Before starting back at work on the 6th I had managed to do a couple of outings. A walk from home on New Years day, gave up the surprises of a Hawfinch and a male Goshawk, several Teal and Mandarin on furnace pond and about a dozen Pied Wagtails.
I spent an afternoon looking over the receding wetlands of Amberley Wildbrooks, with highlights of Hen Harrier, Short-Eared Owl and several Red Kite. A trip to the coast added Great Northern Diver and Slavonian Grebe at Selsey, plus Long-tailed Duck and Water Pipit at Fishbourne creek. I also had a brief walk around the fields at Trotton, where it was nice to find 9 Yellowhammer, a few Skylarks, a large Meadow Pipit flock, and lots of Redwing and Fieldfare, all good birds locally.
There has been a general lack of what I would term decent Winter birds around locally, this week the weather has thankfully turned from mild wet and stormy to calm, cold and frosty and yesterday I went on another walk for the house to the Furnace Pond. Typically quiet, I was delighted to find a singing Woodlark on the large arable field, where this year the crop rotation has meant a decent winter stubble. The Furnace Pond was quieter than usual and I couldn't find any of the usual ducks lurking at the back, just a couple of Grey Heron and Cormorant on the pond and 2 Mandarin flew in. A very small number of Siskin were in the pines, and only 4 Pied Wagtails were around the Pony fields.
Today, I was limited to a drive to Petersfield and then a walk outside at home. At Trotton, there were 8 Little Egrets in their usual field and 2 Stonechats on the fence near Trotton Marsh. Then back at home, it was great to see a smart male Brambling briefly under the feeders this morning, my first here this Winter. A Lesser Redpoll was also on the feeders with many Goldfinch, a small number of Chaffinch, a single Greenfinch and 3 Bullfinch also turned up. A walk around the field edge, had a few Redwing a flyover Buzzard a Treecreeper and my first sighting of Firecrest this year.
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| A frosty start to my walk yesterday |
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| The Woodlark was on the wire just to the right of the first pole |
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| On the way back it was a bit closer |
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| male Brambling |
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| wierd looking lichen or funghi, looked like orange plastic |
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| Firecrest |
