Carsington Water

With slightly better forecast yesterday we decided to blow away the indoor cobwebs and head to a new area for us to explore by choosing Carsington Water,   a reservoir and habitat run by Severn Trent Water in conjunction with RSPB.     Quite an impressive set up with Visitor Centre, and courtyard and a good range of habitat attracting all manner of birds/wildlife.     With daylight hours being short at the moment we didn't have time to walk the 8 mile perimeter of the reservoir but we'll definitely return during late spring or summer months.    Anyway,  here are a few photos, mainly the smaller woodland type birds although there were birds like GC Grebe, Pochard, Wigeon, Swans, Coots, Moorhen and huge flock of Lapwing out on the banks and water including a very distant Great Northern Diver which was too distant to see in detail.

Here is an impression of the VC area and water (taken on iPhone)

don't let the blue sky fool you as it was pretty grey most of the time !

Nice wooden work of art near the VC which looks like a Wizard (Merlin ?)  and a sleeping dragon 

There were lots of house sparrows and Long Tailed Tits around the area outside the VC 

and I couldn't work out why this female sparrow was sledding on the ground;  no puddles so I assume she was using the rough surface in the courtyard  to have a body scrub   lol

Ouch !    looks painful although she was having a ball  !! 

all done and looking pretty as a picture …..

Goldcrest are tricky little blighters to get on camera and struggling with my eyes I had to cheat to get this shot and thank goodness for auto-focus

with their quirky yellow or orange Mohican looks and large round eyes and yellow wellies they have to be one of my most favourite birds 

There was no food on the feeding table further along near woodland so I filled the table with a handful of seed/suet/peanuts and within seconds the birds came down to fill their boots !    

One bird was a tit member which I assumed was a Marsh Tit (think there was a hint of the whitish spot on base of upper mandible) but I will leave it to the experts.

Coal variety 

Blue variety  (there were Great as well although a twig obscured the only photo I got of it)

the always attractive Dunnock

One of three or four Nuthatches who took a fancy to the whole peanuts 

the ubiquitous robin

stunning bullfinches, one of three we saw 

and there's always one of these around  lol

It wasn't me Mrs that stole a peanut ……….. says her with a hint of peanut shuck around her mouth !

In the pasture bordering the reservoir there were several Redwing although pretty distant for photos  - these are hard cropped

and a robin watching on,  ensuring the Redwing didn't take all the worms  !! 

There are three or four hides  ( I think one was flooded so closed )    this is the largest at Sheepwash area offering good views over the reservoir

Flocks of Lapwing but once again too distant for photos 

and going more gloomy you will have to take my word for it that this is a G.N.Diver    lol      long long way away on the water but still nice to see it through bins,

and Mr Spudgie says thank you for viewing the photos and hope to see more visitors soon   !!