Pick of the sightings was a Mealy Redpoll in my garden! The
bird was so tame that I literally almost stood on it. Unfortunately by the time
I had gone back in for my camera the bird, along with all the other garden
passerines, had gone. Probably not unrelated to the fact a Sparrowhawk had just
flashed through the garden!
On Friday a walk along the river had turned up three more
Redpoll, my first of the year. I assume these were Lessers but only heard them
and saw them in flight. They were associating with a large arrival of winter
thrushes with over 100 Fieldfares in the hawthorns and willows along ‘Migrant
Alley’.
Other birds along here included Kingfisher, two Little
Grebe, Little Egret, a total of eight Goosander…
Green Sandpiper and two Snipe, including this one in ‘threat
pose’
Earlier, on a walk down the waterworks lane, I found ten
Bullfinches around the Christmas trees, probably the largest group I have ever
seen in the parish, and there were up to
four Treecreepers along Warbler Hedge…
And yesterday along Greenhills Lane I had another Treecreeper near the ruined barns, 60+ Lapwings feeding
in the large field here and the first winter gatherings of buntings, mainly
composed of Yellowhammers…
Year List to end of October – 98 species.
