Do birds get Drunk ?

Whoohoooo! A county tick and of course another one for the year, I was very chuffed when I eventually reached the Brown clee, I had until then been checking out a couple of Gull reports from Chelmarsh. Sadly with no result.
But still! anyway having arrived at the clee it was up, up, up! and Up to the point (bugger I was knackered) where the Hawfinch had been reported. It did not take long to lock onto the bird as it fed in the Hawthorns.
It was skulky and mobile but had, it was. I am very up with this one in the bag.

On the way down south, I stopped of at one of my favourite Orchards, now this thing has to be a million years old! fantastic old varieties of Apples and now picked or otherwise disturbed through out the year in fact any year. The ground is covered in fresh! and rotting fruit all over the place and the numbers of birds getting in there is brilliant, Redwing, Fieldare, Blackbirds, Song Thrush, Blackcap etc.etc.

That expression says it all really. In fact I was in discussion with the owner of the site which they want to be kept quit about, on the possibility of the birds getting drunk from the old fruit. In a similar manner to Bees and Wasps.

The answer was surprising, it seems that at the start of the day the area is as quit, as a group of Fieldfare can be, as a normal morning then as the day wears on the noise from the flock seems to gain in momentum, and there has been occasions of birds falling from perch's !! rumour has it.

I had missed the snow here as the entry is a bit difficult at times but am awaiting the next real frosty mornings for some great shots. Below you can see the source of intoxication!!

So it is only a little one today, probably better short and sweet!! is there a J or J joke in there somewhere!!

Thanks for looking

Paul