Jayday

Went out today to complete my first year and visited Nagshead RSPB in the Forets of Dean in the hope of finding a second Hawfinch. No luck with the Hawfinch and in fact I was having no luck with birds at all from the visitor centre all the way down to the lower hide. It was even quiet there (though it often is) so I left and walked back up from the hide. just as I left the wood a group of a bout 6 Jays overflew me and flew into the wood.

Grabbed a couple of pictures but obviously focusing was an issue.

Closer examinations shows that some of them appear to be carrying Acorns.

As they flew off further into the wood, I carried on up the meadow and sat on the benchy at the top, looking down across the meadow twards where I had come from. Shortly afterwards Jays and Acorns started to come back out of the woods. They spent the next half hour going backwards and forwards across the meadow in various numbers. What I couldn't really follow was whether they were restocking with nuts or whether those with nuts were being persued by those without.

is little chap seemed to be burying his nuts

but you could tell he was getting a little worried about his store(-:).

Walked around the short trail and visited the Campbell hide but everywhere else was quiet, so I called in at Highnam Woods on the way home, in the knowledge that there would be some action at the feeders. Saw Coal Tit, Great Tit, Blue Tit, Nuthatch and Robin and Greater Spotted Woodpecker - still no sign of the Marsh Tits or Dunnocks coming to the feeders. It may  be they will come once a seed feeder goes up - at the moment they are only feeding peanuts

Given that its only a couple of days since I posted my best Jay pictures, I would have to agree with galatas's comment on his Dee estuary posting - sometimesbirdwatching iss feast or famine - in my case its seems to be a feast of Jays. Sorry about the quality of the picyures but twigs will be twigs(-:). In spite of the lack of other birds, it really was a treat to just sit watching the Jays go back and forwards - whenever I have seen them before they appear to have flown over and moved on, never to be seen again. Did get a little brighter today and it was certainly drier, though much colder but nice to be out.

Cheers,

Bob