Winter Blackbirds Win

Tuesday 17th January 2017 was a perfect winter's day after short-lived snow on 13th giving way to cold and rainy days. Slight frost on the grass was soon melting in the sunshine, although ponds remained frozen in the shade. The river was flowing swiftly and muddy, about a meter higher than it had been. Thawed frost dripped from the Rosa Canina branches overarching the river where there were still a few inaccessible rose hips on thin twigs. Willow catkins were now visible and Hazel catkins well advanced on some trees.  

There were high numbers of most bird species along the river but blackbirds unusually won the count today, almost certainly composed mostly of migrant birds escaping the severe weather in northern Europe (63). Never massed in a group but seen foraging on the river banks, under hedgerows, on verges and muddy paths. Unfrozen mud is the key to their survival in conditions where other food sources are depleted and they often choose banks and islands of mud and debris down on the fast warm-flowing rivers. This environment is shared with many other species of bird which flee the frozen wastes.Blue tits were the next most numerous (60), but they are always present in the trees and river thickets, foraging for invertebrates hidden from sight. Great tits (27) were obviously surviving well, taking time off to sing and sit in the sun to preen.

The river flowing south, in the low January sun.

Starlings were seen in small groups today, most just sitting in their ivy 

day-roosts singing quietly together (35), whilst wood pigeons (40) were seen foraging clumsily for the remaining ivy berries or sitting on the fence overlooking Basin 5, where some carrion crows joined them. Other carrion crows (total 15) were foraging on the playing field, with one pair sitting close together in a conifer and another flew up from bathing to preen and call from a poplar. In the background, a short song from a song thrush was heard from a thicket whilst several others joined blackbirds on the ground to forage silently in the mud and under the hedgerows (10). Magpies were as usual very visible and audible (7), preferring the open areas with wide views, whilst their equally audible 'friends', the jays flew into the thicket on the filed margin (2) to pick a fight with hyperactive squirrels. As the sun rose higher, a sudden flash of brilliant white was visible over the old oaks - a little egret - heading upstream towards Warnham. Collared doves were calling softly (3) from the ivy and 4 calling herring gulls swung into view overhead. Later 4 jackdaws and 3 rooks flew across the field. 

Apart from the corvids and doves the riverside was very quiet, giving the smaller birds a chance to be heard  although bold robins dominated the song along the whole river course (28) - a bird was calling on a branch directly above me, not often heard - I looked up to see a coal tit foraging, then further along an even fainter call - another coal tit (2) whilst 9 long-tailed tits flew from the blackthorn across to the poplars and willows, their soft calls more familiar. Wrens were singing strongly, some from prominent perches, seeking the sun on brambles (14) whilst some dunnocks, like the wrens were seeking more visible perches to sing - and one was seen foraging in the mud (5).

I had already logged 21 bird species before hearing the cheerful calls, at last, from a colony of house sparrows in a warm hedge, at least 12, then further on more song from the large bramble patch and lastly 8 busy preening and drying off in the sunshine after bathing in the river bank shallows below me (52 in total).

Guelder Rose Berries as yet unplucked with dogwood in the background

No large gatherings of redwing and fieldfare have been seen since the 12th of January - the day before the snow - but good numbers are still present, foraging along the riverside and today 17 redwing were seen, some in a Maple, some in the midst of a Blackthorn thicket, and two on a field with a mistle thrush,  being chased by black-headed gulls (4). Another mistle thrush (total 2) was heard singing, its call echoing along the river upstream. A few fieldfare were visible foraging on grass (5) with more probably lurking in a nearby thicket.

The angle of the sun made for a beautiful view of a smart male bullfinch reaching out to pick dried bramble fruits and seeds, concentrating on the task for some time. Three others were found in different places - given away by their calls in thickets (total 4) and a group of about 12 goldfinches were calling softly, well hidden.  Only 2 chaffinches were seen, in flight and one greenfinch perched on a conifer.

No goldcrests were seen in the confer but one was seen in a blackthorn thicket, one in an ash tree and two making a thorough search of individual branches of a river bank willow in the sun (4).

A short call from a green woodpecker on its established territory was heard and a call from a great-spotted woodpecker alerted me to one near basin 1 and another calling far downstream, with a third flying across the river (3). A single nuthatch was heard calling amongst ash branches over the river.

Lastly, a small bird foraging on an island of twigs in the fast-flowing river Arun was a wintering chiffchaff foraging for insects emerging from the mat of twigs as it warmed up in the sun in the sheltered warmth of the river bend under high banks with a moorhen scurrying along the bank just above the water line.