Bunk

Sunny spells, 12°, light S.

Bunk line covered twice today, Alan, a.m. and myself p.m. Alan also covered the River and Lollingdon but both somewhat quiet.

The Gravel pit hosted 2 Little Ring Plover, 6 Tufted Duck, 2 Teal, 3 Mallard, 2 Herring Gull and a Swallow dropped in for a drink and continued north.

Bunk Line, Little Owl, 14 Lesser Blackback Gull, 2 Black-headed Gull, 6 Fieldfare, 2 Redwing, several Yellowhammer, Chiffchaff, Blackcap, Linnet etc.

Sparrowhawk almost took a Blackbird in the garden this morning but not quite quick enough.

Butterflies: Brimstone, Peacock and Small Tortoiseshell.

3 Little Ringed Plover from yesterday courtesy Alan

Herring Gull courtesy Alan

Tufted Duck (M&F)

LRP again plus Teal

Sunshine, 10°, light WNW.

Alan checked out the gravel pit this morning and found 3 Little Ringed Plover present. Potential for breeding as a pair seen mating.

Little Ringed Plover first nested in the UK in 1938 and have successfully spread through England and Wales. This colonisation has been attributed to an increase in their preferred gravelly habitats - man-made flooded gravel pits, reservoirs and quarries have provided them with just the right breeding grounds.(courtesy WT). 

2 Teal also present.

Teal

LRP

First Swallow

Sunny intervals, 10°, light N.

Both Alan and I on Lollingdon Hill today, 3 Wheatear noted, a female on the south slope and 2 male on the west side.

Alan also had our first Swallow of the year fly over mid-afternoon.

A Corn Bunting also present. Nearby, 2 Redwing, a Little Owl and a Peregrine Falcon.

At least 3 Blackcap in song plus Mistle Thrush, Song Thrush, Blackbird, Chiffchaff and various others.

Usual Yellowhammer, Reed Bunting and Linnet along the hedgerows and several Goldfinch, Greenfinch and Chaffinch present.

Mammals: Brown Hare and an Otter reported in Cholsey Brook.

Butterflies: Brimstone, Small White and Small Tortoiseshell.

Wheatear (F)

Wheatear (M) courtesy Alan

Chiffchaff courtesy Alan

Wheatears

Rain showers, 12°, breezy SW.

The first Wheatears of the year on Lollingdon Hill found by Alan today and a Blackcap singing near the garden in the brook meadow.

Still quiet

Cloudy with occasional sunshine, 12°, moderate W.

Alan the only one out so far this week and still no summer migrants noted.

Lollingdon produced a flock of around 50 Fieldfare, a handful of Redwing plus Little Owl and a few Chiffchaff.

Winter returns

Rain, Sleet and Snow showers, 6°, blustery NNE.

Only Alan out today as I was otherwise engaged and not a lot noted as I would expect.

All quiet out at Lollingdon with just Little Owl and Fieldfare of note.

The first Dark-edged Bee-fly of the year noted today.

Dark-edged Bee-fly (2019)

A chilly old day

Cloudy and hazy, 8°, light NNE.

A chilly day than of late and very little noted by both Alan and me, both out at Lollingdon.

A Peregrine Falcon seen atop one of the pylons between Little Lollingdon and Westfield Road.

The hill was very quiet with 5-6 Red Kite and a couple of Buzzard around, nearby a small flock of Fieldfare and several Chiffchaff but that was about it.

Mammals: Brown Hare and a Hedgehog in the garden tonite.

When there is little else around a Red Kite is always on hand. Bottom one courtesy Alan.

Rain for a change

Overcast with early rain, 9°, light NNE.

The Bunk line area was fairly quiet this morning, 8 Tufted Duck and 6 Canada Geese at the Gravel pit along with 3 Black-headed Gull.

A few Yellowhammer in song to brighten up an otherwise dull day plus a couple of Chiffchaff.

Alan covered Lollingdon and noted Little Owl and a singing Blackcap. The river produced a Cetti’s Warbler, another Blackcap, Chiffchaff and a Grey Wagtail.

Bill Nicholls sent me some pics of a pair of Starling nest building in his garden.

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Full marks to Alan for this. Whilst out birding recently he saw a sheep in the distance on its back with its legs in the air. Curiosity got the better of him as he thought it was dead so he decided to approach it.

He cautiously navigated over the electric fence and as he got near, he noticed some movement. He grabbed the sheep and righted it and after a few wobbly moments the sheep made off to join the flock.

The sheep was very pregnant and this time of year has a full fleece. It is possible that due to movement of the youngster and the weight of the fleece the sheep lost balance and fell and ended up on her back and for a sheep in this condition that is almost impossible to recover from. As it was at the latter end of the day the sheep may have not been seen in time and may well have died overnight.

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A Reeve’s Pheasant was seen again from Westfield Road. Per Paula Kennedy.

Mammals: Brown Hare & Roe Deer.

Starling courtesy Bill Nicholls

Golden Plover from yesterday, beginning to look smart as they come into summer plumage. courtesy Alan.

Chiffchaff courtesy Alan

Bunk & Lollingdon

Misty at first then clouding over, 16°, light ENE.

Alan up at Silly Bridge early with a few Corn Bunting and Skylark.

Later along the Bunk line and Gravel Pit. 2 Shoveler and 4 Tufted Duck present on the pit.

And 100+ Fieldfare along the Bunk, plus a Little Owl, 2 Herring Gull, 40’ish Golden Plover, a Grey Wagtail and several Chiffchaff.

I trekked out to Lollingdon. The flooded field, now almost dry had a flock of 40+ Meadow Pipit and a few Pied Wagtail feeding.

The Hill was fairly quiet other than 100+ Fieldfare that flew over in a couple of flocks.

Nearby, a handful of Redwing, more Fieldfare, 2 Little Owl, several Corn Bunting, Reed Bunting and Yellowhammer.

Sparrowhawk and Wren in the garden today. The Wren is regular and the Hawk an opportunistic visitor.

Mammals: Brown Hare and Roe Deer.

Butterflies: Brimstone and Peacock.

A Wren systematically searching the garden pots for prey

Pied Wagtail

Reed Bunting

Roe Deer courtesy Alan

Still waiting

Sunshine, 18°, light N.

Another quiet day and a walk out to Lollingdon, I know it is still a bit early but still waiting for some summer migrants to appear.

First time for a while, no "winter thrushes" seen today.  

A Raven flew south over the hill but very little else around!

Alan reported 2 Great Crested Grebe along the river (first of the year) this afternoon but appeared to be just passing thru.

Mammals: Brown Hare and Roe Deer.

Butterflies: Brimstone, Peacock and Red Admiral.

Getting warmer

Sunshine again, 18°, light SE.

Alan did the tour today visiting Lollingdon, Silly Bridge and the River but as of late birdwise, it is very quiet.

Corn Bunting, Meadow Pipit and Skylark at the first two sites and Cetti’s, Warbler, Chiffchaff, Reed Bunting, Little Grebe and Water Rail along the river.

I took an early afternoon walk along the Bunk line. The Gravel pit has a lot of work going on and was virtually deserted by birds, apart from a few Black-headed Gull and Lesser Blackback Gull.

Good numbers of Yellowhammer and Linnet present in the hedgerows and several Chiffchaff and a Little Owl noted.

Numbers of Fieldfare and Redwing have decreased markedly over the last few days. Probably all headed back north of the wall!  

Butterflies: Brimstone, Small Tortoiseshell, Peacock and Comma.

Yellowhammer

Corn Bunting courtesy Alan

Small Tortoiseshell courtesy Alan

Greylag Goose courtesy Alan

Yellowhammer

No jacket required

A sunny day, 15°, light SE.

A warm day and a pleasant walk out to Lollingdon and back, however another quiet day and even quieter than yesterday.

A mix of Rook, Jackdaw, Starling, Fieldfare and Redwing feeding out amongst the sheep and up to 6 Red Kite and 2 Buzzard soaring around over the hill but little else going on.

Elsewhere on route much the same as yesterday.

Alan out along the river with Cetti’s Warbler, Water Rail and several Chiffchaff.

Mammals: Roe Deer and Brown Hare.

Butterflies: plenty of Brimstone, a Small White, and several Small Tortoiseshell, Peacock and Comma.

Not much at all

Cloudy with sunny intervals, 14°, light SE.

A day for not finding much at all. Apart from a small influx of Chiffchaff last week and a LRP at the gravel pit there has not been anything in the way of migrants yet!

Lollingdon was particularly quiet with very little on the hill, however the song of Skylark was always in the air.

Nearby a small flock of c40 Redwing and a couple of Fieldfare present and the Little Owl in its usual spot.

The walk also produced a singing Reed Bunting, several Yellowhammer and Chiffchaff.

Alan checked out Sill Bridge area and apart from several Corn Bunting, very little to speak of.

The gravel pit also quiet birdwise but noisy due to work going on there.

Mammals: Brown Hare and Roe Deer.

Butterflies: Brimstone, Comma and Peacock and a Small Tortoiseshell on the allotments yesterday.

Brown Hare ↕ (lower courtesy Alan)

Redwing

A Butterfly day

Mainly sunny after a misty start, 14°, light E.

A quiet day on the hill today with just a few Meadow Pipit and several small flocks of Fieldfare and Redwing passing thru.

Nearby the Little Owl showing and a single Lapwing on the flood. Skylark were in good voice in most areas.

Alan had a similar day on Silly Bridge with a few Corn Bunting and Cholsey hill also fairly quiet with 3 Lapwing.

Mammals: Roe Deer and Brown Hare.

Butterflies: A Good day with many Brimstone on the wing plus a Peacock and a Small Tortoiseshell.

LRP

Sunny periods, 12°, light WSW.

The Gravel pit hosted our first Little Ringed Plover of the year today, along with a Green Sandpiper, 5 Tufted Duck, a Mute Swan and Little Grebe.

Elsewhere along the Bunk Line, Little Owl, 2+ Chiffchaff, 2 Reed Bunting, 15+ Yellowhammer, several Meadow Pipit and Skylark and a handful of Fieldfare and Redwing. (PC & AD).

c100 Gulls loafing in a field, mainly Black-headed Gull, c30 Lesser Blackback Gull and a Herring Gull.

Little Ringed Plover courtesy Alan

Little Ringed Plover      

Lesser Blackback Gull

Black-headed Gull