Murmarations

A sunny day, 5°, light S.

Still not a lot happening out there. Lollingdon produced a Little Egret and a single Raven plus good numbers of Fieldfare and several Redwing and Starling and a 2 Mistle Thrush with the flocks.

Alan covered the river area with the usual Goose species, plus 2 Little Grebe, Kingfisher, Goldcrest, Nuthatch and Chiffchaff.

There have been a couple of Starling roosts in the village recently with a couple of small murmurations being seen in Papist Way and the Station Road area.

Mammals: Brown Hare.

Starlings courtesy Bill Nicholls ↕

Starlings, a scarcity (in the garden).

Sunny, 16º, light wind.

For the last few days several Starlings have appeared in the garden (max 4 ad and 1 juv) and a couple of adults have been foraging and collecting food in the garden for the last three days so presumably nesting nearby. The five that turned up are the first in the garden since last autumn, will see if they stay around! Quite a few around the village so far this spring.

Elsewhere has been rather quiet with little on Lollingdon hill except for the local breeding species, Cholsey marsh very similar.

A Speckled Wood butterfly in the garden on Thursday was the first of the year and at least two Hedgehog regular in garden.

A pair of Yellow Wagtail on Cholsey hill.

Cholsey, 29th Oct

Several Goldcrest on Lollingdon hill today (also a few near the four Arches along the Thames).

A bird not seen in Cholsey for a few years in the shape of a Tree Sparrow seen in association with some Chaffinch along a hedgerow near the hill, also some Corn Bunting in the vicinity.

A flock of approximately five hundred Starling (which I also saw as I came home today) around the hill ranging around the pig farm and nearby fields, also good numbers of Fieldfare and Redwing.

Thanks to TW for the information.

Appears not to have been much in the garden recently as the feeders are still relatively full after my ten-day absence, however a Moorhen feeding at dusk and a Pheasant trying to gain entry to the garden by trying to walk through the fence rather than jump or fly over it!