A very cold northerly wind but a blue sky signed with contrails from various aircraft meant that birds were sheltering down under the river banks or in thickets waiting for the sun to reach the top branches. Hazel catkins are growing long on the branches overhanging the river with bare banks now showing signs of green shoots, most will be Wild Garlic but finer shoots under the old oaks will be Wood Anemone. The ground was strewn with fallen twigs as a result of the very strong north-east winds - just trees self-pruning.
Every day on the riverside is different, with weather systems having the main influence on what is
heard and seen and what remains silent and hidden, or is absent, from one day to the next.
At this time of the year
robins are singing strongly, the males cannot stay silent for long, as their song is their existence. Today there were (
31) seen and heard, with no shortage of food to be found under the damp fallen leaves and amongst the river bank roots.
House Sparrows (60) in several colonies, were heard amongst the dense brambles whilst others were bathing in the river shallows and flying up to dry off in sheltered sunny banks. They like to be close to a source of water even when the weather is cold as the air is dry and they need to drink. A large number were seen flying up from one of the new ponds. Their friends, the
starlings (38) were mainly gathered in a thicket, whistling, singing and clicking, shining where the sun touched them.
Great tits (21) were showing off their smart plumage, foraging on our native planting along the bank and pausing to sing before dropping down onto the ground to search for food amongst the stalks.
Blue tits (40) were active everywhere in sheltered patches, calling, singing and exploring potential nest holes in the old trees.
Dunnocks (7) were easily seen, choosing unusually high perches from which to sing into the sun, whilst others were in amongst the holly, flicking tails and wings, displaying to each other.
Wrens (7) were hiding and silent - the few that were seen today were low down in the sheltered banks.
Woodpigeons (38), with plenty of fat on them, were nevertheless feeling the cold and were choosing sheltered branches, hunkering down with heads sunk low onto their shoulders - but always with one eye half open to danger. Just one
collared dove was seen flying out of ivy on a tree which held a group of
goldfinches singing continuously from perches out of the wind amongst the leaves. Several more were seen in the sun on the top of another tree
(28 in all).
I watched a
carrion crow for some time - it flew up from the grass where it was foraging, onto the dead end of a branch on an old oak. It then spent a long time pecking away at this branch, ignoring me watching from below, sending showers of wood shavings down as it pecked and called, pecked and called. What was it finding there? perhaps insects hiding deep inside the dead wood ....Another crow flew across to land nearby
(2).
Low sun and long shadows
Blackbirds were numerous
(28), busy amongst the dry leaves in the sun, under the hedgerows, digging in the grass with more flying in from across the river to join in the feast -
Song thrushes (2) however were scarce, only two were visible on the bank-side grasses, foraging, with no singing. This did not mean that they had all left - but were staying out of the wind - they'll be back on their song-posts as soon as the weather changes.
A Hawthorn, with low branches overhanging the river, was popular with
chaffinches (7), and
greenfinches (2), still silent, but soft calls came from the same bush -
long-tailed tits (5) briefly foraging amongst the thorns, whilst a
grey squirrel leapt off and across to an oak where it was heard 'barking'. Another was seen sitting with its back to a tree trunk, eating what looked like an acorn held in its paws. On finishing, it then scrabbled for more in the dry earth under the tree trunk - it had come across a long-forgotten cache, fortunately protected from floods and rain. There was again no sign of a jay, but a few
magpies (4) were seen in the trees where
jackdaws (5) were making a racket. Both jays and magpies compete with squirrels for cached food but jackdaws find plenty to eat on the fields.
Green woodpeckers continue to be successful along the riverside,
one was heard yaffling loudly from the wild meadow - and as I was walking along the edge of the same field I spotted a
Peacock butterfly flying low and erratically amongst the grasses where there is plenty of shelter - the first this year! Another first was a
7-Spot Ladybird on a twig, definitely alive. In the distance a
Roe deer was glimpsed browsing amongst the trees.
Gulls love the wind, and today there were about
20 herring gulls sailing above and
23 silent
black-headed gulls feeding on the grass.
Woodland birds were busy preparing for spring, with
nuthatches (2) putting the finishing touches to their nest holes and
2 Goldcrests were seen chasing amongst the pine branches where they are usually found intent on foraging amongst the cones and needles. A
great-spotted woodpecker flew across on a mission, probably to check that it's chosen nest site had not been invaded, as there is plenty of competition here. Both male and female overwintering warblers -
blackcaps were present too - but unlike the summer visitors, spend most of their time in gardens
(2).
A surprise - as I was looking down towards the river bank, a brilliant white bird -
a
LITTLE EGRET -
suddenly flew up from the river under the steep banks where it had been fishing in the shelter, unseen - and flew slowly through the oaks upstream, in no hurry.
