Remenham & Aston, Berks. 06/04/09

I saw my first Swallows of the year today with a pair sat preening on the wires by Remenham Church, Berks. A quick walk around Aston at lunchtime was quite eventful and produced some good birds. Over the fields at Aston 6 Buzzards and 9 Red Kites were circling and a single male Kestrel was hovering next to the pathway leading to Hambleden Lock. A few Skylark were singing from high above the fields and a single Grey Heron was feeding along the backwater stream and another by Hambleden Lock. Plenty of Red-legged Partridge were about mostly in pairs and a few Pheasant around the fields. 3 Chiffchaffs were in full song from several areas and I got fantastic views of 2 Nuthatches inspecting nest holes next to the path. It didn't take long to get views of the local Ring-necked Parakeets as 5 noisily passed overhead and by the time I had reached the Hambleden Lock I had also seen 3 Stock Doves and a single Kingfisher.

Swallow - 2 Remenham
Buzzard - 6 Aston
Red Kite - 9 Aston
Kestrel - 1 Aston
Red-lggd Partridge - 11 Aston
Skylark - 3 Aston
Grey Heron - 2 Aston & Hambleden Lock
Ring-necked Parakeet - 5 Aston
Starling - 23 Aston
Blue Tit - 3 Aston
Great Tit - 5 Aston
Dunnock - 2 Aston
Chiffchaff - 3 Aston
Nuthatch - 2 Aston
Kingfisher - 1 Hambleden Lock
Stock Dove - 3 Aston

Waxwings - Henley on Thames, Oxon. 26/02/2009

I was in Henley on Thames this afternoon to take a look at some gardening work I've been asked to do and whilst chatting with the owner I could hear an unmistakable "trilling" noise coming from nearby. Knowing the call to be Waxwings I was itching to get back to my car and grab my binoculars and after explaining what I could hear we both wandered round the house to find 12 perched in a tree top on the south east corner of Damer Gardens(SU762817). Just as I got them in view 2 Wood Pigeons flew in to the tree flushing the Waxwings which hastily flew over our heads calling with their trilling "sirrrr", they then headed off in a northerly direction and out of sight.

As I grew up in the area I know it very well and searched all of the known berry bushes including the train station, supermarket car parks and the old Woolworth's car park where I first spotted the invasion flock in February 2005, despite checking many locations I had no luck in relocating them. I returned to Damer Gardens in the hope they had returned but there wasn't any sign of them. Most of the berry trees in the area are now bare so I'm not sure if there likely to hang around long.

Tawny Owl - Xylophone Trill

On a number of occasions I had heard a sound that I just couldn't figure out what it was or what was making them, only heard late at night I was sure it was an Owl. With all three common Owls being present in the area it had to be either Barn, Little or Tawny Owl that was making this strange quiet warbling noise but despite researching and trying to track the culprit down I still had no answers. I finally managed to record it out of our bedroom window late one night and heard a Tawny Owl which seemed to be replying? in the background whilst the warbling/trill continued. After searching many websites I found the God's Own Clay website which has a large selection of recordings including the "Xylophone Trill" which finally told me that is was a Tawny Owl. The Tawny Owl calls and vocalizations can be found on their website here

Collins Bird Guides(Mullarney/Svensson/Zettertrom/Grant) describes the following - During courtship either sex utters a low-pitched,shivering tremolo(the so called 'xylophone trill'), o'o'o'o'o'o'o'o'o'o'o'o....., audible only to c.50m.

It's quiet so you'll need to turn the sound up and perhaps your speakers to hear it.

Tawny Owl's "Xylophone Trill".

In & Around The Garden.

Coal Tit

We've had some interesting sightings in and around the garden over the last week and with a glimpse of warmer temperatures and perhaps the first signs of Spring bird activity has been very high. After nearly a 3 week absence one of our local Marsh Tits has returned to the feeders, it's great to see they survived the cold weather and snow and I guess they are much tougher than I give them credit for. 2 Coal Tit's and a Nuthatch are also regularly in the garden.

On Wednesday 18th I spotted a large Finch flock in Horse paddocks whilst driving along Parmoor Lane, Frieth (SU793900). Quite a varied selection of species that included Meadow Pipit, Skylark, Linnet, Brambling, Chaffinch and a couple of Pied Wagtails all feeding in the paddock but very mobile. A lone male Kestrel perched on top of a telegraph pole and 7 Red Kites circling over Little Frieth were also seen. Early Thursday brought views of an extremely pale Buzzard perched on the fence posts of a boundary fence outside our cottage, it was so white it was more reminiscent of an Osprey in appearance and although I have seen a couple of pale individuals a few miles away I have never seen one this pale around the cottage before. It was perched hunched up on a fence post looking in to the field which I have never seen them do here before, if there not circling above with Red Kites they can often be seen sat on telephone posts or some of the tall trees that overlook the mass of open fields so I was surprised to say the least. Although I could see it with the naked eye I thought it certainly needed closer inspection and with a number of Rough legged Buzzards turning up in neighbouring counties I rushed off looking for my binoculars, by the time I had found my binoculars it had moved to the next post and was partly obscured behind a small tree. I started to look for some of the key features to separate the Common and Rough-legged Buzzard by firstly looking at the tail which did seem very pale, the Buzzard then tuned side on and I decided to run upstairs and view it from the bedroom window with my scope. I ran upstairs with the elegance of Todd Carty from Dancing on Ice and grabbed my scope and proceeded to put up the tripod, I made my way over to the window and looked out only to find the bird had gone and despite going outside and scanning the skies, hills, fields and woodland it was nowhere to be seen. It hasn't been seen since and I'm kicking myself for not getting a good view of it, with daily sightings of both Red Kite and Common Buzzard I have got a bit used to seeing them and don't always check each individual out, perhaps a valuable lesson. To be honest these days I see more Red Kites on a daily basis than I do House Sparrows!!

I was woken in the early hours of Friday morning, 5am to be precise by the hooting calls of a Tawny Owl perched on the chimney. It continued for over 10 minutes before it fell silent and I drifted back off to sleep. There seems to be at least 3 or 4 calling most nights from the woods in the surrounding valley and due to our remoteness and distinct lack of traffic noise they can be heard clearly as they claim their territories and potential mates.

Our resident Little Owls have also become very vocal calling during both day and night, I was watched sternly by one individual which was sat in a tree overlooking my car in the week and we've also had a few brief sightings of single birds sat on the paddock fence posts overlooking the adjacent fields.

I returned home on Friday evening and was immediately halted in my tracks as I approached the front door, hearing the eerie drawn-out screech of a barn owl nearby I stopped and listened patiently. Within 30 seconds I heard it again but this time it seemed closer but due to the light it was impossible to track it down, being miles from civilisation there are no street lights here and no ambient light so it's dark to say the least, our 500watt security light does light up the area around the cottage but not in to the fields. I tracked it by it's calls to the field next to the cottage and listened next to the fence, it continued calling on and of for about 5 minutes but by this time was moving further away. Barn Owls aren't uncommon in the area and I've seen them in at least 4 nearby locations including a incredible experience I had in our orchard where I managed to film the individual in the films below.

At 4am Saturday morning nature called and I made my way downstairs to take a leak, I always switch on the outside light in the hope that I might catch a glimpse of something interesting, often the early hours give great views of Owls, Deer and other wildlife going about their nocturnal activities. Looking out of the living room window and out in to the paddock I noticed a grey lump hunched over in the long grass, thinking it was a Rabbit I started to pull the curtains but as I did a black and white striped face looked up from the grass and stared back at me. It is my first Badger sighting in the garden this year and I watched intently for 10 minutes as it snuffled it's way through the grass and towards the edge of our garden, it certainly looked like the Brock that visited regularly and brought his family to the garden to feed during 2006-2007

Common Gull

Saturday was a glorious day weather wise, finally the grey cloudy skies made way for blue skies with outbreaks of warm sunshine and the first signs that Spring is on it's way. A Red Kite perched outside the cottage was whistling away from the top of a telephone pole and with the weather being so nice I decided to have a good look around the garden to see what was about. I watched the feeders from the bedroom window and spotted Great, Blue, Coal and Long Tailed Tit, only 3 Chaffinches feeding beneath the feeders, a Robin and 2 Blackbirds occasionally popped in and out of the garden and a Dunnock which continually broke in to it's sweet warbling song from the edge of the bushes in the garden. Walking out in to the garden I could soon see 2 Common Buzzards and 5 Red Kites circling above and from the surrounding fields the squabbling Corvids could be heard as they searched the fields for food. No sign of any Black-headed gulls today but 12 Common Gulls were joining a small flock of Jackdaws that were feeding in one of the Sheep fields off Shogmoor Lane. After viewing the surrounding fields I made my way back towards home hearing a small flock of Long-tailed Tits as I walked, they soon flitted overhead and into the hedgerow next to me and as I watched them I soon heard the contact calls of 2 Goldcrest that were in the hedgerow as well. As I was watching them I began to hear a Bullfinch calling nearby and leaving the Tit flock I carried on further along the hedgerow and towards the calling Bullfinch, it didn't take long to see both male and female Bullfinches feeding in the hedgerow but they soon noticed me and flew further along the path and back in to the hedge. I slowly approached where they were feeding and this time inched myself into a good viewing position and watched as they ate new shoots and buds in the hedgerow, they stayed for a good ten minutes mostly deep in the hedge but now and again came to the top to clean their beaks on a number of thicker branches giving exceptional views of this normally shy species. I wandered back to the cottage and immediately picked up on 2 large black birds flying south-east towards Hatchet wood, they soon called and before I had time to look at them through my binoculars I knew they were Ravens. They continued flying over without stopping but I could still hear "Kronking" even with them out of sight. I'm certain that there is at least one pair in the area and with fairly regular sightings over the cottage there's a good chance that they are resident and possible breeders.

Bullfinch

A Red Kite returned to the top of the telegraph pole near the garden and from the bedroom window I could see it was eating something, being curious I headed outside again . I managed to hide behind a large Laurel bush which meant I could get relatively close view without flushing it, I was a bit taken back when I saw what it was eating as I had at first thought that it would be probably feeding on a dead Rabbit or some other road kill. After doing a double take I realised that I wasn't going mad and that the Kite was eating what looked like a sponge cake(make and origin unknown!), I have often had them swooping into the garden after I have put bread out for the birds but never seen them take anything so this came as a bit of a surprise. It finished everything and then took off and began circling the fields with 3 other Kites and a Common Buzzard. It had a metal leg ring on it's left leg but it wasn't possible to read it.

The Cake Eating Kite

Red Kite

In Memory Of Nigel Richard Stow 9th Oct 1941-16th Feb 2004.

DO NOT STAND AT MY GRAVE AND WEEP

Do not stand at my grave and weep;

I am not there, I do not sleep.

I am a thousand winds that blow;

I am the diamond glints on snow.

I am the sunlight on ripened grain;

I am the gentle autumn's rain.

When you awaken in the morning's hush,

I am the swift uplifting rush;

of quiet birds in circled flight.

I am the soft star that shines at night.

Do not stand at my grave and cry.

I am not there; I did not die.

A Winters Tale. 2nd Feb 2009.

With the heaviest snowfall for 18 years covering most of the south east of England the Chilterns were no exception. Even with weather reports informing the whole of the UK that severe weather was on it's way I wasn't totally sure what to expect, On Sunday evening I was still trying to track down a Woodcock that had been seen briefly near the cottage and as dusk approached the temperature dropped and the first snow started to fall leaving me in no doubt that something was on it's way. The first snow showers were quite aggressive with an inch or two laying very quickly before 6:30pm when as quickly as it had started the snow ceased to fall, nothing much happened for the rest of the evening and it wasn't until the early hours of Monday did things really get going. By 3am there was already a good covering of snow and it wasn't stopping, I couldn't believe the amount of snow and the speed at which it was falling. By morning the valley was covered by a layer of snow that stretched as far as the eye could see and the distant windmill at Turville Heath famed for it's starring role in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang was now partly obscured during occasional bouts of snowfall.

I had filled the feeders the night before ready for any early morning arrivals in search of food and after surveying the surrounding countryside I watched to see what the garden had in store. Great, Blue and Coal Tit were already in situ along with Robin, Dunnock and Chaffinch, 3 male and 1 female Blackbird were surprisingly well behaved amongst each other with the female again taking charge of any unruly behaviour. I decided it was time to put out a few treats for the ground feeders and after finding a selection of wholemeal bread, fruit and the remainder of a rather expensive panettone cake I braved the elements outside. After scattering the food across the lawn and refilling the bird bath I scanned the orchard and fields next to the cottage. Our now regular pair of Red Kites were sat in the top of an old Apple tree viewing the fields, they looked rather cold and I did wonder how well these beautiful birds of prey would adapt to this weather that would certainly hamper their feeding, despite the area having an abundance of Rabbit and Pheasant the snow would have soon covered anything that hadn't made it through the night and the fields were now baron wastelands devoid of any life. Of course after getting my scope and attempting to get a photo of them they flew off, I thought it best to leave them rather than pursue them for the perfect snow shot as they would certainly need all the fat reserves they had to get them trough the severe weather.

I wandered back to the cottage hearing a Meadow Pipit calling as it flew overhead, it dropped down into a nearby field and I headed off to investigate. Although Meadow Pipit is quite a common species of bird I have never heard or seen one near the cottage before, I was lucky to see one perched on wires about a quarter of a mile away from the cottage earlier this year. After negotiating a number of hidden Rabbit burrows I set my scope up to view the field, the glare from the snow made it difficult to find anything and I was about to give up when I saw a flock of about 50 or more birds take to the air from the centre of the field which included both Skylark and Meadow Pipit. I watch ed as they swirled round the centre of the field coming down almost the same place they had taken of from. It does seem that there are good size flocks of both Skylark and Meadow Pipits in the area at the moment.

unsurprisingly the Black headed and Common Gulls that are present most days around the nearby fields were nowhere to be seen, a mixed flock of Carrion Crow, Rook, Jackdaw and Magpie were doing there best to forage in the downtrodden snow that the local sheep had carved across the snow covered fields.

We are pretty remote at the best of times and with the heavy snowfall the area seemed very cut-off to say the least, fields and woodland were covered with a blanket of snow as far as the eye could see and they were beckoning to be explored. Finding as many layers as we could get on we headed out in to what felt like Narnia and after traversing the fields we headed north east towards Adam's Wood stopping a the entrance of the wood to grab a few photos. The wood itself was eerily quiet, no sight or sound of any bird life and the silence was strange to say the least, it was almost like every living creature in the wood had be exiled leaving an incredible silence.

As we continued through the wood the first signs of bird life became obvious, a Red Kite perched in the tree tops took flight sending a cascade of snow from the branches to the woodland floor, a Nuthatch called from nearby and after tracking it's call we found it with a small flock of Blue and Great Tits as they searched the woodland for food. A Common Buzzard called as it drifted over and shortly after the delicate contact calls of a number of Goldcrests could be heard from the woodland interior.

After following the footpath through Adam's Wood we arrived at Little Frieth and soon encountered 4 Red Kites circling the fields, Blackbird, Robin, Blue and Great Tit were in good numbers along the gardens and hedgerows. Leaving Little Frieth along Shogmoor Lane a number of birds were scattered along the hedgerows, Dunnock, Blackbird, Blue & Great Tit and a possible male Blackcap, I say possible as the view was so brief I just didn't get a good enough view. The pond at the top of Shogmoor Lane was almost all frozen over with a number of Mallards keeping the remaining water unfrozen by swimming in it, 2 Moorhens were also present searching round the pound fringes for food. A good size flock of Greenfinches has been present in this area recently and along with Chaffinch and a few Goldfinches must have numbered somewhere in the region of 60 birds, feeding in 2 separate groups either side of the road they soon took flight as we walked the road between them. They sat nervously in the trees along the field edges and the noise of all these Finches calling together was incredibly loud.

At the top of shogmoor lane we could see a distant group of Red Kites circling over Fingest Wood, it was difficult to count exactly how many there were due to the snow showers and mist that was caused by the wind blowing surface snow across the fields. They seemed to be circling one particular area with some intent and on occasions would drop suddenly out of the sky and out of view behind the trees, I estimated that there were roughly 16 Kites but it could have been more.

We made our way along the footpath and in to Hill's Wood which like Adam's Wood was silent at first, a number of Blackbirds both male and female were encountered on the footpaths before they hastily flew deeper in to the woods and now and again the contact calls of Goldcrest could be heard. Finally a Robin appeared next to the footpath as if to see if we had anything to offer before it too disappeared in to the wood. 2 Common Buzzards passed over calling as they went and shortly after a Red Kite followed them but there was still little to be seen in the woodland itself. As we approached Hatchet Wood a Nuthatch was heard calling and at least 4 Goldcrest were calling to each other at the tops of nearby Conifer trees. We came to a clearing and watched as a Brown Hare suddenly shot out from the woodland in front of us, we obviously startled it from it's daytime resting place and it raced across the clearing with the speed and agility of a Olympic sprinter, it's long legs pushing it at great speed through the wood with it's long black-tipped ears held tightly against it's shoulders. Within 30 seconds it was gone and the only signs that it was ever there were the far spaced footprints that it left in the snow.

We continued along the footpath through Hatchet Wood walking on previously un-trodden snow, an almost fairytale landscape greeted us with snow covering the countryside and adorning almost every bow and branch throughout the wood. 2 Red Kites drifted over calling as they went and the odd cackling flock of Fieldfare passed across the tree tops overhead. Suddenly we noticed a bird take flight from the undergrowth just in front if us, we stood and watched as a dumpy looking bird with a long bill flew along the edge of the wood before dropping down again. We approached slowly only for the bird to take flight and fly further into the woods but this time it was clear to see that is was a Woodcock. I know they often can be found in open areas in times of severe weather and perhaps this was the reason why one turned up in the garden on the previous day, I was delighted to see this species so near to our home and will certainly be on the look out for Roding males in spring.

By the time we reached home we had added Song Thrush, Mistle Thrush and Redwing to our sightings for the day and our regular male Pheasant was tucking in to the leftovers in the garden

January's Garden Sightings.

Red Kite

The garden has been busy especially in times of very cold weather, Still no sign of Brambling and Siskin in the garden as we have seen in previous years but with temperatures dropping and snow covering the fields and surrounding countryside there's always the possibility of something turning up.

Regular sightings of Blue, Great, Coal, Marsh & Long-tailed Tit. Wood Pigeon, Robin, Wren, Dunnock, Chaffinch and the odd Greenfinch,(a large flock of 40+ Greenfinch has been seen on numerous occasions at the top of Shogmoor Lane), a Treecreeper returned to the garden and was seen briefly climbing tree trunks before it flew off towards the trees in the orchard. Both Red Kite and Buzzard are daily sightings as are large flocks of corvids, Carrion Crow, Rook, Jackdaw and Magpie all present in large numbers feeding with Black-headed and Common Gulls in the surrounding fields. A Raven was seen and heard in early February flying south-east over Hatchet Wood and perhaps one of the birds that has been seen at nearby Marlow Common. A Collared Dove that stopped in the garden in late January was a first, occasionally seen flying over they are not a common sighting around the garden but just 600 yrds down the road in Skirmett village can be seen sat on the overhead wires. Perhaps they just don't like what we have on offer, anyway the Dove stayed minutes before it flew off, brief visit to say the least!.

Treecreeper

We still have a good number of Blackbirds in the area and numbers probably reach the mid twenty's , 3 or 4 visit the garden to see what's on offer with a particularly dominate female keeping the males in order. Both Mistle and Song Thrush are present in and around the surrounding fields and a small number of Redwing remain, only a few small groups of Fieldfare are in the area and are often heard but not seen. Our regular visiting male Pheasant has spent the last couple of nights roosting on the garden wall, i found him sat on the wall with his head tucked under his wing at 6:45am on the 3rd Feb looking rather cold.

The resident Little Owls are staying out of sight at the moment and are only seldom heard unlike the Tawny Owl which seems to have started calling from the top of the cottage chimney again. It obviously favours this spot as it has done for the past couple of years, as we have an open fire which is in use most nights through the winter I'm wondering if it uses the chimney as it knows it's going to be nice and warm.

The most exciting news came on the 1st February when my girlfriend told me she had just flushed a unusual bird from the orchard, she was walking through the orchard when a bird took flight in front of her and zig-zaged its way past the garden. Louise got a good view of the bird and after she told me this I sat her down and the Spanish inquisition began. what did it look like I asked?, to which she replied it was a dumpy wader looking bird with a long bill. I was intrigued and requiring more information I continued the questioning, where exactly did you see it? it was in the overgrown area at the side of the filed and it looked like a Woodcock as the bill was too long for a Snipe, I was taken back by her observations even though she has accompanied me on many of my birding adventures. Every year we go to Padworth, Berks on the TABCG Nightjar walk and often see this species a number of times as they rode overhead, we have also seen this species up close at Titchwell, Norfolk when on a Focus on Birds weekend trip with Tom McJannet we were gifted extremely close views of a single bird sat in the undergrowth next to the car park. I was disappointed at missing this very unusual sighting in the garden but have no doubt that Louise saw was a Woodcock and this would be proved the following day...

Aston & Remenham, Berkshire. 30/01/09

Ring-necked Parakeet

An afternoon visit to Aston and Remenham, Berks on what was a cold cloudy day with brief spells of sunshine. Amongst the more common and regular sightings were-

Aston

Ring-necked Parakeet (6)
Red Kite (26)* Largest number ever recorded at this site
Buzzard (4)
Kestrel (1)
Siskin (30+)
Marsh Tit (1)
Nuthatch (1)
Song Thrush (1)
Grey Wagtail (2)
Kingfisher (1)

Remenham

Egyptian Goose (2)
Red-legged Partridge (19)
Stock Dove (2)
Redwing (9)

Siskin

Great Crested Grebe

Black-headed Gull

You Have Been Warned!

Pink-footed Goose - Streatley, Berkshire. 18/01/09

Pink-footed Goose.

I decided to take a trip over to Streatley in Berkshire today to see the Pink-footed Goose Found by Neil Bucknell in early January. Although the weather was a bit chilly the sun was out and I hoped for the chance to get a few photos of this rare visitor to the county of Berkshire.

After parking the car my girlfriend and I headed along the Thames Path towards Cleeve Lock, a gathering of Black-headed and Common gull were congregating on a large flooded area of the fields and on the opposite bank of the River Thames a large flock of Canada Geese were grazing on a large riverside lawn. Arriving at Cleeve Lock we met a departing Adam Basset and his daughter, after having a quick chat we said our goodbyes and wandered off another 400yrds towards the Pink-foot.

The Pink-footed Goose was with 2 Egyptian Geese by the ditch on the Berkshire side of the Thames path and roughly 400 yrds north of Cleve Lock, the unringed Pink-foot did seem wary to me and often sat looking around, even when it was grazing it stopped to look around before carrying on eating. At about 3.15pm 2 more Egyptian Geese flew in from the boathouse on the Oxon side of the Thames. These 2 Egyptian Geese were very territorial, very vocal and plenty of outstretched wings with heads pointed to the sky, perhaps a pair and early signs of breeding display?. They proceeded to chase firstly the original 2 Egyptian Geese and then the Pink-foot, this went on for at least 30 minutes before the Pink-foot took flight and circled round the field and then landed 100yards south of it's take off point.

Pink-footed Goose.

Egyptian Goose.

A Year of Birding 2008.

2008 Year Review Coming Soon

Willow Tit (Poecile montanus) - Combe Wood, Berks. 30th Dec 2008

I have seen Willow Tit on previous occasions at Combe Wood and it seems to be one of a few reliable locations where they can be seen in Berkshire. They tend to favour a number of areas around the top of the hill near Combe Wood or in the wood itself and previous bird races have successfully found this species along with it's close relative the Marsh Tit. On this years TABCG Berkshire Bird Race myself and team member Cathy McEwan had heard one calling but with Roy Rose failing to hear it unfortunately it couldn't be counted for the day.

Having tried a number of locations closer to home where I have seen Willow Tit on previous years without any success I decided to head to Combe Wood for a final attempt before the year ended. After parking the car just off Church Lane I started the steep ascent up the public footpath towards Combe Wood, I remember thinking to myself that this location would be better served earlier in the day when we take part in the Berks bird race next year, it's a killer late in the day especially when you've been on the go since midnight.

At the top of the hill a covey of 9 Red-legged Partridges were seen running along the side of the fields near Summerton's Down and on the other side of the path 5 Stock Doves flew over Wadsmere Down. Continuing along the path to Combe Wood a Nuthatch could be heard calling and I soon came across a party of 14 Long-tailed Tits flitting their way through the wood. I walked slowly down the path attempting my Marsh Tit "pitchoo" call hoping that something might reply, I've had plenty of practice with the Marsh Tits in our garden and with good success I hasten to add. It didn't take long before I heard a Marsh Tit reply and answering it's call I waited for it's reply, it didn't call but instead appeared in a tree just off the path and sat checking me over giving me a nice view, as it flitted back in to the woods another bird called further down the path but this time it was the harsh calls of the Willow Tit which was perched in the trees at the edge of the path. I watched as it made it's way through the trees and at one point could hear another calling nearby, it stayed in view for a good 5 minutes before I lost sight of it in the woods.


Added To My year List.

228. Willow Tit

RSPB Church Wood - Bucks 29th Dec 2008

I decided to head over to RSPB Church Wood today hoping to catch up with another species that I had failed to see so far this year. Lesser-spotted Woodpeckers aren't the easiest birds to see and having dipped on a number of occasions earlier in the year I decided to try again.

After parking the car I walked along the path to the reserve, it was rather chilly and I was certainly pleased I'd brought my hat and gloves and making my way to the bench next to the wardens hut I prepared myself for a long wait. I stood quietly listening for any bird calls and watched as a Robin came flying down to where I was standing, it was so tame I wondered if visitors to the reserve had been feeding it from their packed lunches, unfortunately it wasn't going to get anything off me as I didn't have anything to give it. It seemed quite content digging around under the leaves so I sat down and watched it, about 5 minutes passed and I was kicking myself for not bringing my camera when a small flock of birds flew across the tree tops. They continued over the clearing and landed in the tops of some Alder trees not more than 20ft away which gave me a good chance of standing up without scaring them. When I managed to get the scope on them I could see that it was a flock of Lesser Redpoll, hanging upside down they busily stripped the seeds from branches and within a couple of minutes more birds arrived to join them. The wood was empty and I stood alone watching these Finches going about their business, their metallic contact calls could be heard clearly and brought the silence of the wood to life. My little Robin friend looked a bit peeved that the Redpolls were now attracting my gaze and he slowly hopped towards me tilting his head every so often to check the woodland floor for food, I didn't have the heart to tell him the ground was frozen and he could be waiting sometime!.

The Redpolls continued to feed in the trees above me and I managed to count 25+ before they took to the air, they circled the tree tops forming a tight group and disappeared from view further in to the wood. I was know feeling a bit cold and decided to have a walk around the areas that the Lesser-spotted Woodpeckers have been reported from, with the trees having shed their leaves it makes it slightly easier to find this tree canopy hugging Woodpecker so saying goodbye to the Robin I headed off down the path. At the bottom of the main track a small pond often draws birds in to drink and stopping to watch a Wren do exactly this I heard the Lesser Redpolls approaching again, over they went dropping back in to the trees by the wardens hut. I then spotted another small flock of birds flying in to the trees by the pond and was soon watching a flock of 15 or so Siskin feeding in the alders, I could hear more but just couldn't see them and waited to see if they would show themselves. I'd been in the wood for about 3 hours now and my feet were starting to get numb, I was just starting to dream of my car heater when all of a sudden I heard a faint rapid and feeble drumming sound coming from along the lower main path leading back to the entrance, I grabbed my scope and walked quickly along the path stopping at where I believed the sound to be coming from. I waited for about 10 minutes with not a bird in sight and was about to give up when I spotted a family walking through the woods with their dogs, they were obviously being quite loud as they walked through the wood and approaching the centre of the woodland they flushed a small bird from the trees, it called with a sharp and short "kick" alarm call and then proceeded to fly through the woods with a deep undulating flight, I managed to see this tiny bird immediately and spotted the red head and white horizontal barring across it's back and wings but it didn't stop and flew off in the direction of the wardens hut. It was a brief view of a male Lesser-spotted Woodpecker and sadly that was the best it was going to get as by now frostbite seemed to be setting in and I was just too cold to go and look for it. I retreated to the warmth of the my car and headed for home.

Back in August of 2005 I was extremely lucky to find a male Lesser-spotted Woodpecker clinging to a dead tree branch on my local patch. I was attempting to digiscope Spotted Flycatchers at Aston near Hambleden Lock on the Berks/Bucks border when a passing dog walker allowed his dog to run straight in to the bushes flushing everything in sight, trying to resist the urge to throw both the dog and his owner in to the nearby backwater I glanced skywards and noticed a small bird clinging to the side of a dead tree trunk. With the blue sky behind this small bird it was difficult at first to see exactly what it was and it wasn't until I viewed it through my binoculars did I realise it was a male Lesser-spotted Woodpecker. It remained motionless on the tree giving me time to grab my scope and camera and snap off a few shots. It must have stayed in view for at least 10 minutes and at one point was joined in the tree by a Chaffinch giving a good size comparison. Despite searching most evenings throughout the summer of 2005 I saw it only once again in late August and have had no luck on any of my return visits. Earlier in December 2008 I had returned to Hambleden Lock and Aston hoping that I might have a spot of luck and find it again but sadly was unsuccessful.


Added To My Year List.

227. Lesser-spotted Woodpecker

Lesser-spotted Woodpecker (Aston, Berks 30/08/2005)

The Christmas Devon Diaries 24th-27th December 2008.

As Christmas approached my girlfriend and I were asked by my aunt and uncle whether we would like to spend Christmas down in Devon at a converted barn they had rented for Christmas week, we jumped at the chance and by the time we had put the phone down I was already packing my bags. South Pool is only a short distance away from Prawle Point, when I say short I mean 3 or 4 miles at the most. I had hoped to stop in Gosport to see the regular over wintering Ring-billed Gull and make our way along the coast stopping at Radipole to see the Hooded Merganser and then head on to Devon. Well you know what they say about best laid plans and after leaving home at 2pm my plans went out the window. We arrived at South Pool and pulled up at the barn at 6:30pm and after being greeted by my aunt we started to unpack the car. The first bird was soon added to the holiday with a Tawny Owl calling from nearby.

Dec 23rd 2008

Tuesday morning soon came round and after spending the previous evening playing Wii I was nursing a few aches and strains. It was a brisk clear morning with no wind so although it was chilly it was still pleasant. The garden at the barn hosted many of the common species of garden birds including Blue & Great Tit, Robin, Goldfinch, Chaffinch & Greenfinch and an occasional male Bullfinch. A pair of Blackbirds and a lone Redwing that spent the week feeding on a number of berry bushes around the garden, it was also a pleasing sight to see a small group of House Sparrows that could often be seen and heard in the perimeter hedgerows. Wood Pigeon, Starling, Carrion Crow, Jackdaw and Rooks were all common sightings as they passed overhead commuting from one field to another as were Black-headed and Herring Gull. From the living room window of the barn I could see the South Pool creek, this is a channel of water that starts from the English channel and dissects Bolt Head and Prawle point and makes it's way inland past Salcombe and on towards Kingsbridge. Once I had set up my scope I had great views across the low tide mud flats, an obvious white blob sat the water pools turned out to be an Little egret and I was pleased to see a number of waders feeding in the mud. As breakfast was being cooked I headed out to the wood shed to stock up on logs for the evening fire, after filling the wood basket I headed back to the barn hearing a familiar "kronking" sound coming across hills, I put the basket down and looked across the hills seeing nothing but passing wood pigeons and by the time I had grabbed my binoculars from inside the calls had stopped.

South Pool Creek

After breakfast I wandered 200 yards down the road to the creek, approaching the creek both Herring and Black-headed Gulls were present in two small groups of about 5 or 6 each but soon departed as I approached. I soon spotted 2 little Egrets that were stalking prey in the now shallow areas of the water as the tide receded, they seemed very territorial often raising the heads skywards, dancing round each other and often showing their plumes, it was something I would expect to see from a displaying pair during courtship.

Little Egret

I didn't really expect to see much so close to the village of south pool and after finding a good spot to view across the mudflats I soon found a Common Sandpiper hastily making its way along the edge of mudflats only stopping when it found something to feed on. It soon scurried past a Oystercatcher which then joined it in the race across the mud and seaweed. 2 Redshank called noisily to each other from opposites side of the creek before joining each other on one of the small seaweed and mudflat islands that were visible in the creek. I continued along the public footpath which curved around the edge of the creek until I came to another good viewing spot, from here I could see into a small bay hidden by the houses on the opposite bank. a lone Greenshank was sat preening on the edge of a seaweed bank and despite the 2 Redshank getting nervous and taking flight the greenshank remained, it gave me great views of the delicate scaly patterns to the feathering as it stood and preened. As I watched the Greenshank a flock of 25+ Meadow Pipits few over and dropped down in to nearby fields. I reached the end of the public footpath and turned round to walk back along the edge of the creek, as I reached the road at South Pool village a Grey Wagtail flew down to the waters edge and bobbed its way along in front of me.

Greenshank

Ever since I knew we were coming to South Pool I have been reading up about the best bird sites in the area and was delighted to read in Lee Evans "Finding Birds in Britain" that Prawle Point was one of the few areas in Britain that the Cirl Bunting could be found. With Prawle Point only being 3 miles away it was an obvious first choice to visit. After negotiating the incredibly narrow lanes we arrived at the NT car park at Prawle point and were given great views of a male Bullfinch perched in the bush directly in front of the car. Leaving the car park we followed the footpath south to the coastal path and arriving at the sea I was surprised how calm it looked and the lack of wind, although the clouds were grey and the weather was brisk it was remarkably calm. We looked out to sea spotting a lone fishing trawler slowly drifting west followed closely by a large flock of Gulls, too distant to identify. Looking closer to shore a single Shag bobbed up and down on the waves and we watched as it started to feed, diving up out of the water before disappearing beneath waves. A few Cormorant passed by out a sea with the occasional sighting of Gannet as they flew westward. We continued along the coastal path heading east and passing a sheep grazing pen I spotted a flock of birds dropping down in to the grass, a closer view identified them as Meadow Pipit and a quick count totalled 50 before they flew up and off to an adjacent field. We must have walked another 100yards when I noticed a bird sat in the top of the footpath hedgerow in font of us, a fine male stonechat which sat calmly as we approached him giving really good views. Looking out from the coastal path to the rocky outcrops that jut around the coastline 2 Little Egrets were a surprising find, I never really expected to see them at this location and always associated them with lakes, gravel pits etc. They searched the rock pools for food along with Oystercatcher, Redshank and two small waders that disappeared from sight which I believe to be Turnstones. Between Prawle Point and Langerstone Point a Great Northern Diver was fishing out at sea along with Cormorant and Great Crested Grebe.

Cirl Bunting

Further along the path I could see another bird perched up on the hedgerow but because of the cloudy skies it made it difficult to identify by sight alone, I grabbed my binoculars and just as I focused in the bird dropped out of sight. We made our way towards where we had seen the bird and suddenly a flock of birds took flight from the stubble fields next to the path, I could hear Meadow Pipit calling as the birds dispersed across the fields and hedgerows but there was also another call I didn't recognise and I adjusted my hearing to try and filter out all other ambient sounds. The call was coming from a nearby bramble/gorse thicket, a number of "brown jobs" were hidden deep in the gorse and thickets and even looking through the telescope it was still impossible to tell what they were, I had my suspicions but until I could get a better view I wasn't going to get excited. I waited patiently until slowly the birds regained composure and made their way in to view. I was now watching my first ever Cirl Buntings, a female which looked rather worn and drab and two males that although in winter plumage both clearly showed the black throat and eye stripe. It was soon evident that there was a group of about 15 or so birds together, both Yellowhammer and Cirl Bunting were sat in a stretch of about 12ft of gorse and bramble thickets and were quite shy remaining in the bushes until a male Cirl Bunting flew straight towards us and perched in the hedgerow next to the path, he remained there casually looking around until he spotted us and flew back to the rest of the group.

Cirl Bunting Video

We headed back along the coastal path hearing Raven near the car park and made our way back to South Pool. Later that evening I hooked my laptop up to the internet and learnt that a Snowy Owl was present at Zennor in Cornwall, having never seen one and the fact that I was in neighbouring Devon it seemed a very worthwhile trip. With the following day being Christmas Eve I hoped that the roads would be quieter allowing a fairly reasonable journey and the fact that I couldn't wait till after Christmas was a deciding factor.

Prawle Point

Snowy Owl-Zennor, Cornwall. Dec 24th 2008

Leaving South Pool at 9:30am we headed out towards the A379 and then along the A38 towards Cornwall. We arrived at the moors near Zennor and pulled up to ask a birder if we were in the right spot, I soon realised that he was from the Oxford area and that I had met him when watching the Cattle Egret in Dorchester-on-Thames back in November. We searched for a space to park the car park and made our way across a small footpath that lead across the moors, a pair of Ravens called noisily as they tumbled across the hillside and shortly after a male Stonechat flew across the path in front of us. We walked for what seemed ages due to the tight tracks and muddy conditions finally reaching the viewing spot, a small number of birders were watching the Snowy Owl which was sat on a rock and partly obscured by the surrounding vegetation, It stood out remarkably well even though the bird was fairly distant, a large white blob in what can only be described as a desolate heather and gorse landscape. 2 ravens flew over and were presumably the 2 birds we had seen earlier and later an extremely pale Buzzard circled overhead. The Owl meanwhile still sat quietly occasionally preening and having the odd quick snooze, often turning it's head to scan the moors around it before returning to snooze. With most records confined to the most northern parts of Scotland this juvenile female has attracted bird watchers from all over the country due to the fact it could well be a once in a lifetime experience. Having been blown way off course amazingly this Owl landed on a transatlantic cargo ship off the Cornwall coast before flying to St Marys, Isle of Scillies. There it remained until flying eastwards towards the Cornish mainland where it remains on the moors near Zennor.

I was disappointed not to be able to get any reasonable photos but to see this fantastic bird on Christmas Eve will live in the memory forever. My late father always told me about the bird he went to see in Suffolk 2001 and what a fantastic bird they are, I couldn't agree more. Snowy Owl sightings in England are very rare with only a few records on the mainland since 1990-91, they are slighter smaller than the eagle owl and their white plumage helps to camouflage them on their favoured habitats which are usually cold and snow covered tundra and grasslands in the Arctic circle. Their diet includes a varied selection of foods which includes Lemmings, Mice, Voles, Rabbits and Hares but because of their agility in flight they can also catch Ducks, Geese and even Ptarmigan in midair. Adult males have a pure white appearance where females have a distinct dark barring across their chest, body and wings. Many people would probably recognise "Hedwig" the magical owl from the Harry Potter films which is a Snowy Owl and seeing one in the wild is certainly a magical experience.

Snowy Owl Video

Dec 25th 2008

Christmas Day started rather eventfully, other than the obvious delivery from father Christmas overnight I had 2 great early morning sightings. I headed off downstairs with the log basket and made my way outside to the woodshed on my early morning, the temperature had dropped and it was certainly cold, the air was fresh and crisp and my breath lingered long in the air. The Redwing was still sat in the garden eyeing up the berries that a male Blackbird was devouring as quickly as he could, a small flock of goldfinches were chattering noisily amongst themselves from the top of a neighbouring tree and the chirping of House Sparrows could be heard coming from a Beech hedge in the garden. After loading the log basket I made my way back to the barn, suddenly hearing a bird of prey calling I dropped the basket and looked skyward, before I'd even had chance to take a quick panoramic 360 degree look a Peregrine flew straight overhead clutching a Wood Pigeon in it's claws, by it's size I could tell it was a female and it looked like it was in top condition, no doubt feeding on many of the Wood Pigeons that inhabit the Devon countryside. I watched as it flew over me chased by a dozen or so Jackdaws until it disappeared amongst the backdrop of distant hills. I bent down to pick up the log basket only to hear a "Kronking" sound from above, looking above me I watched as a pair of 'Ravens tumbled across through the sky playfully interacting with each other. This was obviously the pair I had seen nearby on previous days but unlike earlier sightings they were now overhead and what almost felt like touching distance.

Before we tucked into the Christmas dinner we decided that a family walk would be a good start to events and after suggesting Prawle Point we headed off. We arrived at Prawle point and headed off along the coastal path, it wasn't long before a male Stonechat was seen perched on the gorse adjacent to the path, it remained perched until we approached and then only flew a few feet along the pathway to another suitable perching point in the gorse. As the rest of the family continued along the path I took the opportunity to wander down to the rocky outcrop on the edge of the shoreline. Apart from the obvious Herring, Lesser B-B & Great B-B Gulls were Oystercatchers and a single Redshank. I scanned the rocks intensely and picked up on 3 small birds that were flitting from one rock to another, after eventually coming to rest I could identify them as Rock Pipits and had some really good views of them as they strutted around the outcrop. At sea 3 male and 2 female Eider slowly drifted west but relocating them became difficult as they disappeared behind braking waves, both Gannet and Shag were seen passing west and a lone Shag remained feeding just offshore. Continuing along the coastal path the calls of Curlew could be heard and within seconds 2 flew west towards the rock outcrop and then out of sight behind rocks on the shoreline. I moved down to the edge of the rocks to get a better view finding the 2 Curlews sat on the edge of the rocks preening their wing feathers with a single Redshank sleeping nearby, my views were partly obscured by rocks but I could just make out the rear end of a wader next to the redshank. I carefully and stealthily inched my way to a better viewing point and scanned round the rocks, there sitting next to the sleeping redshank were 2 Purple Sandpipers, they sat motionless facing in to the wind coming in from the sea until an Oystercatcher walking round the rocks saw me and started calling loudly. After everything took flight I made my way back along the coastal path spotting a Peregrine cruising over the hill tops as I went, most of the nearby Gulls soon took flight and ushered the Peregrine inland and out of sight.

Heading back along the coastal path towards Prawle Point and the car park we stopped next to the grazing pens, many of which have stubble in them. A female Cirl Bunting appeared perched in the gorse shortly followed by a male to end off a nice walk along the coastal path.

Before Christmas dinner started I took the opportunity to have a quick look around the South Pool creek, the tide was higher than the first time I had visited and other than a Little Egret and a calling Kingfisher it was very quiet. I decided to walk along the edge of the creek and back along a public footpath finding a Goldcrest flitting through ivy on a tree branch, continuing along the path it wasn't long before I heard the resident Ravens calling again and watched as they passed overhead with both Jackdaw and Crow in hot pursuit. I managed a short video clip as they departed over the hill and out of sight.

Dec 26th 2008

Boxing day greeted us with an even colder day, the sun did it's best to show itself from time to time and a walk along the beach at Torcross was windswept to say the least. There were few birds to be seen except Gannet, Cormorant and a few Gulls.

Torcross

We left Devon Saturday lunchtime and I hoped that I would be able to head towards Radipole and see the Hooded Merganser, As we approached the M5 near Exeter the traffic started to build and tuning in to the local radio soon revealed that an accident on the M5 had closed one lane of the motorway and that the traffic build had caused mass congestion, I mulled over the root and thought about taking the A30 and then the A35 towards Dorchester and then down to Radipole, as we crawled along the M5 my diversion plans soon ended as the next traffic report informed us of major congestion on the A30 after an accident. Unfortunately there was no time for the stop at Radipole and we continued on to the M4 and headed homewards. A fantastic week with some truly fantastic birds which culminated with me seeing two lifers in Cirl Bunting and Snowy Owl.

Added To My Year List.

222. Cirl Bunting (Prawle Point, Devon)*
223. Snowy Owl (Zennor, Cornwall)*

224. Eider (Prawle Point, Devon)

225. Purple Sandpiper (Prawle Point, Devon)

226. Merlin (South Pool, Devon)

Added To My Life List

309. Cirl Bunting
310. Snowy Owl