There is a large wood just south of Sambourne which I have never watched birds in. Ironically I did once go there at dusk on one of David Brown's moth-trapping events (before I even owned a trap), so this morning I was keen to see what birds I could find.
My hope was that I could winkle out a Crossbill or two. I quickly established it looked good for them, but I didn't find any. Instead there were stacks of Siskins twittering from the tops of the conifers, and also one or two Lesser Redpolls. Whether they stay to breed is currently unknown.
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| Siskin - male |
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| Lesser Redpoll |
Once you've established that a predominantly coniferous wood has no obvious Crossbills, you are left with a limited selection of other birds to look at. Coal Tits and Goldcrests rivalled the Siskins in numbers and in their ability to hide from view.
The wood was mighty impressive and can be viewed from a bridle path. Heart of England Forest now owns it and have been improving the habitat. There are large stands of birches, and some interesting open areas which could bear fruit in future.
The nearest thing to a surprise was a calling Chiffchaff which eventually broke into song. My attempts to photograph it were largely thwarted, but I did get a couple of blurry record shots.
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| Chiffchaff |
Nice to know they are back.
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| Catkins |
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| Fallow Deer |
I'm so used to seeing Roe Deer, that I almost overlooked the Fallow Deer staring at me through the trees.
I'm looking forward to returning later in the spring.
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