First Ringing Recovery

A nice early visit to the Mill Lakes this morning produced a few winter visitors still about with two Teal, three Pochard, a small Siskin flock, and three or four Lesser Redpoll at the entrance to the Peninsula. Also present were a Little Grebe, a Great Crested Grebe, three Cormorant in the usual tree, including one juvenile, and a single Grey Heron. A Water Rail was seen from the end of the Peninsula running across Grassy Bank into the reeds. It was still present an hour later, when it showed well whilst preening itself for a few minutes. At least six Common Snipe were on Mud Island, and a BTO ringed Coot was photographed feeding on the Peninsula. Details from the ring recovery scheme revealed that it was a female that had been ringed in 2000 when it hatched at the Mill Lakes.

Also of note were three established Song Thrush territories, a pair of Mistle Thrush on the Mill Lakes Picnic Area, a pair of Bullfinch along the Sustrans path, and two "singing" Jay at Bestwood Quarry.

Dancing Grebes

A pre-work walk to the Mill Lakes allowed me to witness one of nature's well-known great events this morning - the courtship dance of Great Crested Grebes. The ritual is a complex one; comprised of several phases that include passing weed collected from the bottom of the lake, and both birds rising up on the surface of the water to face each other. The light wasn't great, but I did manage to capture some of the key moments.

Aside from the pair of Great Crested Grebe, of note were three Teal, three Pochard, two Little Grebe, two Cormorant, and seven Snipe. A male Kestrel and two Redwing were around the Willow Carr area, and Siskin were present in the recent numbers.

Signs of the breeding season were evident this morning with four drumming Great Spotted Woodpecker, and four obvious Song Thrush territories. A Nuthatch was singing in a tree by Ferny Wood, and a pair of Bullfinch were in the hedgerow along the Sustrans path.

Tip and Leen

Five singing male Skylark were over the Pit Tip Top at this morning, and a pair of Meadow Pipit flushed from the grassland by the Pit Tip Pond. A pair of Jay were in the main Pit Tip Plantation. A group of corvids were feeding together in the Cow Field, with a few Starling amongst them.

At the Mill Lakes, at least three Little Grebe were present near Tern Island, and singles of Great Crested Grebe and Grey Heron were close by. A single Greylag Goose, was joined by 37 more, when a flock arrived from the direction of Goosedale. Two male Teal were at either end of the lake, with at least three male Pochard at the southern end. Just three Snipe were visible on Mud Island.

Gulls were reasonably well represented with 126 Black-headed Gull on the water near the Peninsula, a single adult Common Gull over the main entrance, and a single 1st winter on the water with the gulls. A small flock of around twenty Siskin were feeding in the alders at the north end, and a single singing male was above Leen Pastures Feeding Station later in the morning.

A Kingfisher was seen flying up the river Leen at the aptly-named Kingfisher Corner. At Leen Pastures, a Green Woodpecker was calling, and regular visits to the feeders were made by a pair of Willow Tit, Blue Tit and Great Tit, with a Treecreeper also putting in an appearance. A flock of at least ten Redwing were seen flying over Broad Valley Stables.

Birding by Bike

My first birding bike ride was out to Lamin's Lane after lunch, with nothing much to see. Most notable was a flock of 25 Lapwing that flew into land in the field opposite Keeper's Cottage. Also there were four Stock Dove amongst a small flock of twenty or so Woodpigeon, and a few Tree Sparrow in the hedgerows. The bike was quite limiting compared to the freedom I'm used to, and I didn't get any decent photos either.

Some Signs of Spring

On the Pit Tip Top two male Skylark were singing, and a female Green Woodpecker was feeding in the grass. A flock of around thirty Lesser Redpoll were near the Pit Tip Plantation.

At the Mill Lakes a single Little Grebe was opposite the Dipping Ponds Viewpoint, and a group of six Pochard were near Tern Island, with two more near the Peninsula. Gulls were represented by 59 Black-headed Gull on the water, a single adult Common Gull circling over the lake, a several juvenile Herring Gull passing over both the Pit Tip and Mill Lakes in the early morning. Nine Teal were present on the lake, as was a Great Crested Grebe, a Grey Heron and two Cormorant in the usual tree. At least eleven Common Snipe were on Mud Island with a probable Jack Snipe briefly seen amongst them.

A Coot, feeding on the Peninsula, bore a metal ring on its right leg. Two flocks of fifty and twenty Siskin were around the lake and Leen Pastures, and another Grey Heron was fishing in the Leen. Five Song Thrush were declaring their territories.

At Broad Valley Stables, a large flock of at least 150 Fieldfare were feeding in the Paddock nearest to the Quarry, with about twenty Redwing and a single Mistle Thrush amongst them.
Two Yellowhammer were seen in the hedgerows at Broad Valley, and a Wren was feeding along the brickwork at Alexandra Lodge. A male Great Spotted Woodpecker was drumming at the Triangle, and a Nuthatch was also seen nearby.

Snow Battle - One Up, One Down

After the report of a Waxwing flock in Bestwood Village right by the Spinney Path, I decided I'd make a trek out in the snow in a bid to get the year tick and some photos. I arrived at the site at first light, but new it would be a good half and hour before the Starling (and Waxwing) flocks would be out of roost. Not much was going on, as I'd expect, so I had a few walks up and dow the lane, briefly chatting with Roger from the FoBCP group on his way to work. The first birds of interest were a flock of twenty or so finches; mainly Goldfinch, with a few Greenfinch and Chaffinch in with them. They congregated in a tree with three feeders in someone's front garden, and I scanned through them for an elusive Brambling (a female was reported in the area recently), but instead found a single Lesser Redpoll - just as in the flock in my own garden the week befeore. The first Starling flock came in. A dozen or so birds, but definitely all Starling. It had been snowing a little, on and off, and began to snow more heavily. It was getting late, and I had to be in work. I walk back over the Broad Valley Horse Paddock and a small group of birds high over heading east caught my attention. It was a group of five Golden Plover (year tick) battling with the snow. (I'm resisting the urge to use the phrase "snowstorm" as is sounds a bit too drastic to describe this type of weather!). Heading back, a Sparrowhawk flew over, a male Great Spotted Woodpecker was on the garden peanut feeder between the Hatton Close and Gerard Close Entrances, and a flock of nine Lesser Black-backed Gull flew low together, heading east over Big Wood School Playing Field. I also got a couple of shots of a Wren and Song Thrush in the snow. The unexpected Golden Plovers made up for the lack of the Waxwings.

No Luck

Around forty Magpie were seen to leave the Dawson's Corner roost at first light - I didn't really expect the numbers to get this high! A male Kestrel was over the southern entrance to the Mill Lakes at dawn, and seven Cormorant (probably a site record) were present: six in the usual tree and one fishing in the water below. Two further birds were later seen flying towards the Mill Lakes from the direction of Lamin's Lane. A Song Thrush was again singing in the Willow Carr, and at least eight Common Snipe were on Mud Island. I met my friend Norman at the Wooden Footbridge and we walked up to the Leen Pastures Feeding Station so I could continue with my mini-action plan of supporting the Willow Tit population. The pair visited the table within a minute of me covering it with food, and seemed happy with me standing just a couple of meters away. Back at the lake, a group of six Redwing were in the trees by the Wooden Footbridge, and the Siskin flock numbered 40-50 birds in one of the alders there. We met Alan back at the southern end of the lake, and from the Vehicle Bridge the three of us watched a Little Grebe out by Tern Island. We walked back along the Sustran Path towards the Pit Tip. Alan carried on, as Norman and I headed back through Dawson's Corner. A mixed group of corvids were gathered on the ground alongside the Cow Gates, and a Common Gull was swooping down to take an interest too. It seemed that someone had thrown some scraps down there, and the gull was chasing after a Rook that had acquired one of the large scraps. I took a few photos, but they weren't very good. I should have walked back via Broad Valley as, later that day, a flock of Waxwing were seen there! I can't be lucky all the time, can I?!