December 2017
1st December 2017 - (Friday, Péntek)
A mostly sunny day, so I went to check the site. It was obvious that there'd been more snow on the higher ground of the region, and the Sun was bringing some of the meltwater down the airfield road. I couldn't resist: I collected the small shovel from the car and cleared 'evil Achim's' blockages. There was no raging torrent, but at least a small amount of water started to flow into the site. Not too much to see at the SQ, but I noted a Great Spotted Woodpecker, and a small number of Great Tit, Bullfinch, and Fieldfare. There was much evidence of deer visitors (most likely Roe Deer) in the form of footprints on most of our snow-covered footpaths, plus some droppings.
7th December 2017 - (Thursday, Csütörtök)
The SQ was bathed in sunshine when I arrived, but a cool wind blew across the site. As I drove up the airfield road I saw something rather red on the road. At first I thought it was a Robin basking in the sunshine, but as I got nearer I could see that it was a magnificent male Bullfinch (Süvöltő). It was obviously feeding on the Ash seeds that had dropped from the branches. After my walk around the site, I slowly and quietly walked down the hill with long lens attached. As I approached the Ash tree, I heard the distinctive calls of the Bullfinches, but only a female was visible. I took a few shots of her before walking underneath the tree to view her from the sunnier side. I remained still for about 10 minutes, but unfortunately the birds didn't return. Inside the site, there was evidence of Roe Deer, and possibly, a Fox. Other birds seen were Great Tit and an overflying Raven. There was water throughout the reedbed, probably because the top irrigation channel was still in 'our' configuration!
10th December 2017 - (Sunday, Vasárnap)
A short visit to check the SQ after the substantial rainfall on Friday night. I could see water throughout the reedbed area, and was surprised to see that the top irrigation channel was still in 'our' configuration, especially as 'Evil Achim' was at his house. Maybe he was too busy to do any tampering? There were several icy areas at the site, plus some frozen snow in the areas that tend to remain shaded.
11th December 2017 - (Monday, Hétfő)
Just a quick visit to record the SQ landscape following last night's snowfall.
16th December 2017 - (Saturday, Szombat)
As we'd had overnight rain, plus snow and sleet, I visited the SQ at lunchtime to see the effects. I'd expected to find our top irrigation channel blocked.. but no! Perhaps the antagonist is away from home, to busy to do it, or has simply become bored with the project. I feel that the battle isn't over yet, though! As can be seen, the waterfall was working well, and quite a lot of water had spread across the floor of The Bowl. No wildlife heard or seen, but deer footprints were on the muddy pathways.
18th December 2017 - (Monday, Hétfő)
An afternoon visit to check the situation at the SQ. There was a real nip in the air, and the water flow on the airfield road had frozen. Further inspection revealed that our channel had delivered quite a lot of water to The Bowl. In fact, at least 50% of The Bowl had water coverage. Of course, with this temperature, most of the water was frozen. I was amazed that the channel still hadn't been altered by our adversary. Snow persisted in the more shady areas of the site, and most of it was 'crispy' due to frost. Bullfinches and Jays were heard. A quick inspection of the dumped black bags revealed that most had been split open, probably by animals, and that corner looked a real mess. Hopefully, the local authority will come to the rescue before even more waste is deposited there.
30th December 2017 - (Saturday, Szombat)
A brief, after-Christmas visit to check the site. As we've had an increase in temperature all the snow has disappeared, but most of the water had a fairly thin covering of ice. There had been several deer visitors, judging by the amount of droppings along the pathways. When I arrived, I saw 3 or 4 Fieldfare perched in some tall bushes., but no other 'moving' life forms were seen.