 2 Little Egret, 2 Kingifsher, 1 Common Sandpiper