Pedal Potter

Another outing on the bike (I'm clearly in holiday mode!). West Hartford was fairly quiet, 48 snipe lifted from the marshy area south of the pool along with one moorhen and a couple of meadow pipits. On the water a single adult great black-backed gull was present (with 2 over, gbbg is actaully quite a good bird at WH, mainly seen through December - January). Two jay were over the back of the pool, towards the wooded valley of the River Blyth. At Crowhall Lane a recently felled area on the roundabout contained six plus great tit, several blue tit, greenfinch, bullfinch and a male siskin. On the Horton Burn a female siskin was at the west end, and near the fire station, a single grey wagtail was on the rather damp flood plain.

Todays image of siskin is another from the archive - this bird was at Big Waters in 2006, another from the 10D days - it was a very nice camera.

Of local interest, waxwing were reported on the pager - apparantly 13 present at the Azure garden centre car park this morning - I'll have to keep an eye out for them...

Hartford Snipe

A quick cycle ride around some of the local hotspots today - first stop was a rather bleak West Hartford. On the main pool were a mix of black-headed, common and herring gull, with three stonechat in the surrounding scrub. For one moment I thought that I heard water rail...

As wellies had been put on I decided to have a tramp into the flooded grass land to the south of the pool (the photo is from this area, looking north, the main pools are just south of the tall trees) - this was rewarded with 2 reed bunting, single meadow pipit, wren, moorhen and at least sixty (60!!) snipe zig zagging away and, more pleasingly, 1 jack snipe (this bird lifted twice). A flock of 15 goldfinch were quartering the fields and to the east of the industrial estate road at least sixty linnet were present.

The Horton Burn supported bullfinch, chaffinch, blue/great/coal and long-tailed tit and a single kingfisher.