Doves, Rivermouth, Wishes

Collared doves coo-ing in the excellent acoustic of the ironwork under the glass roof of Tynemouth Station this a.m.:

They're relative newcomers from Asia, the first breeding pair in the UK spotted in the 1950's, now very common in towns and gardens, and often to be found sunning themselves under the station roof. Village-next-door Cullercoats is thought to derive its name from their native cousins, the Old English 'culver', kept in 'cotes': little houses for animals or birds. In 1908 the Dove Marine Laboratory on Cullercoats Bay was so named for Eleanor Dove, ancestor of geologist Wilfred Hudleston who financed the construction of the new building after the 19th century original was burned down.

In a mysterious box waiting for me at the Post Office, a glass fishing float marked with the kanji for 'rivermouth', from Hokkaido, Japan, via Alaska.

Wishing bottles and lockets, filled with tiny bits of sea glass found at Prior's Haven. Some of these pieces of glass are so small they're almost sand again.