My two hour patch visit this morning from 08:30hrs, was a pretty standard affair, the weather remained overcast and dull throughout, but it was virtually windless, allowing me to pick out the calls of TREECREEPER, NUTHATCH, COAL TIT, GOLDCREST, and BULLFINCH that were heard over at the Scrubby Woods. It was here the only addition was made to the November species tally when I flushed up a SPARROWHAWK (48) that was feeding on a WOODPIGEON, by the looks of the Woodpigeon the Sprawk had enjoyed a good breakfast!

On the lakes today there were 14 MALLARD and the MUTE SWAN pair, as well as a few more MOORHENS than have been seen in recent visits, a single male MANDARIN DUCK was just about recognisable, concealed as it was in the overhanging bankside trees, and for the first time in weeks the Kingfisher wasn't seen or heard.

A short time was spent over at the Greenhouse Grounds, where I restocked the track with seed, here I saw a couple of SISKIN with the GOLDFINCH flock that was finishing up the seed I put down yesterday, also with those were 5 CHAFFINCH, a GREENFINCH, 2 DUNNOCK, 2 ROBIN, a BLACKBIRD, 6 BLUE TIT and 2 GREAT TIT.

The female KESTREL sat on the greenhouse roof, where it was mobbed by a couple of PIED WAGTAILS, as I watched that, a MEADOW PIPIT, then a SKYLARK flew over heading north, and a flock of at least 25 BLACK HEADED GULLS wheeled high above me.

Another short visit tomorrow, as the building work at my house continues to eat into my time, but hopefully i'll find a couple more new species for the month, Grey Heron and Little Owl are favourite, they would take me to 50 species, but I think the record December tally of 72 species that was achieved in 2010 is going to be a record that stands for quite some time !

I kicked off the new month with a 4 hour full patch walk, where in some overcast, but dry and windless conditions, a much better day than yesterday was had.

Walking up ashes Lane I slowly recorded the first birds as they came out of their roosts, WOODPIGEON, STARLING, JACKDAW, CARRION CROW, ROBIN, COLLARD DOVE and HOUSE SPARROW were followed by a COMMON BUZZARD that was feeding in the seedling Wheat field next to the lane.

BLACKBIRD, WREN, DUNNOCK, GREEN WOODPECKER, GREAT TIT, MAGPIE and JAY were all added to the December list as I walked through the Small holding, while the Wet Woods just gave me GREAT SPOTTED WOODPECKER and a singing STOCK DOVE, not heard them for some weeks now  :-)

As I approached the Lakes I could here the MISTLE THRUSH singing, and my scan of the Ornamental Lake added the hoped for MUTE SWAN pair and KINGFISHER, good birds for the December list, as well as MALLARD and MOORHEN.

Mute Swan - poor light today, but I took the camera anyway  :-)

The main lake had a few more Mallard on it, but a scan of the overhanging tree line showed me a male MANDARIN DUCK, there may have been more, but if there were, they are well concealed, another good December species  :-)

In the adjacent Scrubby Woods I found all the regulars, mostly associating with a LONG TAILED TIT flock, there were COAL TIT, BLUE TIT, TREECREEPER, NUTHATCH, and GOLDCREST with them, and as I watched them all moving through the trees a TAWNY OWL twice hooted from further in the wood, a species missed in November, why couldn't it have done that yesterday!

I added CHAFFINCH, GOLDFINCH, BULLFINCH, REDWING, and SONGTHRUSH to the notebook before moving onto the open fields. The Ashes Lane field had a single FIELDFARE pecking at an apple that had found its way there from a nearby garden apple tree, and the first HERRING and BLACK HEADED GULLS of the morning went over, I checked the Old Shack for the Little Owl but it was not there today.

The Pub Field had a party of ROOKS feeding in the maize stuble and the female KESTREL hunted from a boundary tree.

I was on the wrong side of what light there was

I took some photo's anyway, experimenting with the camera settings.

A walk around Migrant Alley only added a MEADOW PIPIT that came up out of the sheep pasture as well as flyovers from a single SKYLARK and 3 CORMORANTS.The Greenhouse Grounds and the Greenhouse copse added PHEASANT and PIED WAGTAIL, plus a couple of SISKIN. I noted a dozen Goldfinch, 8 Chaffinch, 6 Blue Tit, 4 Great Tit, a Blackbird and a Dunnock feeding on the seed I put out on the trackway, I put another lot of seed out later in the morning  :-)

46 species to start the December list is a lot more than I thought I get after the dismal walk yesterday,  that was added to when a GREENFINCH was seen at my garden feeders, another species that seems in steep decline on my patch now  :-(

Also in my garden today was this Wren, which posed for a photo, pity about the light again :-(  A Songthrush was also a welcome visitor, I almost got a photo of that too, but a Blackbird chased it off before I could do so!

Garden WREN

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