Bringing the year to a close, the last 2 months have not seen me out in the field, due to starting a rather intensive period of working. For the most part it's been wet, windy and grey, so not particular conducive for long winter walks. There is also a distinct lack of winter birds, other than a handful of
Redwings which seem to still be in the area following their berry-stripping antics of early winter, but no numbers of winter finches. A hardy flock of around 50
Goldfinch continue to grace the tops of the Alders, but only 2 or 3
Siskin with them and 2
Lesser Redpoll seen only 2 weeks ago. No Brambling and single figures of
Chaffinch suggest this Winter will need a dramatic change in the weather to bring any influx. My highlight of the last month was 3 sightings of a
Kingfisher on the garden pond in the very wet weather, it was catching newts, fishing from the reeds and flying up to the Magnolia tree to devour the catch. A male
Bullfinch had been feeding on the remains of the Guelder Rose berries in the last few days (
Viburnum Opulus).
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| Male Bullfinch feeding on Guelder Rose berries |
Reflecting on the year as a whole, it has actually been pretty good for the birds with a total of 489 species seen in 5 countries, although this was nearly all in the first half of the year when I had more time. I will have to see what 2020 brings with the start of the year likely to be spent with a focus on working rather than birding.
