Apparently 3 HAWFINCHES were seen this afternoon in Penn Wood, calling quite regularly from tall trees surrounding the house in the woods towards the south end. Typically, they were difficult to see in the foliage.
Hawfinches are an enigma in this Recording Area and disappear as quickly as they appear. For several years a pair nested in Mike & Lynn's orchard at Little Chalfont Golf Course but now that they have moved to Austria, I can no longer gain access. I suspect that they are still there.
Wednesday, 7 November 2012
I just can't get you out of my head.....
Yes, getting back to my car today at the entrance to LATIMER PLACE, I heard a bird repeatedly calling which sounded like a YELLOW-BROWED WARBLER. It called 5 times in quick succession and seemed to be coming from the dense ivy-clad bushes adjacent to the gate and stile. I waited and searched for about half an hour later but saw or heard nothing more. I don't know if I was hearing things and it was a Pied Wagtail nearby - just don't know, but I have a sneaking suspicion there's a Yellow-browed Warbler hiding in there somewhere. I pished a number of times but only raised a female Chaffinch but did glimpse a smaller bird twice.
GREYLAG'S back in the Valley
WEDNESDAY 7 NOVEMBER
After some overnight rain, Wednesday dawned fine and clear and with the wind veering to the Southwest, temperatures improved somewhat to a high of 9 degrees C
CHESS VALLEY (BUCKS)
As it has been quite some time since I have done a full walk of the valley, I decided to do so today, especially when I heard that the Hooded Merganser was nowhere to be found at Pagham....
The grounds of LATIMER PLACE held 2 Goldcrests, 4 Mistle Thrush, 2 Redwing, 6 Common Starling, 4 Carrion Crow, Robin and Greenfinch, whilst GREAT WATER yielded 21 Mute Swans (including 1 first-winter), 189 Atlantic Canada Geese, 1 GREYLAG GOOSE (presumably last winter's adult returning), 17 Tufted Duck, 41 Coot and 8 Moorhens.
The woodland tract supported at least 7 Jays, whilst 3 Common Buzzards and 5 Red Kites were overhead.
Most of the Chess Valley LITTLE EGRET flock were in the meadow near Bois Mill, with 5 birds there and the sixth at Chenies Bottom Bridge.
Before I forget, LATIMER'S House Martin colony numbered 14 active nests on The Village House this summer
CHURCH COVERT and environs produced the first of 3 Green Woodpeckers, 3 Common Blackbirds and 1 of 4 wintering Common Kestrels, whilst the resident pair of LITTLE OWLS were in their Pollarded Willow nearby.
MILL FARM APARTMENTS held a male Pied Wagtail and 2 GREY WAGTAILS, with 2 Common Kestrels hunting the meadow (the female of which successfully captured a Field Vole), with the small wood by the orchid reserve producing a mixed flock of 9 Long-tailed Tits, 5 Goldcrests and a Common Treecreeper.
The Woodpigeon count reached only 83 birds, well down on recent autumn numbers, whilst Common Magpies numbered 8.
At VALLEY FARM, the horse paddocks held 2 adult Common Gulls, 2 adult Lesser Black-backed Gulls and 45 Black-headed Gulls, along with 4 more Mistle Thrushes. Just 1 Wren was encountered and walking back the same route added 3 SISKINS, and 2 LESSER REDPOLLS at Church Covert and a COMMON KINGFISHER on the brook. I was very surprised at the amount of weed in the main tributary, seemingly starving the flow.
A single SINENSIS CORMORANT flew over Bois Mill Pond, whilst CHESHAM FISHING LAKES produced 1 Atlantic Canada Goose, 19 Tufted Duck, 8 Coot and 10 Moorhens, along with at least 2 COMMON KINGFISHERS and a Great Spotted Woodpecker; all 4 Mute Swans (pair and their two 2012 offspring) were alive and well on Pow Wow Lake
After some overnight rain, Wednesday dawned fine and clear and with the wind veering to the Southwest, temperatures improved somewhat to a high of 9 degrees C
CHESS VALLEY (BUCKS)
As it has been quite some time since I have done a full walk of the valley, I decided to do so today, especially when I heard that the Hooded Merganser was nowhere to be found at Pagham....
The grounds of LATIMER PLACE held 2 Goldcrests, 4 Mistle Thrush, 2 Redwing, 6 Common Starling, 4 Carrion Crow, Robin and Greenfinch, whilst GREAT WATER yielded 21 Mute Swans (including 1 first-winter), 189 Atlantic Canada Geese, 1 GREYLAG GOOSE (presumably last winter's adult returning), 17 Tufted Duck, 41 Coot and 8 Moorhens.
The woodland tract supported at least 7 Jays, whilst 3 Common Buzzards and 5 Red Kites were overhead.
Most of the Chess Valley LITTLE EGRET flock were in the meadow near Bois Mill, with 5 birds there and the sixth at Chenies Bottom Bridge.
Before I forget, LATIMER'S House Martin colony numbered 14 active nests on The Village House this summer
CHURCH COVERT and environs produced the first of 3 Green Woodpeckers, 3 Common Blackbirds and 1 of 4 wintering Common Kestrels, whilst the resident pair of LITTLE OWLS were in their Pollarded Willow nearby.
MILL FARM APARTMENTS held a male Pied Wagtail and 2 GREY WAGTAILS, with 2 Common Kestrels hunting the meadow (the female of which successfully captured a Field Vole), with the small wood by the orchid reserve producing a mixed flock of 9 Long-tailed Tits, 5 Goldcrests and a Common Treecreeper.
The Woodpigeon count reached only 83 birds, well down on recent autumn numbers, whilst Common Magpies numbered 8.
At VALLEY FARM, the horse paddocks held 2 adult Common Gulls, 2 adult Lesser Black-backed Gulls and 45 Black-headed Gulls, along with 4 more Mistle Thrushes. Just 1 Wren was encountered and walking back the same route added 3 SISKINS, and 2 LESSER REDPOLLS at Church Covert and a COMMON KINGFISHER on the brook. I was very surprised at the amount of weed in the main tributary, seemingly starving the flow.
A single SINENSIS CORMORANT flew over Bois Mill Pond, whilst CHESHAM FISHING LAKES produced 1 Atlantic Canada Goose, 19 Tufted Duck, 8 Coot and 10 Moorhens, along with at least 2 COMMON KINGFISHERS and a Great Spotted Woodpecker; all 4 Mute Swans (pair and their two 2012 offspring) were alive and well on Pow Wow Lake
Thursday, 1 November 2012
HAWFINCHES again in Penn Wood
THURSDAY 1 NOVEMBER
A much cooler day than of late with temperatures struggling to reach 6 degrees C. Fresh westerly winds too, with some real heavy showers coming through...
With it being the first day of a new month, I did a full comprehensive inventory of the reservoir birdlife...
STARTOP'S END RESERVOIR (HERTS)
As Lucy Flower reported earlier, the mobile WATER PIPIT was still present, moving between all of the sections of mud, including the two bays in Buckinghamshire. A single Meadow Pipit, 2 Grey Wagtails and 5 Pied Wagtails also favouring the same areas.
Of 4 adult Mute Swans present, one was orange-ringed '4ABL', whilst other waterfowl counted included 1 Little Grebe, 5 Great Crested Grebes, 1 Canada Goose, 29 Mallard, 26 Wigeon, 5 Teal, 27 Gadwall, 57 Tufted Duck, 33 Pochard, 162 Coot, 8 Moorhen, 27 Black-headed Gulls and 1 adult Common Gull; also 5 Lapwing on the mud, 3 Common Magpies and a single Skylark flying west.
MARSWORTH RESERVOIR (HERTS)
Nothing much on the water apart from 4 Great Crested Grebes, 4 Mute Swans and 42 Shoveler, with 18 Woodpigeon, male Great Spotted Woodpecker, Carrion Crow, 2 Wrens, Redwing and SISKIN noted.
TRINGFORD RESERVOIR (HERTS)
On the reservoir, 1 Little Grebe, 8 Grey Heron, 2 Mute Swan, 2 Gadwall, 3 MANDARIN DUCKS (drake and two females at far end under trees visible from hide), 33 Tufted Duck, 5 Pochard and 63 Coot counted, with the woodland surroundings yielding 48 SISKINS, 4 Robins, 2 Mistle Thrush, 30 Redwing, 11 Goldfinch and 8 Jackdawa; 2 WATER RAILS heard and a Meadow Pipit flew over
WILSTONE RESERVOIR (HERTS)
The SLAVONIAN GREBE was still showing well along the east shore, with 8 Great Crested Grebes, 2 LITTLE EGRETS, 43 Mute Swans, the two adult WHOOPER SWANS, 84 Mallard, 32 Gadwall, 406 Teal, 198 Wigeon, 4 PINTAIL (1 drake), 86 Shoveler, 201 Tufted Duck, 79 Pochard, 3 female COMMON GOLDENEYE, 733 Coot, 100 Lapwing and 33 EUROPEAN GOLDEN PLOVER present.
COLLEGE LAKE BBOWT (BUCKS)
Not a bad selection of birds present today, identified in a full circuit walk around.......including 2 Little Grebes, 12 Mute Swans, 15 Tufted Duck, 8 Gadwall, 11 Wigeon, 46 Mallard, 3 RED-CRESTED POCHARDS (drake and two females), 2 Shoveler, 5 Pochard, a single female COMMON GOLDENEYE, 92 Lesser Black-backed Gulls, an adult Argenteus Herring Gull, an adult YELLOW-LEGGED GULL, just 3 Coot, male Common Kestrel, 6 Robins and a Redwing.
DEEP MILL LANE POND, GREAT MISSENDEN (BUCKS)
Water level back to normal now with 4 Little Grebe, 8 Moorhen and 2 Coot resident.
SHARDELOES LAKE (BUCKS)
A LITTLE EGRET roosting on the island was unusual here but 8 Little Grebe, 3 Grey Heron, 2 Mute Swans, pair of Gadwall, 3 female Tufted Duck, 192 Coot, Green Woodpecker, 3 Jays, Nuthatch and Long-tailed Tit were typical fare; 5 SISKINS flew over.
PENN WOOD (BUCKS)
Highlight here on a very wet and muddy (underfoot) visit were 2 HAWFINCHES in tall trees by the 'Holly Roost', both very vocal and presumably at pre-roost, but no other finches noted and just 3 Common Treecreepers, 5 Coal Tits, 5 Jays, Great Spotted Woodpecker and Song Thrush encountered in a 90-minute slog round. A Red Kite with a yellow wing-tag was intriguing.
A much cooler day than of late with temperatures struggling to reach 6 degrees C. Fresh westerly winds too, with some real heavy showers coming through...
With it being the first day of a new month, I did a full comprehensive inventory of the reservoir birdlife...
STARTOP'S END RESERVOIR (HERTS)
As Lucy Flower reported earlier, the mobile WATER PIPIT was still present, moving between all of the sections of mud, including the two bays in Buckinghamshire. A single Meadow Pipit, 2 Grey Wagtails and 5 Pied Wagtails also favouring the same areas.
Of 4 adult Mute Swans present, one was orange-ringed '4ABL', whilst other waterfowl counted included 1 Little Grebe, 5 Great Crested Grebes, 1 Canada Goose, 29 Mallard, 26 Wigeon, 5 Teal, 27 Gadwall, 57 Tufted Duck, 33 Pochard, 162 Coot, 8 Moorhen, 27 Black-headed Gulls and 1 adult Common Gull; also 5 Lapwing on the mud, 3 Common Magpies and a single Skylark flying west.
MARSWORTH RESERVOIR (HERTS)
Nothing much on the water apart from 4 Great Crested Grebes, 4 Mute Swans and 42 Shoveler, with 18 Woodpigeon, male Great Spotted Woodpecker, Carrion Crow, 2 Wrens, Redwing and SISKIN noted.
TRINGFORD RESERVOIR (HERTS)
On the reservoir, 1 Little Grebe, 8 Grey Heron, 2 Mute Swan, 2 Gadwall, 3 MANDARIN DUCKS (drake and two females at far end under trees visible from hide), 33 Tufted Duck, 5 Pochard and 63 Coot counted, with the woodland surroundings yielding 48 SISKINS, 4 Robins, 2 Mistle Thrush, 30 Redwing, 11 Goldfinch and 8 Jackdawa; 2 WATER RAILS heard and a Meadow Pipit flew over
WILSTONE RESERVOIR (HERTS)
The SLAVONIAN GREBE was still showing well along the east shore, with 8 Great Crested Grebes, 2 LITTLE EGRETS, 43 Mute Swans, the two adult WHOOPER SWANS, 84 Mallard, 32 Gadwall, 406 Teal, 198 Wigeon, 4 PINTAIL (1 drake), 86 Shoveler, 201 Tufted Duck, 79 Pochard, 3 female COMMON GOLDENEYE, 733 Coot, 100 Lapwing and 33 EUROPEAN GOLDEN PLOVER present.
COLLEGE LAKE BBOWT (BUCKS)
Not a bad selection of birds present today, identified in a full circuit walk around.......including 2 Little Grebes, 12 Mute Swans, 15 Tufted Duck, 8 Gadwall, 11 Wigeon, 46 Mallard, 3 RED-CRESTED POCHARDS (drake and two females), 2 Shoveler, 5 Pochard, a single female COMMON GOLDENEYE, 92 Lesser Black-backed Gulls, an adult Argenteus Herring Gull, an adult YELLOW-LEGGED GULL, just 3 Coot, male Common Kestrel, 6 Robins and a Redwing.
DEEP MILL LANE POND, GREAT MISSENDEN (BUCKS)
Water level back to normal now with 4 Little Grebe, 8 Moorhen and 2 Coot resident.
SHARDELOES LAKE (BUCKS)
A LITTLE EGRET roosting on the island was unusual here but 8 Little Grebe, 3 Grey Heron, 2 Mute Swans, pair of Gadwall, 3 female Tufted Duck, 192 Coot, Green Woodpecker, 3 Jays, Nuthatch and Long-tailed Tit were typical fare; 5 SISKINS flew over.
PENN WOOD (BUCKS)
Highlight here on a very wet and muddy (underfoot) visit were 2 HAWFINCHES in tall trees by the 'Holly Roost', both very vocal and presumably at pre-roost, but no other finches noted and just 3 Common Treecreepers, 5 Coal Tits, 5 Jays, Great Spotted Woodpecker and Song Thrush encountered in a 90-minute slog round. A Red Kite with a yellow wing-tag was intriguing.
Tuesday, 23 October 2012
Huge flocks of both CHAFFINCH and STARLINGS
Whilst delivering this afternoon in FLAUNDEN, I came across a huge flock of CHAFFINCHES in the large ploughed field SE of the hamlet at TL 018 007. I stopped and 'scoped them and click-counted no less than 702 birds........staggering. Feeding voraciously with them were no less than 50 BRAMBLINGS.
Nearby, still 4 Little Egrets in the Chess Valley and in my garden at Chaffinch House, a phenomenal flock of 225 Common Starlings - by far the largest flock I have ever seen here
In Hemel Hempstead town centre earlier, I had 2 Little Egrets by the river
Nearby, still 4 Little Egrets in the Chess Valley and in my garden at Chaffinch House, a phenomenal flock of 225 Common Starlings - by far the largest flock I have ever seen here
In Hemel Hempstead town centre earlier, I had 2 Little Egrets by the river
Monday, 8 October 2012
Lots of Jays
Still lots of JAYS in the Chess Valley and Chesham area, mirroring a massive influx in Britain as a whole
Meanwhile, 4 LITTLE EGRETS present this morning on the Chess - in the usual meadow east of Bois Mill
Meanwhile, 4 LITTLE EGRETS present this morning on the Chess - in the usual meadow east of Bois Mill
Sunday, 30 September 2012
Another week at CHENIES
Herring, Lesser Black-backed & Black-headed Gulls were again on the field behind the Baptist Church, where a Little Owl was seen being mobbed by Blackbirds & Chaffinches in the car park on Friday. A HOBBY was again over on Thursday & Friday, when a Cormorant also passed through. On the same day as it rained 28 Pied Wagtails were on the cricket pitch along with 35 Swallows which seemed to be passing through every time I looked up from my work.In the rough field behind the cricket pitch about 50 Goldfinches were present on Wednesday & 15 Meadow Pipits sat on the wooden fence during the rain on Friday (Don Stone)
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