Back to Basics

So after the giddy "Kid in a sweetie shop" effect of visiting Slimbridge last week it was more than a welcome relief to get back to a bit of patch birding this weekend.
On Saturday I visited HARTPURY ORCHARD CENTRE at around 10:30am.
What an absolute joy it was - to be sat in the cold, draughty hide with a flask of Yorkshire Tea ......... and a complete lack of "serious" birders around, showing off their latest flashy photographic equipment and Khaki trousers.
Oh....... and a complete lack of birds!
Well, to be fair there were 2 Mute Swans gingerly picking their way through the frosty water.

View from the hide today. Note teeming bird life.

But you know what? It was bloody lovely. The sun was shining and I felt that air of anticipaion again. Oh boy, it was good to be back.
A walk along the reedbeds revealed 4 Snipe....  and not much else.
So a particularly quiet morning, even by my standards.
No matter, I thought. I'll move on. So without further ado I relocated myself to Mill Lane, just outside the village of Staunton. To my delight the large flock of buntings was still present in the stubble field. I estimated around 80 birds overall, evenly split between Yellowhammers and Reed Buntings.
Many of the birds were spread along the tops of the neatly trimmed hedgerows. This photo shows a small section. Times it by 20 and you get an idea of how it looked!

Bunting hedge

Male Reed Bunting - head tucked in - windy day!

On Sunday I returned to the ORCHARD CENTRE at around 11am to meet up with birding buddy Alan. It was very quiet on the ponds again, even the swans were absent. However a walk around the site revealed a few hidden gems: 8 Snipe, 2 Green Woodpeckers, 20+ Redwing, a Goldcrest, 7 Goldfinches and around 20 Long-Tailed Tits. We also enjoyed the site of 2 healthy and well groomed Foxes playing together. These were superb looking animals with gorgeous coats and tails - so different to the photos you see of those scrawny town foxes.
Just as we were about to leave we noticed a couple of small birds in the top of a silver birch tree. Well, I'll be blowed..... Lesser Redpolls ( too far off for a decent photo). A patch first and No.73 on the Orchard Centre life-list I think.
Ker-ching!

Pin the tail on the......

A visit to Slimbridge today....... just to get the Year list off to a flying start.
I added a few more ducks and waders.
I already had a Pintail on the list but couldn't resist a couple of photos. What beautiful ducks;

However, the highlight had to be this rather elusive Water Rail. I've been trying to track one of these little blighters down on my patch for months. With no luck. So I was thrilled to get a peek at this little fella today:

The elusive Water Rail

Finally, I couldn't resist this shot - The House Sparrow that wants to be a Reed Bunting!

Reed Sparrow

Other highlights today included a huge flock of hundreds of Lapwings and Golden Plovers circling overhead, Bewick Swans, Black-Tailed Godwits, Dunlin, Redshanks, Shelducks and Barnacle Geese.

You know, Slimbridge is a marvelous place and the birds are just astonishing, but for me there was something lacking.
It's a sort of sensory overload. There are so many birds that it just overwhelms you. It's like being in some sort of avian supermarket and just scooping the goods off the shelves.
It's all too easy.
Back to the patch, me thinks.... and the thrill of the chase. There's something to be said for sitting in a damp, draughty hide for hours on end with nothing but a couple of nervous moorhens to watch.
Waiting ..........  for that special bird to turn up.

Get Shorty!

I've recently taken on a new role at work which means I am out in the car most days travelling the length and breadth of Gloucestershire.
Today took me to Winchcombe, and I thought, "That's quite close to Hawling. Short-Eared Owl territory". Well, it would be rude not to!
I arrived at the now well publicised site at around 3pm. I could see an owl flying low and gracefully around the field as I pulled up.
Ker-ching!
There were already a couple of other birders on site and even though the weather was against us - dark, cloudy and more than a little windy, we enjoyed some great views.
I counted 3 Short Eared Owls and a Barn Owl (who was coming under attack from the Shorties whenever it made a kill).

Shorty coming in to land

The light was poor and the birds didn't really get close enough for a great shot but here's a couple of (heavily cropped) photos that I managed to fire off.

To be honest, I was happy just to get any picture. It was just a thrill and privilege to watch these magnificent birds.
Return visit booked!

Out with the Old, In with the New

I can't believe that I haven't posted since November.
It's not like I haven't been birdwatching. I've just been too damn busy or too bloody lazy to post.

No matter,
New year. New start.

A belated seasonal greetings to all my (3) readers

So, where are we?
Well it's January 11th and my year list stands at 55. That's not the patch list mind you - just my County list.
Not bad but I'm not sure that I want to stick my neck out and sign up for the Gloucester 200 Club yet.

The highlight so far (at least until today) has to be the Dartford Warbler in Cheltenham. What a beauty!
I've only managed 3 trips to the Orchard Centre so far, the best birds being: 15 Teal, 7 Canada Geese, 4 Green Woodpeckers, over 20 Snipe, 2 Bullfinches, 6 Reed Buntings and a steady flow of Fieldfare, Redwings and Mistle Thrushes.

Reed Bunting

I did spend sometime watching a rather handsome Red Fox last week. I couldn't get close enough for any good photos but managed to get a couple of passable shots:

So, about today:
After a quiet but enjoyable visit to the Orchard Centre I had a walk along Mill Lane in Staunton & Corse. There's a large stubble field along the lane which is always good for the odd Yellowhammer.
The odd one?
The hedgerows were full of them - I estimated that there were at least 60. Certainly the most that I have ever seen. They were amongst a larger flock of mixed finches (mainly Chaffinches and some Greenfinches) and around 30 Reed Buntings. To say that I was gobsmacked was an understatement! I'm guessing that this is some kind of local record. No doubt someone will let me know.
Now then...... that New Year's Resolution?
I MUST update my Blog more regularly. ;-)