Pittswood Birds

Feeling much better this morning, after my cold, I set off out for a full patch walk. The weather was overcast, mild, dry and windless, with just the odd bit of watery sunshine appearing.

Needing just one more new species for the month to equal the November record, I was keeping a sharp eye out today, but despite finding a pretty good day total of 46 species, I didn't add anything new for the month. I saw some evidence of winters approach, with more FIELDFARE seen today than so far this Autumn, with flocks of 4, 7, 33 and 48 all flying NE, but just one REDWING was seen, that was in a willow tree along Ashes Lane. Two LESSER REDPOLL flocks were seen, one of 14 flew over the Scrubby Woods, while another of 8 flew over the Greenhouse Grounds, later in the afternoon I had 2 drop in to my garden and use the feeders, the 25th garden species this month.

Raptors were well represented today, with a COMMON BUZZARD feeding in a newly seeded field off High House Lane, plus a SPARROWHAWK hunting over Migrant Alley and both of the KESTREL pair were hunting over the Ashes Lane Fields.

Two YELLOWHAMMERS were in the boundary hedgerow of the Greenhouse Grounds, where 15 LONG TAILED TITS were also seen, three MEADOW PIPITS and a SKYLARK were on the Ashes Lane Fields. The Wet Woods and Scrubby Woods provided STOCK DOVE, GREAT SPOTTED WOODPECKER, GREEN WOODPECKER, NUTHATCH, another 8 Long Tailed Tits, COAL TIT, BULLFINCH, GOLDCREST, JAY, and the lakes had the usual today, that being MUTE SWAN, MALLARD, COOT and MOORHEN, plus the KINGFISHER was heard again, a GREY WAGTAIL that was feeding around the nearby outbuildings was a nice bonus bird.

A LITTLE OWL that was seen at the Small Holding was the only other species of any note this morning, not a bad visit all in all  :-)

This afternoon the sun shone for a while, allowing some garden bird photography........

Coal Tit

 HOUSE SPARROW

CHAFFINCH