OK, well Wednesday there might have been a bit of spring in the air but today it was normal service resumed, winter was in the air. The first few flakes started coming down as I stepped out of the truck at Flanders where I was meeting up with local farmer and contractor Alec to look at some digger work. Within a few minutes it went dark and then it was suddenly snowing hard. We walked around the 3 jobs that were for looking at getting increasingly covered and by the time we got back to the truck Alec was white all down one side. Of course as soon as we were done with the walking the snow stopped and the sun came out.
At the edge of the Moss a buzzard perched on the top of a bush shook the snow off its shoulders. Back out onto the Moss and the scrub chippers were all happy and knocking a big whole into the trees. They are 9 days into a 24 day contract so will see plenty more of what Flanders has to throw at them. On the way back a jack snipe burst up from near my feet, put in a few half hearted zig-zags and then dropped back down onto the Moss. Usually we see a scattered few during autumn and winter but this is the first bird I've seen. They look very like their close relative the common snipe, the best way to tell the difference is that when they lift off the make no noise, they don't fly as far and they don't zig-zag as much in flight. The ground must be softening up a little for it to have come back onto the moss.
