Those of you who've visited the reserve recently will have seen that a new footpath has opened through the carpark field. It will probably get a bit muddy, but makes a nice change to the usual walk along the track up to the bird feeders. The path snakes it's way through the field and provides a good oppurtunity to see part of the reserve that's normally closed to the public. The field is full of hawthorns, which are currently laiden with berries, this makes it a good place to see redwing and fieldfare feeding. We often thin out these thorn bushes a bit during the winter months once the berries have gone, this prevents the whole field scrubbing over and keeps it as an attractive habitat for grasshopper warblers, which require scattered bushes surrounded by long vegetation. Lots of other small birds like nesting in this part of the reserve too, including whitethroats and wrens and so the path will be closed during the breeding season, for now though it's open and hopefully you'll enjoy the pleasant stroll through the field.
Yesterday was the day of the November (unofficial) Wetland Bird Survey, this is our back up in case the official count later in the month on the day set by the British trust for Ornithology can't happen. Lots of birds were around, especially on Flood field and on the Ashgrave lagoon, with large flocks of birds flying between these two areas:
Mute Swan - 13 (1 Ashgrave, 2 Flood, 6 Greenaways, 2 Malt Pit, 2 Big Otmoor)
Greylag Goose - 123 (4 Flood, 119 Closes)
Canada Goose - 182 (181 Ashgrave, 1 Big Otmoor)
Wigeon - 677 (458 Ashgrave, 39 Reedbed, 143 Flood, 5 Greenaways, 30 Closes, 2 Big Otmoor)
Gadwall - 100 (73 Reedbed, 24 Flood, 3 Big Otmoor)
Teal - 549 (51 Ashgrave, 179 Reedbed, 179 Flood, 130 Greenaways, 8 Closes, 2 Big Otmoor)
Mallard - 223 (2 Ashgrave, 15 Reedbed, 59 Flood, 22 Greenaways, 27 Closes, 78 Malt Pit, 20 Big Otmoor)
Pintail - 3 (Ashgrave)
Shoveler - 96 (31 Ashgrave, 23 Reedbed, 42 Flood)
Tufted Duck - 1 (Reedbed)
Little Grebe - 1 (Closes)
Cormorant - 1 (Big Otmoor)
Little Egret - 4 (3 Ashgrave, 1 Greenaways)
Grey Heron - 7 (1 Reedbed, 3 Greenaways, 1 Malt Pit, 2 Big Otmoor)
Water Rail - 1 (Closes)
Moorhen - 12 (1 Ashgrave, 1 Reedbed, 10 Closes)
Coot - 9 (6 Reedbed, 1 Closes, 2 Big Otmoor)
Golden Plover - 60 (20 Ashgrave, 40 Greenaways)
Lapwing - 700 (400 Ashgrave, 300 Greenaways)
Snipe - 3 (1 Greenaways, 2 Malt Pit)
Black-headed Gull - 43 (Ashgrave)
Lesser Black-backed Gull - 3 (Malt Pit)
Snipe probe holes in the mud around the Ashgrave lagoon...
More mushrooms...
Highland cows in a field next to Otmoor Lane...