Lady M: Cro, come quickly, there's a strange looking bird in the Bramley tree.
Cro: Where?
Lady M: There, on the middle of that branch; it's sort of pale reddish brown.
Cro: That's not a bird.
Lady M: Of course it is, I just saw it fly in and land.
Cro: You're bonkers.
Lady M: Have a look through the binoculars.
Cro: No, I'm too busy.
Lady M: I think it could be a baby Hoopoe; it's chest is cinnamon colour.
Cro: It's just an old apple.
Lady M: Old apples don't fly.
Cro: Yours do.
Lady M: Come and have a look with the binoculars.
Cro: Come outside, and I'll show you.
Lady M: You'll disturb it.
Cro: Old apples don't get 'disturbed'.
Lady M: Walk quietly.... let's see how close we can get to it..... Oh, OK; it is an old apple; I did think it might have been!
Cro: Yeah, sure.
Ah! The problems of identification.... my wife was certain that a Brambling visiting the feeders was a Hawfinch... despite the fact the Brambling was with identically sized Chaffinches and lacked the huge beak and bully-boy look.
ReplyDeleteAnd I keep catching sight of the Greater Ashflapper, a bunch of ash keys reluctant to fall.... the keys move enough to seem like a perched bird.... and catch the light differently during the day.
In our old walnut, made stag-headed by the 2012 freeze, we had until fairly recently.... the Woodentop Finch... perfectly shaped when viewed from the lounge windows. But, we no longer can use it as an indicator species... the branch, of which it was part, came down to earth with a thump during a recent blow.
Until then we could say the bird we were looking at was to the left/right/above/below/near, etc... Woodentop.
But he again used to catch the eye and make either of us lift our binos to check...
so I’m with your good Lady M on this one... it still has wings that flap!!
Personally I blame her contact lenses. Leaves become Parrots, sleeping Horses are always 'deceased', and (on one occasion) even the top of a gas bottle became a Rat. Any advice about what to do with such a woman would be carefully considered!
DeleteMaybe it's the full moon. It was up in the west this morning.
ReplyDeleteIt was almost like daylight here last night.
DeleteI'm pretty sure I saw one of those birds last year, they are quite rare. I grieved over a dead cardboard box at the side of the road recently.
ReplyDeleteI hope you gave it a decent Christian burial. Cardboard boxes have souls too!
DeleteMaybe some glasses might help. But she did see it fly!!!
ReplyDeleteShe's been on the LSD again.
DeleteI am with you Lady M. Don't take any notice of him.
ReplyDeleteI knew she'd have some crazy supporters somewhere!
DeleteWe have a bird on a wire that I think is something to do with the telephones. It's not Orange.
ReplyDeleteThat's the Greater Spotted Wiretap; they're listening to you!
DeleteGood to hear you are right about some things occasionally.
ReplyDeleteIf 'occasionally' means 99.9% of the time; then you are spot on.
DeleteThis made me chuckle because it sounds familiar; I'm certain of something but ever so often it turns out I'm wrong! :)
ReplyDeleteGreetings Maria x
I think we're all the same Maria; this time it just happened to be Lady M.
DeleteThis is a true story. One slightly misty day we were on top of a hill overlooking Bath when I spotted a huge bird on top of the spire of a church, and pointed it out to H.I. She looked at me to see if I was serious. It was the weather cock.
ReplyDeleteA perfectly reasonable mistake; especially if viewed from the Beer Garden at 'The Horse and Bucket'.
DeleteArhhh the crap conversations of the long term married
ReplyDeleteExactly. We know each other so well....
DeleteHaha! Cro was right for once....mark down the date, Lady M!!! :)
ReplyDeleteLife wouldn't be worth living if I wasn't right occasionally.
DeleteI am sure that you got some satisfaction from being right. I know (from experience) that my Retired Man would have. On the other hand, this is something that you two can laugh at.
ReplyDeleteALWAYS being right can become tedious, but otherwise....
DeleteI think Lady M was right .... it had just flown away and there just happened to be an old apple in the same place ! XXXX
ReplyDeleteIf SHE had said that, I might have believed her!
DeleteFor the past fortnight I have been thinking there were blue tits in a tree in my back garden. Today it is windy and I realise that the 'blue tit' is actually a bit of plastic.
ReplyDeleteYou two could start a club.
DeleteLady M was using creative license. Nothing wrong with that.
ReplyDeleteAnd my life would be so much duller, if she didn't.
DeleteApples are so easily mistaken for birds. It's well known.
ReplyDeleteYup. It's that exact same shape that confuses.
DeleteOh dear...we've all been there....a new pair of specs/contact lenses soon?
ReplyDeleteVery nice your blog and article. I like this blog thank for sharing.
ReplyDeletesoy'vvow]oN