After parking at my usual place beside the Soak Drain,i set the scope up and had a scan around,with nothing too exciting on view i began my walk towards the Ancholme.
There seemed to be birds all over today,with a good sized flock of Starlings feeding in the wet pasture,totalling an approx. number of 3000 birds,an impressive sight and sound when they all took to the wing.It would be great to know where these beauties had originated,perhaps Scandinavia or maybe further east in Russia.
The hedgerows seemed to hold more Reed Bunts and Yellowhammers as well and after spotting a couple of chunky Corn Buntings as on my last visit,i managed an excellent count of at least 35 birds today.The Bunts were all feeding in the wet stubble field as you walk down to the river and gave some nice views through the scope,i just love their 'Pit pit' flight calls,fantastic.
Further on and scanning the wet pastures it was apparent wildfowl numbers had built up also with at least 400 Teal being seen and also the 10 Little Egret were still present.
Best bird species of the day was seen next and as readers of my blog know,Whooper Swans are a personal favourite.Two birds flew in and past me as i neared the river and i managed a few flight shots as they passed me by and it looked like they landed,so more views later i hoped.
Scanning of the river and bank side revealed a couple of Common Buzzards as they patiently watched from their perches for any movement below and overhead the first decent flocks of Fieldfare totalled at least 150 birds in several fragmented flocks.
Walking back on the return leg towards the car,saw more of the same being recorded and thankfully the Whooper Swans were still present with them giving lovely views in the late afternoon light.A juvenile Marsh Harrier put in a brief appearance before it headed towards the river and off to roost no doubt at Whitton Sand or Reads Island.
As i neared the car a flock of 80 Pinks flew in from the south and a quick scan revealed a White-fronted Goose in the flock and also a neck collared Pink.The former looked interesting and quite dark in appearance,with quite extensive belly barring,but to me the bill looked pinkish,very frustrating and massively cropped to see any detail on the back of the camera also,if only they had been closer.I also couldn't see any lettering on the Pinks neck collar.I will continue to look for these two birds throughout the winter and it would be nice to confirm the White-front as a Greenland,but I'm not certain it was one to be fair.
Non bird sightings today included a massive count of 17 Roe Deer in the area and a single Brown Hare in the wet pastures at dusk made for a cracking visit,perhaps a tad frustrating regarding the Geese,but what a great place to visit.
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| Looking North Along The Soak Drain. |
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| Part Of The Starling Flock. |
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| The Two Adult Whooper Swans. |
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| Some Great Cloud Formations Today. |
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| A Great Scene As The Sun Disappeared Behind A Cloud. |
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| The Pink Flock Containing The White-front & Neck Collared Bird. |
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| White-fronted Goose Centre Of Photo. |
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| Huge Crop Of The White-Front,Certainly Not Cut And Dried With Regards To ID. |
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