Tuesday 27 March 2012

'Sunday'- Monday; 'crew change'- Tuesday

sunrise 26/03/2012
sunset 26/03/2012 
Yesterday was dire with the exception that I saw an ocean sunrise and sunset- and absolutely nothing in between these two celestial events. Birds just didn't appear to move in the oppressive heat. I cowered behind factor 30, shades and a wide-brimmed hat. Visions of water droplets sliding down cold beer bottles kept annoying me all day.

Today was crew change day- for some, and as expected for such a day, it was cooler, windier and with a hint of drizzle in the afternoon. The drizzle didn't stop the smiles from those homeward bound though! They even boarded a fancy new offshore crew-change vessel with airline style (business class!) seats, air-con and personal mini t.v. screens. (And it goes at 20+ knots!)


Anyway, I had to console myself with the fact that I probably have another 3-4 weeks at sea so grabbed several choccy biscuits and just cracked on with my work. There were no signs of marine mammals anywhere so I was drawn to feathers again. The day saw 9 tern sp. flying north but too distantly to identify. On deck briefly were singles of pied wagtail, blackcap and a fleeting serin. I also got a photo of a redstart sp. and having given it much scrutiny I am wondering if it is good for a moussier's redstart? (anybody care to make a shout?) It appears rather short-winged, the tail seems short- although admittedly it is rather worn, the flanks seem rather more rufous than on a common redstart and there is a hint of a pale wing panel? Maybe I am just being overly optimistic? - and it doesn't really matter- it's a nice bird whatever!



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