birdman
Орнитол&
Bit of a family outing round the outback today, as I was accompanied by partnyorsha and dog, and had my daughter along as listmaker.
It was a fine, cool grey December late morning, as we set off at 11.30, having spent a considerable amount of the morning watching the Starlings and one of the now regular Goldfinches in the garden.
First on the list was a Pied Wagtail, on the roof of a nearby house.
We headed straight for the pond, with a few Black-headed Gulls flying overhead. The recent rain has meant the water level has risen a little, but the local council were taking the opportunity of the lack of water to clear out most of the rubbish that has accumulated over the year.
Still this did not deter the Moorhens from foraging around the water’s edge. Nor did it seem to bother too much the Grey Herons that flew in from their roosting trees to the pond – accompanied by chattering Magpies.
We headed anticlockwise for the woods, noticing a Kestrel perched at the top of one of the large trees.
Carrion Crows and Woodpigeons were foraging on the ground nearby, and there were a flock of thrushes around. Closer to hand was a single Fieldfare and also a rather dumpy looking Nuthatch, which we saw whilst checking out the Great Tits and Blue tits.
The walk through the wood, although full of birds, added only one more species to the list – this time a Mistle Thrush, which was perched high in a tree before tearing away, mouth agape, and emitting the football-rattle cry.
The route back to the main path produced a single Red-legged Partridge. Although we have had long-distance or dusk-time views of partridges before, this is the first time we have been able to positively id one – and it becomes the 59th positive identification on my outback list.
More crows in the field included at least some Jackdaw, and we also saw the first of the day’s Blackbirds. Passing a small clump of shrubs, we were greeted by the resident (it would seem) Chaffinches.
As we walked north along the eastern footpath, we added two more to the list by sound, Pheasant and Jay, before reaching the entrance to the Private Garden, which is a regular site for Coal Tit and Treecreeper. We managed both, but could not add Goldcrest, the other “regular” here.
A Robin made itself known, and as we were travelling back towards home, we heard the yaffle of a Green Woodpecker.
Back to the pond, and the Mallards were out, and we were also able to add Reed Bunting, hiding in the shrubs.
Final bird on the list, the local Starling flock – just making an “official” appearance before reaching home.
In spite of our morning visitation, no Goldfinch – perhaps even more surprising as one returned less than half an hour later, staying for a good hour!
Birdlist follows as usual (* heard only)
Blackbird
Black-headed Gull
Blue Tit
Carrion Crow
Chaffinch
Coal Tit
Fieldfare
Great Tit
Green Woodpecker *
Grey Heron
Jackdaw
Jay *
Kestrel
Magpie
Mallard
Mistle Thrush
Moorhen
Nuthatch
Pheasant *
Pied Wagtail
Red-legged Partridge
Reed Bunting
Robin
Starling
Treecreeper
Woodpigeon
It was a fine, cool grey December late morning, as we set off at 11.30, having spent a considerable amount of the morning watching the Starlings and one of the now regular Goldfinches in the garden.
First on the list was a Pied Wagtail, on the roof of a nearby house.
We headed straight for the pond, with a few Black-headed Gulls flying overhead. The recent rain has meant the water level has risen a little, but the local council were taking the opportunity of the lack of water to clear out most of the rubbish that has accumulated over the year.
Still this did not deter the Moorhens from foraging around the water’s edge. Nor did it seem to bother too much the Grey Herons that flew in from their roosting trees to the pond – accompanied by chattering Magpies.
We headed anticlockwise for the woods, noticing a Kestrel perched at the top of one of the large trees.
Carrion Crows and Woodpigeons were foraging on the ground nearby, and there were a flock of thrushes around. Closer to hand was a single Fieldfare and also a rather dumpy looking Nuthatch, which we saw whilst checking out the Great Tits and Blue tits.
The walk through the wood, although full of birds, added only one more species to the list – this time a Mistle Thrush, which was perched high in a tree before tearing away, mouth agape, and emitting the football-rattle cry.
The route back to the main path produced a single Red-legged Partridge. Although we have had long-distance or dusk-time views of partridges before, this is the first time we have been able to positively id one – and it becomes the 59th positive identification on my outback list.
More crows in the field included at least some Jackdaw, and we also saw the first of the day’s Blackbirds. Passing a small clump of shrubs, we were greeted by the resident (it would seem) Chaffinches.
As we walked north along the eastern footpath, we added two more to the list by sound, Pheasant and Jay, before reaching the entrance to the Private Garden, which is a regular site for Coal Tit and Treecreeper. We managed both, but could not add Goldcrest, the other “regular” here.
A Robin made itself known, and as we were travelling back towards home, we heard the yaffle of a Green Woodpecker.
Back to the pond, and the Mallards were out, and we were also able to add Reed Bunting, hiding in the shrubs.
Final bird on the list, the local Starling flock – just making an “official” appearance before reaching home.
In spite of our morning visitation, no Goldfinch – perhaps even more surprising as one returned less than half an hour later, staying for a good hour!
Birdlist follows as usual (* heard only)
Blackbird
Black-headed Gull
Blue Tit
Carrion Crow
Chaffinch
Coal Tit
Fieldfare
Great Tit
Green Woodpecker *
Grey Heron
Jackdaw
Jay *
Kestrel
Magpie
Mallard
Mistle Thrush
Moorhen
Nuthatch
Pheasant *
Pied Wagtail
Red-legged Partridge
Reed Bunting
Robin
Starling
Treecreeper
Woodpigeon
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