Pittswood Birds

Initial cloud cover slowly broke throughout the morning, giving a warm and sunny afternoon, with a light variable wind.

I undertook the 5th full patch walk of the month this morning, in which I recorded 44 bird species, a bit below par for an August day, although Sparrowhawk and Mistlethrush were the only regular local species not recorded, in fact the latter has still to be added to the August list.

Only one species was added to the months list, that was the WILLOW WARBLER (57), seen in the Scrubby Woods, another species in a growing list of those Summer birds that are now locally extinct as breeding birds, todays record is just the second of the year.

The Scrubby Woods was by far the busier of the habitats on my patch, not surprising, as it isn't owned by a farmer!  Among the maturing Oaks, burgeoning Bramble and dense undergrowth I saw, as well as the above mentioned Willow Warbler;  BLACKCAP, CHIFFCHAFF, NUTHATCH, TREECREEPER, GOLDCREST, BULLFINCH, CHAFFINCH, GOLDFINCH, GREENFINCH, BLUE TIT, GREAT TIT, LONG TAILED TIT, COAL TIT, WREN, ROBIN, DUNNOCK, SONGTHRUSH, BLACKBIRD, JAY, STOCK DOVE, COLLARED DOVE, WOODPIGEON, GREEN WOODPECKER and GREAT SPOTTED WOODPECKER.

Three COMMON WHITETHROATS and two LESSER WHITETHROATS were seen along the drainage ditch at the Ashes Lane Fields, they were feeding in a well stocked Elder bush, odds on that the bush will be pulverised over the Autumn along with the ditch vegetation, as the tidy brigade set to work, just part of the countryside management though, so thats ok  :-)

BUZZARD and KESTREL were the only Raptor species seen today, unless I count the LITTLE OWL that was calling from the Small Holding area. No sign of any new migrants at Migrant Alley, but there's lots of time left yet for something to drop in.