old friends and ghosts

 

3rd and 4th Feb

Some more grey photos on grey days. It wouldn't be a true record of Winter if I didn't put these photos here, despite them being less shiny and bright than the occasional sunny day pics. I survive looking for sunnier days ahead on the forecast calendar. Might as well throw myself at work on weeks when there is nothing but grey skies and drizzle. It is the most depressing time of the year. Except we are nearly there and Spring is now on the horizon, with crocus, daffodils and other spring flowers pushing through the frosty dirt. Hate this shit-grey winter.

mrs. hopalong
often first customer in the riverside area

with her boyfriend?

the East riverside pair

Now, remember I held up a photo of this delightful grey wagtail. He (I say he but have no real idea of gender) often bobs about in the small stream at (either side of) the tunnel. A regular, and only ever the one, by himself. I mentioned the tail in particular. Well, as you can see he has lost his tail. I was greatly saddened by this, although I should be glad that whatever took his tail did not get the rest of him. I had to do a doubled take but no, his tail is gone. The good news is he goes around as before, unperturbed by the loss. And can still fly furiously fast like a tiny yellow missile between the trees, seemingly unaffected by the loss of a rudder. Does he know he has lost his tail? He still bobs his rear end, but he would, as this is the habit of a lifetime and where he gets his name. And he hasn't got all wary or more flighty, as you might imagine. He still allows me within 10ft, before walking in the opposite direction. And if I sit still he will paddle up the stream towards me to within 5ft. A very charming little bird.

Which brings us to what happened to his tail? My first and last thoughts are to point the finger of blame at one of many dogs who pass through the tunnel area every day. Off lead and chasing squirrels, crows and anything that moves, there is no shortage of suspects. However it could have been a fox, an owl, a cat (strangely the cemetery has no regular cat visitors, possibly due to the amount of dogs), a badger or bird of prey; sparrowhawk being number one suspect. But my bet would be a dog. The more I go there the more incidents I have of a doggy nature and about 50% of them are unfavourable. The majority are just dogs off lead eating the bread I put out on gravestones. Reactions from dog owners covers the whole range from exemplary to disgraceful. 

before de-tail

The conclusion, the tailend to this story is that this bird might just be growing new tailfeathers to replace the ones it lost. 2.5 weeks later there is the small hint of what might be a replacement sprouting from behind. I will update if things progress.

where's wally?

There are goldcrests near the tunnel. (Perhaps just one pair?) The problem is the light around there is even worse than elsewhere and the birds are tiny and fast moving. I put the above photo in here not because it is good, but because it is often the only glimpse you get of this tiny green-grey bird before it disappears into the undergrowth.

They are found at this time of the year on glossy leaved evergreens and conifers hanging upside down, picking off bugs and grubs (and butterfly eggs?!) from underneath foliage. However one of the goldcrests has taken to bathing in the tunnel stream regularly, which is often the only time to get a clear photo of it. Love that downturned mouth, which gives a humorously dour look to these tiny birds. And that bright yellow mohawk has to be in the photo.

The tunnel stream is a great area for watching birds bathing. (Despite through traffic.) When one starts it encourages others and we often see several different species flapping and splashing  at the same time.

4 chaffinches!

Hitler in the secret garden.

extended visit to Mary's bird-feeder

Another poor quality photo but of a redwing and great spotted woodpecker (m) in the same shot which just about justifies it. I chased this woodpecker across half the North part of the cemetery. It was keeping up with a gang of redwings and finches as they travelled through the graveyard. Both the redwings and woodpeckers avoid human company and being photographed as much as possible.

While trying to keep an eye on the woodpecker we bumped into this goldcrest in the same tree, which was something of a bonus. It was moving like a tiny spinning top from branch to branch and almost impossible to get a decent close up.

a perfect match

Then, nearby, this treecreeper, which had chosen a very suitable birch to ascend. It seemed almost to avoid the silvery sections, as if it knew it matched the colour of the darker areas perfectly.

stock dove 

3 live in the tall trees near the war memorial

While I was taking pics near the tunnel a woman said my name and I recognised Sarah, a pal from many lifetimes ago who founded a theatre company I had connections with. While it was a treat to catch up (pun intended, for Marie) with Sarah, I was sorry to hear the reason she was in Edinburgh was her sister's terminal condition. We had as much in common as my mum was also approaching her last days. Both have since completed the circle of life. I made sure to ask for a photo. Can it really be three decades?

I was also in the cemetery the following day. There was little more of note and it was also flatlight grey. One stand out moment was Mary spotted the kestrel. Nice to see, but it was fairly cautious and wouldn't let us get near for a decent photo.

More convincing than 95% of ghost photos online?

We also saw a ghost. Or rather I recognised that if I took a photo of the woman dressed in a white coat who was standing by the crypts without her pal in the same pic and then made it a little desaturated, cranked the grain and contrast, it might make a nice ghost-like photo. For the record I have never seen a ghost in all the visits to the cemetery (and there have been a few) and will remain unconvinced they exist as autonomous entities, until I see one. I also would welcome the occasion if any are reading this. It's curious we think it humorous a ghost would be looking at stuff online, but perfectly natural one might be hanging out in a cemetery at night.

I will just clarify something: that tall guy with the pipe I used to bump into every few visits. I began to suspect he might well be one of the residents unaware he was dead. He was friendly after a fashion, and we exchanged hellos after seeing each other a few times. This eventually became chatting, and on one occasion he'd shown me where the tawny owl was perched. I said I'd put the photos on facebook and give him the credit. He said he didn't do social media (and yet knew the subjects most recently discussed there on Friends of Warriston) and when I asked his name for the credit, he said he didn't do names either. We had previously spoken about his military service and I imagined a former life for which he wished no further association. I know this is pretty thin evidence of spectral deportment, but other than Scooby-Doo scenarios, how do you define the behaviour of a ghost? I haven't seen him for probably a year (maybe since I suspected his true identity?), but hopefully he will turn up sometime soon. BTW I took surreptitious photos and he did appear in them. Or is that vampires not appearing in mirrors I'm thinking of?

Here is a video of a wren. We returned to the flat stone near the tunnel, on which we had previously laid out seeds and bread. It was all gone bar the crumbs and this wren was tidying those up. Normally wrens will not come to a bird feeder or table, preferring to hunt for bugs under bushes and in leaf litter.