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SUNDAY 7th December
Beautiful morning and the nice weather brought out the regulars but more of that later. I spent the morning walking the eastern fields and Hawthorn paddock. It had been a cold night and the frost took till mid morning to clear. Typically these frosty morning seem to get the Fieldfare and Redwings out into the open fields instead of scavenging the hedgerows. I am not sure why this happens perhaps the frozen ground when thawing brings small insects and worms tot he surface or perhaps by now the hedges are beginning to fell the affect of the early winter ravaging. The Holly in my garden was burdened with bright red berries right up till the end of October but today not a single glisten fruit can be found on it anywhere. Amongst the Fieldfares and Redwings I could see a single Mistle Thrush and later turned up Blackbird and Song Thrush completing the group for the morning.
During the morning walk I found several small groups of Long Tailed Tits and typically amongst these a single Goldcrest. They made their way along the Strine Pipe feeding on the trees, small Alder, as they went and eventually hit the trees on the road side. Here the Goldcrest found young Scots Pine and hovered at the tips of branches looking for insect food too small for me to see. As I scanned the trees for other small birds a Green Sandpiper flew overhead. I walked out and round the wildflower meadow meeting Neil on route. He had been laying hay trail for the cattle. The Hathron paddock was quiet this morning just the odd Yellowhammer here until I reached the bottom section. Here I put up a Woodcock. My second only for Wall Farm. This is not a common bird on the farm but I guess continental visitors push this far south and occasional birds turn up in the wetland areas this side of Newport. I chased two birds out of the wetland at the bottom of Pond Lane in Edgmond last year. Also seen: Sparrow Hawk, Kestrel, Meadow Pipit, Teal, Mallard, Treecreeper, Stock Dove, Collard Dove, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Robin, Wren, Dunnock, Martin Grant I have been
down to Wall Farm today Sunday 7th Dec, as I arrived at 13-00 Tony Seagrave
was just leaving and he informed me that he had recorded a new species
for Wall Farm a Black Swan flying over
with 8 Mute Swans also recorded 37
Lapwing, 75 Fieldfare, 25 Redwing, 2 Goldcrest, Treecreeper, 20 Lesser
black-backed Gulls, 25 Goldfinch, 25 Linnets, 4 Cormorants, Buzzards,
Long-tailed Tits, 150 Teal, 4 Mallard, 2 Moorhen, 2 Grey Heron, 2 Collard
Doves, Meadow Pipit, Carrion Crow, Rook, Jackdaw, Mistle Thrush, Song
Thrush, Wren, Blackbird, on the feeders 3
Blue Tits, 4 Great Tits and a Greenfinch.
Tony had also recorded a Wigeon on the
wet land I heard a few whistling on the Grange Pool but could not see
them to count. Over the wet land a Peregrine
put the Teal up and I also had a female
Pintail drop in after Pete Jordan and Tony had gone, while Pete
reported seeing 2 Water Rail between the
gap at the back of the Marsh and 3 Stonechats
& a female Merlin over the Eastern
fields. All for now Martin Monday 1st Tuesday 2nd Wednesday 3rd Thursday 4th Friday 5th Saturday 6th
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Out
in the meadow other small flocks of Goldfinch
and Chaffinch had come to forage seeds.
These wildflower meadows are proving very good for winter feeding. A
Little Owl called from willow in this part
of the farm. This is a regular spot for the birds.