Saw a small flock (or should that be gaggle) of Brent Geese grazing on Brading Marshes on the IOW yesterday, surely they shouldn't be here so early?

Brent geese usually arrive on the shores near my home around Langstone Harbour in early October and spend the winter feeding there and on the crops in the fields of the farm near our house, before migrating north in March. Yesterday, though I saw a small number of Brent Geese feeding in one of the estuaries on the edge of Brading Marshes on the Isle of Wight.  I was staggered because this is the earliest I have ever seen them on any of our nearby shores. Surely they shouldn't be here yet? Now I'm trying to recall if they were dark-bellied Brent geese or the pale-bellied variety. Or perhaps my eyes deceived me and they are another breed completely.  But having been brought up around Langstone Harbour I usually know a Brent  goose when I see one.

Still, I wish I'd taken a photograph.  That will teach me to be more observant, a quality essential for a writer. I could have used this information (and might still do so in a novel). Every little piece of info. can be useful. But I was hot and tired and my husband had just been stung by a wasp - twice! So there you are, that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it. 

Next time I'm walking on the edge of Brading Marshes I shall look out for the geese.  Meanwhile, if anyone reading this blog living near Brading Marshes (or walking there) sees the geese perhaps they'd let me know.  I'll also be looking out for them in Langstone Harbour.

I wonder what this means for our climate?  A tough winter ahead or a mild one? Whichever, cashmere cardigans will definitely be worn.