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Message: <blockquote data-quote="halftwo" data-source="post: 1723874" data-attributes="member: 45720">Great Patch DayAfter a promising start to a bright day in the garden - with a Lesser redpoll and five Tree sparrows, and a Greater 'pecker coming to my feeders, plus three Greenfinches (really scarce this winter),  the afternoon walk proved rather superb.Away from the crowds towards the Greensand pool the birding began.  Redwings and Mistle thrushes were feeding on the wet meadows - meadows suddenly strewn with spiders' webs! Closing on trees as the thrushes moved away a Green woodpecker got up from the turf to land on the alder - back exactly coloured as the lichen-covered trunk, red cap a bright patch in the green. Four Greater 'peckers squabbled over territories, calling churrs and sharp notes as they raised their crowns and jerked up and around boughs.A pair of Treecreepers crept quietly and nearly unnoticed, then a hundred Jackdaws took flight from a field opposite in an explosion of noise.It was as I was scanning for the possible raptor that might have put the corvids up that I saw four gulls heading west. One was white-winged!A flight view of an adult, or perhaps third winter, Iceland gull, heading  away now, was a superb patch tick, the other gulls with it were Herrings.I strode the river bank beside my long shadow - more gulls up ahead, feeding in the field, more dropping down. The muddy river shore told of Moorhen and Mink. There were ten Common gulls with the Black-heads - a patch record, I think. A Jay screamed as a Buzzard sailed above it.To the wood. Long-tailed tits' "trtrtrtrrtr"-ings and "ss-ss-ss"-ings suddenly silenced for a second, then crescendoed as the first of two Woodcock were flushed by my shadow and flew owlishly through the trees. Yellow flag and Celandines showing through in this Spring-like day.   Three Siskins flew in. Then, fast and direct, three Goosander passed high! The day's only Nuthatch clambered energetically around dead limbs in an oak, and the third Treecreeper bounced underneath a branch, before sounding alarm and hiding in the under-crook of trunk and bough. There it remained for five minutes, unmoving, while danger passed - a Kestrel going to its tree hole home - then it continued to feed just where it sat, probing bark and snapping up spiders.In the heronry's trees two Grey herons perched high as Starlings' whistles sounded. A Fallow deer stag watched my passing.As a huge orange sun set a single Snipe sitting by the creek doubled the wader count, and chattering Fieldfares closed the day.</blockquote>

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