Keeping records

The Cape of Storms is being lashed by rain. This is a good thing, although I'm not sure that we really need so much in such a short time. It is rather like having a bucket of cold water dumped from the heavens and while this is of no consequence to those of us who have adequate shelter, it must be tough on those with leaking roofs or walking to work.
I wonder whether birds enjoy this weather, particularly tiny species such as sunbirds or Cape White Eyes. A direct hit from a large raindrop must be like a hit from a wrecking ball. Perhaps they huddle in deep undergrowth or under branches and so avoid a battering. Does the wind affect their flight and cause them to crash? These are the thoughts of someone who is fascinated by everything in the world and how it works, but unfortunately not shared by many and so I seldom get an answer to my musings. You may or may not wonder why I am interested in things, and for this I have my father to thank.
My father has kept a record of the weather at the family home in Clovelly for some 45 years, and of every bird he has seen in the garden and surrounds for a similar period. The average annual rainfall there has been 650mm, with a low of about 300mm (drought!) and a high of about 900mm (floods!). At present we are still needing a good 350mm to reach the average, and the current weather is therefore necessary to fill our dams.
The bird watching means that there is always a pair of binoculars on some or other windowsill in the house and from the elevated position on the mountainside, viewing is always good and the panorama spectacular. He regularly participates in bird counts and other surveys and in the past has been a bird tour guide for foreign tourists, which must have been twitching heaven. So he can also tell you what birds have disappeared from the area and whether any have returned under favourable conditions.
All this information is neatly recorded in many, many diaries and will have to be put into a computer programme to ensure a meaningful record for posterity. I think this is currently under way.
Perhaps it is this influence which has encouraged me to record a daily blog - hopefully it too will have some use in the future!