Day off this week, forecast was pretty good for a couple of hours early on, then clouding over again with more rain. Thought that in that case staying local was the best bet, so Trailway it was.
Walking out the front door, sun was bright, and up high a couple of the Starlings were looking resplendent
Whilst down on the ground a tractor had made a mess of the grass, to the delight of Mrs Blackbird
A couple of Jackdaws were in the morning mix
It turned out to be a Dunnocky/Wrenny/Chaffie sort of day... the 1st of the Dunnocks
And a striking Blackbird that I've not seen before
Not 100%, but think I can detect a hint or a red breast....
After a bit of discussion here yesterday (thanks Linda, RSPBailey, Zo, Chris and Robbo) ..... Mrs Reed Bunting
There was a lot of birdsong throughout the walk, Robins, Blackbirds, Dunnock and Chaffie all in good voice
With some pretending to be Red Kites, with their forked tails!
There were a number of Magpies about, although not as many as last I was there
I saw at least 4 different wrens, which is unusual, the most, normally, is one spotted and being shouted at by 2 or 3 invisible others!
The wind was playing havoc with the various hairdo's!
But it helped their voices carry further than ever
She wasn't half asleep, she must have been doing complicated aeronautical calculations, as a second later she was gone, to a branch the other side of the pathway
I'm sure you all recognise the profile atop the Great North Dorset Dinosaurmorant Tree
Lots of fully belting it out was going on, and the Elizabethan fancy dress just topped it all off... is it a ruff, or a rough...or a ruff!!
I'd not seen any winter thrushes which was a disappointment, and wondered if they'd all headed off already, but then I heard one singing, and a couple were in a tree up ahead
And nearby, but on the ground (wait for it Robbo.....) a Song Thrush (ps, how's the toothache Robbo, whiskey and salt water work? lol)
Wind and twigs an odd image can make
From the start of the walk there had been a couple of lollipops fizzing about, and I almost didn't get a clear shot of one of the pesky so-and-so's
About 20 yards from the end of the Trailway, another Redwing sat
And in the very last tree, (and talking about fizzing pesky so-and-so's)....
Ta-daaaaaaah
So a pretty uneventful walk, but it stayed dry, and it was nice to get out and exercise a little, and a little Goldcrest to end with, and there was no significant storm damage, so all was good with the world
Hope you liked my ramblings, thanks again all for the Reed Bunting ID
Stay Safe All
Another successful day out, and you've certainly done well with the thrush species photos, let alone the other birds.
Like everyone else, I've not seen any fieldfares, or I don't recall if I have seen any, but with the weather being grim, I've not been able to see redwings at my usual place. I think for me, that's it until late this year when they return.
But I did see my first ever lesser redpoll the other day, more on that in another post.
Mike
Flickr: Peak Rambler