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.