Local birding

A couple of local trips on Sunday; - really just whiling away the time until migration kicks off. I did my second walk round my second tetrad; its mainly farm land, but there’s a golf course and hotel, and a few shooting woods and brooks, so its hard work getting a representative number.

Highlight was a Woodcock which clattered away from near my feet from some rough ground behind the hotel; I assume this had been previously flushed from a local wood by the shooting that was going on. Otherwise a few Yellowhammers were singing across the area, and sizeable flocks of Crows and Rooks.

Then the afternoon at SLRS with Steve. We saw 11 Bullfinches in a bush – yes 11. An excellent number for this time of year, and an indicator that the species is in good health round here. Otherwise more Yellowhammers, 5 Lapwing on the scrape, 5 Meadow Pipits flew round as dusk fell then dropped into some rough ground to roost, and all the while a constant flow of WoodPigeons and Jackdaws into the Osier bed in Pishiobury park. By the time we left the trees were laden; a most impressive sight.

here's the OS map of the tetrad.