Rubbish

I know that this is a dreadful shot and that the leaves are in focus rather than the thing behind them but I'm still excited. The car decided to work today so I went to RSPB Dungeness. I'd decided not to lug the camera around but when I checked in........... Slight aside; when I showed the gadgy my membership card he said that I didn't need to get the card out as I "look like an RSPB member". I'm still not sure how to take this. 

Anyway. After this exchange he mentioned that there was a long eared owl on the reserve so it was back to the car for my camera after all.

I may have seen one of these rascals in a zoo but it's the first time I've ever seen one in the wild. Although "wild" may be a relative term here; it was far from active, it simply sat preening. These guys are nocturnal and generally hide away during the day so the chance to see them is rare; I probably spent more than half an hour watching him. Okay, alternating between watching him through the binoculars and then resting my eyes and enjoying the view over the dipping pool and the shingle dunes. I did pop into a hide too but the star was this owl. And then a spectacular sunset over the sea as I pootled along the coast road on the way home.