Quick walk round local wasteground/fields at Snelshall first thing: Plenty of Redwings and Blackbirds around and more Bullfinches, 5 this time. Really am seeing more this year than ever before!
Followed up on a report of Cranes over Milton Keynes. As there had been a similar sized group in Devon two days previous decided to have a quick look round the Broughton Grounds area which is roughly in the direction from Devon to MK then beyond as the crow flies! Only bird of note was a Buzzard, (and quite depressing to see how the small pools and muddy areas at the edge of the gravel workings have now been levelled.)
The Cranes turned out to be a joke.. i.e. building cranes not Common Cranes. I'm trying to decide if the prankster has only just worked out that there is a bird called a Crane, or only just realised that there is an incredibly hilarious pun in there somewhere.
MJ... We salute your comic genius.
Edit: appears that MJ made an innocent mistake of having an attachment that would have explained the joke being filtered out of his email to the yahoo group. I've subsequently decided to resist shaming him on here! | 
