Tuesday, October 31, 2006

October's Highlights

I've compiled a single entry for October as I'm still just beginning to learn the area and the typical birds to be found there.

On the 2nd I got quite a late record of five House Martin heading south west over the Pit Tip. This turned out to be the last record of the year, but I'm sure they'll be plenty more in Spring. A Birthday trip to the Mill Lakes on the 7th provided me with some reasonable footage of several species, including Shoveler, Grey Heron (a personal site record of 3 birds) and Jay on the Pit Tip. I also saw a good number of Meadow Pipit (circa 10) and a Kestrel (patch tick) on the Pit Tip. Two Kingfisher were seen together at the Mill Lakes, with one chasing the other around the lake, which was an enjoyable sight.

A morning trip around the Big Wood on the 10th eventually added Dunnock to my patch list, and from the Pit Tip in the evening, a record of over five hundred Carrion Crow was both typical and notable. The twelfth and the "teens" provided several patch ticks with a single Coal Tit on the 12th, and a Common Buzzard being mobbed by crows whilst flying low over the Horse Paddock by the Adventure Playground on the 13th. The Mill Lakes had four Gadwall (a surprising life tick for me) and two Teal on the 14th, adding another two to the list. My first Treecreeper was seen by the Gerard Close entrance on 17th, and a flock of 25+ Goldfinch on the Pit Tip Grassland on the 19th was an enjoyable patch first.

A single Goldcrest was the first confirmed record of many more on the 25th, and the following day produced three more at Ted Heath. The same morning produced a nice experience of Sparrowhawk as I felt the air literally move when it dive-bombed over my head into a flock of Long-tailed Tit, unsuccessfully. The morning also produced another Treecreeper sighting and some reasonable footage.

A walk to the Mill Lakes via the Pit Tip on the 28th added three birds to my patch list. I had clear views of a Green Woodpecker in a tree at the Pit Tip, but not-so-clear views of a patch first Redwing. Another patch first was found at the Mill Lakes, as several Pochard had turned up, and my first Bullfinch of the patch was at Dawson's Corner on the way home.

On the morning of the 30th, I took a short walk anti-clockwise around the shorter Pit Tip path, then around the Plantation to the north side, and back. The dull and overcast weather made it hard to ID some of the birds seen.

There were an unusually high number of Green Woodpecker, with eight or more sightings probably being six different birds, but a minimum of four. Two Skylark were up high and singing and five Jay were seen around the conservation area. Twelve birds seen in all, but the Skylark was a patch first. A quick walk over the Pit Tip and down to Dawson's Corner on 31st gave a good view of a Green Woodpecker on a fence post and - surprisingly - my first footage of a Chaffinch on this patch.