In the midst of winter

David, who is recording numbers of species for the Reserve, remarked that 'December was the most species in a month so far for him. January could be better still'.
On 18th January he commented:
'Yesterday morning was brilliant for Ducks: 9 gadwall and 3 shovellers ...I'm not so sure they will have enjoyed the Wassail though!'

Wassailing birds

A brilliantly attended wassail today on the reserve, not just by people but also by birds.


This is actually an older picture from a few weeks ago of Siskin high in the stand of Alder trees where they feed on the seeds. Today I saw Siskin on the feeders.

Two pairs of Gadwall stayed happily towards the far end of the mere. I understand they've been a relatively constant presence recently. The female looks a lot like a Mallard female, but the biggest clue is the lack of a green flash on the wing.

Best of all was a Little Egret that swooped in briefly, stalking the shallows of the mere for just a minute before heading off again. This seems to be a wassail tradition!

Cold weather visitors

The continuing cold weather is making the Reserve more interesting for bird sightings every day. On Wednesday we had:
4 pairs of Gadwalls
I Tufted Duck - female
3 Shovelers -2 males and 1 female
1 pair of Teal
Bullfinches
Large flocks of Siskin
2 Red Kite flew over
Pair of Brambling

What a lovely wintry scene!

The cold weather is bringing in some unusual sightings of dabbling and diving ducks.

Two 'firsts' for the Reserve:

Pochard (male)

Tufted duck (female)

And some occasional visitors:

Shoveler (female)

Two pairs of Gadwall

I managed to get some distant shots with my digital camera - but they were terrible.

Otherwise, an excellent day.

Siskins

On Boxing Day I had a much better view of the flock of 'finch-like' birds (around 50 birds) and the majority seemed to be Siskins- no Redpolls identified that day.

A pair of teals are spending a fair amount of time on the reserve- I have mainly seen them on the smaller water areas away from the mere. They soon fly away once they know you are there.

On the 23rd of Decemeber whilst the snow was still around I had a couple of visits to my garden (near to the reserve) of a single Brambling. It was amongst a small group of chaffinches. So it is worth looking very closely at Chaffinches on the reserve at the moment.

Winter birds

Over the last two or three weeks I have noticed fairly large (20-50) close-knit flocks of small 'finch-like' birds moving from place to place rapidly on the reserve. Last weekend I was able to get a reasonable view of them. At least some of them (mabe all) are redpolls. Streaky body, black bib and always on the move. Some seem to keep the red forehead at this time of year too- but I wasn't close enough to tell. My guide book says that some winters we get 'invasions' of faily large numbers of redpols.

Last weekend was the first time I have seen the cock pheasant under the feeder near the hide. Maybe it is because some of the cover has died back or maybe it is desperation with all the snow hanging around. Other birds that seem to be using 'local facilities' include blue tits taking refuge in holes in the mortar in the house nearest the reserve gate. I have seen collared doves seemingly trying (and failing) to land in the middle of the mere to get a drink whilst the snow has been around. I have seen as many as 12 collared doves at a time recently clustering on the bird feeder near to the hide. I'm sure they help to empty it quickly.

Earlier in the week I saw three male bullfinches together on the feeder- it was nice to see variations in the redness/pinkness between the individuals- maybe age related?

I'm hoping to have regular visits to the hide over the Christmas break.