Terry Brown

Very much admire the effort but coffee toast a bowl of coco pops and watching Match of the Day did it for me this morning 😀

My morning rituals of late has been pretty much the same - wake up when alarm sounds looks out the window check weather - says "nope" - goes back to sleep - spend the rest of the day feeling miserable bored and fed up - then hope the next day is gonna be at least a dry one

2 male Goosander the highlight of a 6 hour amble on a grey dreary day at PaxtonNR The usual ducks was present & totals were 53 Gadwall 4 Teal 177 Wigeon 20 Goldeneye 49 Pochard 52 Shoveller & 182 Tufted Duck A flock of 28 Fieldfare on the deck were a decent number & several singing Song Thrush heard

So much mud and water making Ferry Lagoon impassable in places but at least I managed to pick up the Red Breasted Merganser though a tad distant from my positioning point @cambsbirdclub.bsky.social

Always a delight to be at PaxtonNR when the sun shines In to the notebook went 90 Gadwall 65 Wigeon 48 Shoveller 21 Teal 19 Pochard 20 Goleneye 180 Tufted Duck & a male Goosander Plus Great Egret 2 Red Kite 2 Buzzard 161 Lapwing 5 Little Grebe & 23 Common Gull

Cold but sunny at Freiston Shore this morning Still a lot if work going on to improve this RSPB Reserve but I'm sure it's gonna improve the area massively when it's finished

The Peregrine is sat in its usual place at Frampton Marsh RSPB this morning You can just about make out the barn in the distance but alas not the bird itself

My arrival at @rspb.bsky.social HQ at Sandy this morning was in synch with arrival of 5 Crossbills in the trees by the car park A cracking male and 4 females Great birds to see in the morning sunshine

A decent visit to PaxtonNR today Birds were active in the sunshine with the highlights being Green Sandpiper Sparrowhawk Chiffchaff & 3 Goosander Others making it in to the notebook included 32 Goldeneye 92 Wigeon 66 Shoveller 188 Tufted Duck 6 Pochard 131 Lapwing 4 Buzzard & 7 Little Grebe

Sanderling at PaxtonNR this morning on the exposed mud in Southwest corner of Island lake First one I've seen in what I call the southern section of the reserve Dodgy photo through scope though but at least you can tell what it is @cambsbirdclub.bsky.social

A bright sunny day was spent at PaxtonNR today My rewards included 240 Wigeon 200 Tufted Duck 30 Teal 220 Gadwall
48 Shoveller 144 Lapwing 131 Common Gull 25 Redwing and 6 Fieldfare

A few things eluded my gaze today but if the reason for going to Abberton Reservoir was to add Smew to the year list the day should be considered a success Whitefronts were also added with a healthy gaggle of 27 Several Goosanders a Red Crested Pochard a Marsh Harrier & a Green Sandpiper also noted

My annual visit to Abberton Reservoir begins

Todays obs for Ferry Lagoon/Mere & Swavesy 3 Goosander 37 Tufted Duck 62 Gadwall 290 Teal 7 Shoveller 4 Pintail 220 Wigeon 5 Goldeneye 2 Pochard 21 Little Grebe 19 GC Grebe Marsh Harrier Sparrowhawk 2 Great Egret Stonechat 11 Redwing 4 Fieldfare @cambsbirdclub.bsky.social

At PaxtonNR today - first time in 3 weeks - The scope got used checking the water birds cos there was little in the shrubbery Duck numbers included 59 Shoveller 104 Gadwall 178 Wigeon 18 Goldeneye 142 Pochard & 250 Tufted Duck A few Redwing were about plus Goldcrest Bullfinch Red Kite & Kingfisher

My mojo which vanished just before Christmas has returned to a level high enough for a walk around farmland close to my Baldock abode this morning It was however a tad quiet and somewhat cold in a fresh breeze Highlights being a small Lapwing flock & a good number of Common Gulls Observations below

In Gran Canaria for a week Not a birding holiday but bins never too far away A coastal walk near Las Palmas revealed a few things - Canary Island Chiffchaff Wood Sandpiper Whimbrel Turnstone many Yellow-legged Gulls and a Kestrel

Crossed the Thames today for a look at Cliffe RSPB Not a lot seen on the main loop with little on the pools & in the shrubbery The only notables were 1345 Lapwing 36 Redshank 2 Greenshank 270 Golden Plover 3 Pintail 40 Fieldfare & a Marsh Harrier

Not surprised the number of Teal at PaxtonNR have decreased again The water levels have increased yet again leaving just 42 in situ today Good to see the diving ducks doing well though with 182 Pochard 210 Tufties & 18 Goldeneye noted The Shrubbery revealed just 2 Chiffchaffs & 22 Redwing

Glossy Ibis at Fen Drayton RSPB this morning On Ferry Lagoon viewable from wooden platform near car park @cambsbirdclub.bsky.social @rarebirder.bsky.social

Higher water levels = reduction in some wildfowl at PaxtonNR Exposed islands reduced considerably in places but still a fair amount to see including 12 Goldeneye 100 Gadwall 34 Shoveller 95 Teal 33 Pochard & 40 Wigeon A few Redwing noted 3 high flying Buzzards may have been movers plus a Sparrowhawk

A female Goosander a worthy mentionable at Fen Drayton in that it's my first of the cold season which is now upon us Also 2 Marsh Harriers and a Grey Wagtail so far this morning

Don't see Pintail at PaxtonNR very often so the 3 female seen today are very much welcomed The cold weather bringing them in no doubt The same cold weather that contributed to the increase in Goldeneye to 12 A bit of ice coating the lakes in places but duck numbers included 44 Pochard & 165 Teal

It was a tad cold early morning at PaxtonNR Around 30 Redwing were feeding on the berries & 24 Fieldfare went overhead along with a group of 120 Woodpigeon Despite the cold duck numbers were a little low but did included 6 Goldeneye 135 Teal 140 Wigeon 25 Shoveller & a couple of Chiffs were heard

There may have been thousands of birds at Ouse Wash RSPB but todays visit was more memorable due to the dead Swans littering the place Around 25 maybe 30 noted Sad to see And with a Buzzsrd feasting on one of 'em it could be a bleek winter ahead

Don't expect to see much when I take a walk at RSPBHQ in Sandy but a few moments ago I flushed a Woodcock from the side of a footpath and watched it fly off for a few seconds before it disappeared from sight - Crackin'

A leaving gift from Martin and the team Pallas's Warbler What a stunner

Well just as you thought birding couldn't get any better a Pallid Swift flies over my head in top fields What a day on Portland and it ain't over yet

I haven't stopped smiling all morning Black-faced Bunting on Portland

The weather on Portland has been awful today and got worse as the day went on Gannets and Auks abundant om the sea but the land quiet again An overhead Siskin and a Sparrowhawk were my highlights Better weather expected tomorrow so hoping for change in fortunes