Brent Res Jan 9th
Hoping to get something new in the cold weather. And with a biting NE wind it was really cold out so I was quite relieved to get to the hide for some shelter. There was still some large patches of clear water amongst the ice but despite scanning several times I couldn't find anything new. And so the skies, plenty more scanning produced some flocks of Redwing & Fieldfare over but nothing else. As I was thinking of leaving at 11.30 I suddenly noticed a lot of birds flying around over the South Bank - must be a raptor I thought and quickly picked up a large bird of prey being mobbed by a Crow. I got the other people in the hide onto the bird and we could soon see that it was a Common Buzzard. It picked up a few more Crows in pursuit as it cro…
Westminster Jan 7th
I decided to brave the freezing conditions and have a wander around St James's Park at lunchtime. I did seriously consider whether it was worth it when I got there as the orbital path was akin to an ice rink. Still, as I'd managed to get there I decided to continue anyway as there was bound to be some yearticks to be had on my Westminster patchlist. I changed the boundaries on my Westminster patch this year so I could include the park and have settled on a 1km radius from my office in Great Smith Street.
Finally managed to nail Blackbird & Robin - must be a sign of the times when one gets Ring-necked Parakeet on one's patchlist three days before Robin! Also had a good scan of the ducks and managed to find a Ruddy Duck amongst the captive Wh…
Brent Res Jan 6th
I didn't expect to add anything to my Brent list today as it was a work day. However, it had snowed in Westminster all morning and was getting heavier by early afternoon so I thought I'd leave early while the Jubilee Line was still running! By the time I arrived in Neasden it was nearly a blizzard and the snow had settled to a depth of about 10 centimetres or 4 inches if you're over 60.
With a bit of daylight remaining I went up Neasden Rec with the intention of scanning the wildfowl for anything interesting. It was quite hard work as the only open patches were on the far bank and the snow was coming down heavily - straight into my scope. Needless to say I didn't see much except I did flush a Meadow Pipit on the way which was new for the ye…
Westminster Jan 4
Typically my first addition to my Westminster 2010 yearlist was a Feral Pigeon as I walked from the tube station to my office. At lunchtime I had a walk around St James's Park. THe lake was mostly frozen over but there were still plenty of tourists around. I managed to get 25 species including most of the regulars with Egyptian Goose & 4 Ring-necked Parakeets the best species although both of these exotics have become fairly regular now. I particularly enjoyed the female Smew & Red-breasted Merganser but as they're part of the collection I couldn't count them on the list. Maybe in this cold spell I'll get some real ones?
Brent Res Jan 3rd
Well it didn't take long - just my third visit to Brent this year and I failed to add a yeartick. Without anything moving there wasn't much prospect really. I counted all the Teal - 182 which I think is a new site record. Also took a 'walk' through the jungle of East Marsh, the path in front of the factories has long overgrown, disappeared, got blocked by fallen trees, crossed by pollution spills etc. There was a chance of Chiffchaff and I did hear a sinle call which could have been but didn't see anything.
I won't have much time to add anything else now for the rest of the week as I'll be at work. Still got to pop up at dusk and listen for owls.