It is the end of the month and therefore checking the rain gauge time. I headed out with a foul forecast of incessant rain and wind in my ears, little knowing that it was also a fowl forecast. As I dropped down from Thornhill there were geese everywhere. They must have been pouring in over the last few days, a couple of flocks on stubble fields on the left and then on the south of the track to the Moss there were loads. I stopped to check them over and count them as sometimes an unusual goose can turn up in flocks like a barnacle or bean goose and sometimes you can pick out birds with neck markers put on by researchers to help find out migration movements. A quick scan revealed 30 greylags, 300 Canada geese and also 175 lesser black-backed gulls passing through on the way to Spain, and I was just starting to count the pinkies when a car came down the track and put them up, so at a guess maybe 500 of them. No neck rings or funny birds. Onto my list of things to do and the first stop the rain gauge. It was still dry but a dark grey wall was heading slowly my way. Back to the car park and then the rain came, good bog rain but uncomfortable as well. I chatted with some English visitors who had had a quick walk round and were heading back to their holiday cottage for another coffee and to re plan their day. Then I headed out onto the Moss to measure up and area for scrub cutting. Quickly everything became wet and I just had to keep my head down and splash my way round. All the time flock after flock of pinkies came over, either the same group had done 10 circuits of the Carse or there were 5000 pink feet in the stubble fields in and around Flanders. And not only had the geese come in, I flushed 8 snipe and 1 jack snipe who also use the Moss as a useful stopping off place as they head south as well. Back to the truck after 2 hours in the downpour and the rain had got through all water proofs (surely misnamed) and everything underneath was distinctly uncomfortable. I called it a day and headed back to the office after picking up a richly deserved Berits and Brown coffee (best coffee around). Oh and I know all you rain gauge buffs are asking what was the rain fall reading ? - 154 mm - a proper months rain at last and judging by the amount of rain that fell today the bloomin' thing is probably full again already!
