Plenty of Birds, Plenty of Birders

An early start to the Mill Lakes produced a pair of Bullfinch in courtship at Dawson's Corner. The pair were next to each other on a branch and the female was shaking her tail at the male - quite amusing to see! Song Thrush were singing at both Orchard and Dawson's Corners, along the Sustrans path in the same spot as last year, and just over the footbridge entrance to the Mill Lakes. A hefty flock of around 25 Greylag Goose flew off as I arrived, leaving behind one very vocal bird at the north end of the lake. The Reedbed was empty, bar a Dunnock on the Boardwalk. Other wildfowl included six Mute Swan, but only two juveniles; three pairs of Teal; equal numbers of male and female Pochard around the lake, and around fifteen Tufted Duck, some of which had paired up.

Two Great Spotted Woodpecker were chasing each other in circles around the Willow Carr and one was drumming here shortly afterwards. A group of four or five Snipe were seen huddled together on Mud Island, before I headed up to the Leen Pastures. Workmen were laying a new path back from the footbridge, but I quietly snook through before they got going. A jay flew off as I arrived, and another pair of Bullfinch were near the gate. A single Brown Hair was on the Golf Course, and a Green Woodpecker called several times from the north end of the pastures. Another two singing male Song Thrush were at either end too.

Heading back to the lake, I shimmied along the edge of the newly laid path so as not to upset the workmen, and spied Mick, a fellow birder, on the nearby opposite bank. Not wanting to chance another encounter with the workmen and their steaming asphalt, I suggested we meet at the southern end. On the way back, I did a count of the Snipe, and timed it just right to pick out thirteen distinct birds as a Moorhen ran onto Mud Island, flushing most of the birds at rest. The usual Mistle Thrush was on the Grassland to the north of the Willow Carr and, later, two were seen together on the Grassland to the south of it. A flock of Goldfinch were at the top of a tree opposite the Peninsula, and a mobile flock of Siskin were feeding in the alders by the path past the Willow Carr.

Meeting Mick, we got a single Grey Heron that flew in and landed in the shallows on the far bank, and a single Little Grebe near the bank of Greylag Island. We met Norman on the Peninsula, whilst looking at the Snipe, and he and I said goodbye to Mick and started to walk back home, but bumped into the ex-Ogston birder from Killarney Park that we'd met before. We had a brief chat as we walked back to the footbridge, then headed back along the Sustrans path, getting a male Kestrel over Dawson's Corner, and a few Skylark over the Pit Tip. At the very edge of the Pit Tip Top, just before getting back, I picked out a couple of female Reed Bunting, and soon realized they were part of a larger group. A flock of six or more birds were in the trees at the edge of the Pit Tip and woodland. This included one male in summer plumage, one winter male, and at least four females - a great end to my morning.