You may think winter is a time when there isn't much wildlife around, but you would be surprised what you might bump in to when you walking around the reserve. Walk along the disused railway, and you will probably come across flocks of chattering fieldfare and redwing. These birds, which are part of the thrush family, come over here in the winter from Scandinavia, to make the most of our berries and (relatively) milder weather. They can be seen gorging on fruit along the hedgrows, but are quite flighty and tend to flush from their feeding spots as you walk along the path.
Fieldfare
Redwing - look for the red flush under the wing. Smaller than a fieldfare
We also have a pair of bullfinch living along the old railway footpath. These plump little birds have a low pitched, melancholy flutey call, a bit like a downbeat chaffinch. The males have a stunning red breast, while the females breast is a lovely chocolate colour. Both sexes have a distinctive white rump which you can see when they are in flight, a balck cap and a chucky beak.
Male bullfinch
female bullfinch
Across our reversion fields, flocks of golden plover have been gathering. These birds breed up in the northern moors and tundra, as far up as the Arctic. Like the fieldfares and redwing, they come down here to make the most of the warmer climate where they can feed. Our reversion fields are the perfect place for them as they are packed with worms and invertebrate larvae. The have a quiet plaintive whistleing call, and the flock will get up and wheel around the sky together when disturbed.
golden plover
Another winter visitor, the peregrine falcon, has been spotted on several occasions over the past week or two, This bird of prey looks dark in flight, with a very distinctive,solid, heavy wingbeat.
Peregrine
Although winter means that chalk grassland reversion fields are looking bleak without the wonderful carpet of summer flowers, it does mean that it is possible to spot Brown Hare. In the summer the vegetation is long, and hides the hares from view, but in winter they can be seen much more easliy, feeding in the fields. A group of roe deer have been regualry obseved from our carpark, in the stubble turnip field, again, much more visiable now the long vegetation has gone.
Watch out for these birds and mammals as you walk around the trail. And if you see anything different, please feel free to let us know and we will post it on here for you.
Keeley