Hit and Miss

Cloudy, rain, 12º, fresh SW.

Arrived on the marsh around 14:30 and the Shrike had been seen briefly to fly across the marsh and down river, was looked for by another birder down towards the four arches but not seen so may have crossed the river, still appears to be roaming over quite a big area on both sides of the Thames.

Not a great deal else seen and did not stay for the roost tonight, one lone Lapwing flying over and twenty Teal flew from the marsh were the only birds of note.

John Day (from Worcester) whom I met this afternoon at the marsh left after me and has emailed me to say at least twenty five Common Snipe dropped into the marsh later and more arriving when he left and Reed Bunting were dropping into the Sedge to roost. Thanks!

The Thames is flooding more, the flow is now going on to the marsh again, and the water is now around thirty metres up Ferry rd.

I also forgot to add a couple of things from yesterday, eighty plus Lapwing seen distantly towards the railway appeared to be looking for somewhere to set down and a Stoat crossed Ferry rd.

Have had an email today that 800+ Corn Bunting have been counted in a field in Essex that was especially sown for wild birds! That is one big flock of Corn Buntings.

Shrike etc

All the snow appears to have gone now but a showery and windy day with some rain and hail.

The Great Grey Shrike still present today and seen well from Ferry rd, eight Lesser Redpoll in one of the bank side Alders and six Shovelor flew upstream.

A Barn Owl seen over the marsh yesterday evening.

Thank you to Paul Rainsden for the info.

As I am not out in Cholsey every day I would like to say a thank you to all the birders that have been emailing me information on the Shrike and other birds etc that have been seen, Cheers

Full moon from Wantage

Corn Buntings!

Overcast (again), 0º, no wind! Where has the weather and the sunshine gone!

Great Grey Shrike again on the Cholsey side of the Thames at Cholsey marsh late this afternoon but distant as usual.

Most impressive though was a count of 387 Corn Buntings that came into the roost this evening, in fact so many that they were roosting on parts of the marsh that they do not usually use. We estimated that the roost held roughly 2% of the British population of Corn Bunting!

30 to 40 Reed Buntings and a couple of Yellowhammer also roosting there.

Sparrowhawk, a single Common Snipe noted and possibly five Egyptian Geese seen distantly flying upriver towards Wallingford at dusk, 20+ Lesser Redpoll flew north from the marsh earlier and a Little Grebe and Great Crested Grebe on the river and 2 Grey Heron flew upriver, also several Water Rail heard.

The marsh itself is quite frozen over at the moment with very few areas that are ice free and water is still draining from the marsh into the river in a few places.

N.B. If visiting Cholsey Marsh for the Shrike late afternoon, please avoid disturbing the roost on the marsh. The Shrike (if about) can be seen from Ferry Rd. Thank you

Just a note from outside of Cholsey: There is a Common Buzzard I see quite often along the A417 Between East Hendred and Ardington “Hendred straight” that has a very striking white breast; it stands out like a beacon in the hedgerow. Anyone else noted this?

Corn Bunting from last year on Lollingdon Hill
 Thanks to Michael Pocock for the Bunting count.

At last!

Overcast, 0º, intermittent snow showers but a thaw is happening.

At last, I caught up with the Shrike, I joined Bob Wyatt down at Cholsey marsh and later a few others joined us. We learned that it been seen around 13:00 by Peter Law but no sign until around 15:45 it appeared in the tree tops a fair distance away. As it was snowing, I had put the camera away so had to dash back to the car, get the camera, grab a few shots (almost on the run) and get back to where we were viewing it and typical........it flew off and chased some Redpoll, but at least we had finally seen it.

It then appeared about fifteen minutes later in the top of a tall Alder and then disappeared again after a couple of minutes. A very elusive bird!

The Cetti’s Warbler seen briefly and heard calling and the usual Water Rail calling at dusk and a ♀ Sparrowhawk flew through, three Great-spotted and one Green Woodpecker seen.

Two hundred plus Corn Bunting present at the roost this evening and there is certainly more than one roost site with another on the other side of the river, again in Phragmites! The vast majority though in the usual spot. With these numbers of Corn Bunting turning up here, it has to be a major site for this species in this area of Southern England!

Again twenty plus Reed Bunting roosting and a couple of Meadow Pipit.

A Mistle Thrush dominating the garden this morning and being very possessive of the sultanas much to the annoyance of the Blackcap, the three Robins and Song Thrush that were feeding on them. A couple of Redwing and Fieldfare early on but then left.

Distant photo of the Shrike

Mistle Thrush in the garden

The still elusive Shrike.

Overcast, 2º, light NE, slight rain/sleet/snow?

The Great Grey Shrike seen a few times briefly this afternoon on the “Stoke” side of the Thames by Roger and ranging down to the four arches but three of us on the Cholsey side did not see it.

Around two hundred Corn Bunting again roosting and on another part of the marsh twenty plus Reed Bunting and a few Meadow Pipit roosting.

A ♂ Merlin flew through at around 16:30 and almost took a small passerine but missed and a Kestrel hunting over the marsh.

Several Lesser Redpoll present again feeding on seed heads and a couple of Water Rail heard and a Great-spotted Woodpecker present.

Twenty plus Common Snipe Flew over heading east.

The garden was busy this morning with up to ten of each Redwing and Fieldfare, three Song Thrush, two Mistle Thrush and ten plus Blackbird did not see much else as I had to go out.

Lesser Redpoll

Fieldfare & Redwing in the garden

Shrike

I was not around today so no birding or garden news, as I did not get home until after dark, but..................

The Great Grey Shrike seen again today between Little Stoke and South Stoke close to the riverbank on the opposite side of the Thames from Cholsey marsh mid afternoon.

N.B. If visiting this site in the late afternoon, please avoid disturbing the roost site on the marsh, the Shrike can be viewed from Ferry Lane, thank you.

Report of up to two hundred Corn Bunting estimated at the roost this evening, not unusual for that increase in these weather conditions.

The Cetti’s Warbler seen today and up to four Water Rail heard and there appears to be around sixty Common Snipe roosting on the marsh.

Also a “white rumped” Common Buzzard in the area so be aware.

Reed Buntings visiting gardens more frequently at the moment with at least three gardens in the village reporting them as being present in the last few days and I saw two in a central Wantage garden today.

The Elusive Shrike

Overcast, light snow, 0°, little wind.

Walked down to Cholsey marsh at first light this morning (roads in village very icy) and spent 2 hours looking for the Shrike but unfortunately not found. However quite a lot going on including plenty of boat crews out sculling on the Thames (they must be as mad as me being out at that time of day and in poor weather).

Brian and Roger Wyatt were both searching the area on the “Stoke” side of the river for the Shrike but no luck with them also but around 50 Common Snipe in the field there.

However the Great Grey Shrike was seen at 13:45 in the same place as yesterday but not since, I guess it is ranging over a wide area and best looked for on the "Stoke" side of the river.

Anyway back to the marsh, around twenty Teal flushed off the river by the boats and a few on the marsh on the unfrozen areas, also twenty plus Common Snipe present. Two Grey Heron and three Cormorant flying upriver.

The Cetti’s Warbler seen briefly but again very active and calling also a Chiffchaff with a Tit flock that passed through, and a Great-spotted Woodpecker on the other side of the river “drumming”.

At least five Siskin seen and heard flying over and eventually seen feeding on the bank side Alders and up to five Lesser Redpoll feeding on seed heads from plants on the marsh and numbers of Meadow Pipit feeding on the frozen surface of part of the marsh, a couple of Bullfinch heard calling.

Several Corn Bunting still present on the marsh including one singing also several Reed Bunting present and feeding with the Meadow Pipits.

Both Kestrel and Sparrowhawk seen and a Nuthatch seen and heard in the trees along Ferry Rd.

The Eastender reports four Lesser Redpoll on nyger seed feeders in the garden for around a month now and a Reed Bunting present yesterday.

Cholsey Brook had a Cormorant, two Common Snipe, two Meadow Pipit, three Teal, four Mallard and ten Lapwing in an adjacent field.

Richard has seen a Ruff in a field next to the Bunk line along with a lot of Common Snipe and several Lapwing; presumably the Ruff is the one that was wintering on the South Moreton floods (dont often get Ruff in Cholsey a rarity for here).

Three more new birds for the year in Cholsey today, Chiffchaff, Nuthatch and Ruff.

The garden this morning very much the same as yesterday.

Lesser Redpolls

Great Grey Shrike (again?)

Overcast, low cloud, 0º, no wind.

Had a call late this afternoon that a Great Grey Shrike has been seen at Cholsey Meadows (Cholsey Marsh) near the river! Is it possible this could be the same bird that was seen on 21^st Dec last year in Lollingdon, I wonder?

It appears it was seen on the opposite bank of the river (at Little Stoke) from Cholsey marsh downstream from Ferry rd.

(Thanks to "The early birders" for finding it and Badger for the call.)

Photo courtesy © “The early birders”

Great Grey Shrike

Sunny spells. 10º, light W.

A patch tick for me today in the form of a Great Grey Shrike, I missed the last one in 2002 on Lollingdon hill as I was out of the county at the time.

I decided to walk out to Lollingdon as it had been raining for the past two days and needed to get out. The footpaths were very damp and muddy; some were ankle deep in water.

 I got out to Lollingdon and rather than walk out via Aston I turned back and headed back towards Cholsey, thinking of getting back to the Bullshole and then out to the Lees. A few hundred metres back a Great Grey Shrike flew up on to the hedgerow in front of me, I think it was as surprised as I was and it then flew off down the hedge. I tried to get a couple of photos but it was too distant so I tried to close on it but it was very flighty and eventually flew across the fields and settled in a tree even further away. I could not cross the field, as it was flooded so I had to go back the way I came, in the mean time making a few phone calls.

Halfway back I noticed the bird had left the tree and was nowhere in sight I continued to look and was joined by Brian Wyatt and a couple of other birders later but no luck, very frustrating not to have got a photo but enjoyed seeing the bird.

Grid ref of first sighting was SU864575.

The fields and the footpaths in the area are very soggy and muddy so if anyone thinking of looking tomorrow please ensure you have good footwear and keep to the public paths please.

A lot of Fieldfare and Redwing in the area and twenty plus Pied Wagtail on a flooded field and a couple of Common Snipe.

Around fifty Lesser Blackback and Black-headed Gull and two Common Gull noted along with two Lapwing flocks, one of twenty three and another of fifty plus.

Sparrowhawk, Kestrel, Buzzard and Red Kite all seen, also a Peregrine seen distantly that put up a lot of gulls and corvids near Aston Tirrold.

Song Thrush and Coal Tit singing along Church rd today in the sunshine.