Thanks to volunteer John for his report from Friday.
It was a morning of glorious sunshine and freezing temperatures. When I left the house it registered minus one and by the time I reached the reserve it was zero. But with the sun shining it felt a lot more and the car park was alive with birds singing in the trees. Chaffinches chupped and greenfinches wheezed and the mournful sounding robin was there to greet me (there's always a robin or two in an RSPB car park it seems).
First stop was a quick tour of the heathland to check on woodpecker action around the tumulus. Blue tits flitted about on the way and adjoining the overflow car park I could hear the call of a green woodpecker - it brings to mind a sort of demented laugh. I was to see one later in the fields by Green Lane. Great spotted woodpeckers were calling and at least two were drumming - one on a resonant tree trunk so it sounded like a deep bass to the others tenor. Great tits sounded out their 'teacher teacher' calls in various styles, robins sounded their 'tak tak' alarm call and the diminutive wrens made up for their size with a rapid trilling call. Also present were blackbird, wood pigeon and crow.
From the top of the tumulus I could see over the network of ponds leading to Blackpond and over the Blackwood, my next destination. On the way I added several goldcrest to my mornings list as well as longtailed tit as I entered Blackwood. Here the cast of light on the golden bracken made a stunning contrast to the blue skies. A raucous jay advertised its presence and a magpie flew overhead.
On the way to Hail's View I heard the 'chack chack' of fieldfare near the field edge by the viewpoint and when I got there saw a mixed flock of perhaps 50 or so redwing and fieldfare alternating between feeding on the field pockmarked by the cattle and then flying up into the dead oak en masse as if something unseen had spooked them.
A male stonechat, with a lively orange chest, popped up on the bramble then followed by a female on an adjacent post. A kestrel drifted past Greatham Church and a buzzard perched nearby the spire on a telegraph pole.
On the southbrooks pintail, teal, shoveler, wigeon and many lapwing were present some standing on still frozen water.
Around mid morning I made my way back to the Visitor Centre where I picked up house sparrow as I walked out on the the wetlands area of the reserve and admired the illuminated willow above the zig zag path. My colleague Phil was greeting visitors in West Mead hide and sharing telescope views of snipe that were close in - four showing themselves throughout the morning and a count of up to seven in total. He also reported lapwing showing almost some display behaviour so a sign that spring is not so far away.
On the way to Hanger View two male bullfinch showed well at Redstart Corner and as soon as I reached the Hanger, and poured some hot soup for lunch, the juvenile peregrine flew in to perch in the 'pergrine tree' where it stayed for the next couple of hours. In the bramble below visitors were thrilled to see a further two male bullfinch and a female. Five coot enjoyed the deeper waters of the North Brooks, several jackdaw floated by hanging in the wind and three moorhen explored the grassy area by Nettley's hide. From here I saw my only black tailed godwits of the day - only 16 at the highest count! Gulls, black headed and common were also present.
The weather started to turn at about 3pm with the sky darkening and the wind picking up so I made a 'head down must get back to the visitor centre' before it rains rush. But in my haste I didn't stop at Fattengates Corner and so didn't get to see the firecrest that was hanging out there. But at least I was dry!