I caught the bus today to visit the reserve in the afternoon because I wasn't sure what the parking would be like on Cottage Lane. I got off at The Green in Collingham and walked along snow covered footpaths through the fields to the wood. I saw a total of 47 bird species in four hours, but the highlight was watching three roe deers bound across the snowy landscape - they ran across the bund between the Phase 1 reedbed and the balancing lagoon and then along the Trentside bank of Phase 1. They looked magnificent against the white backdrop and took great leaps to move through the deep snow.
Wildfowl was concentrated on the ice-free lagoons next to the eastern public footpath and the following species were present: 115 tufted ducks, 55 mallards, 34 pochards, 20 gadwalls, 19 teals, 6 goldeneyes (3 males and 3 females/immatures), 5 wigeons, 3 pintails (all males), 17 mute swans, 2 little grebes, 1 great crested grebe, 8 coots and 2 moorhens.
Walking back to catch a bus as the drizzle started to become a bit more persistent I met Mike Warren so I walked back with Mike for another look at the reedbed. A pair of stonechats was on Phase 2 and a snipe flew over. Overlooking the reedbed, a water rail flew across a frozen channel and scurried into cover. I noticed a commotion above our heads was a near mid-air collision between two birds and a woodpigeon shot off in one direction and I then realised that the other bird was a male peregrine - it had just missed a kill. The peregrine flew around over the reedbed before disappearing over Phase 2. A flock of about 15 reed buntings was feeding along the edge of the reedbed and attracted the attention of a male sparrowhawk, which made a swoop through the flock but left unsuccessful. Just as we were thinking of leaving we heard the 'pinging' of at least 3 bearded tits and a barn owl flew over carrying prey in its talons. A great afternoon stretching my legs in the snow and Mike was kind enough to give me a lift back to Newark.