A Grey Day

On the way home from the shops I decided to drop into Lawns and have a quick walk around both pools. Apart from a noisy Great Spotted Woodpecker, there was very little going on. On the bottom pool there were 23 Mallard (18 drake, 5 duck) with most of them on the banks sunning themselves. A lone Canada Goose made its way round the pool, and looked a bit poorly. On its throat there was a patch where a few feathers were missing, possibly from a fight of some sort. Just a bit odd!

Bottom Pool looking back towards Cardigan Close

Bottom Pool again but looking towards the Woods

Great Spotted Woodpecker

Two drake Mallard

A lone Canada Goose

Also on the bottom pool there were 3 Moorhens, with one struggling to stand on a branch in the wind. After a few seconds it gave up and swam back to the bank.

A Moorhen struggling in the wind

On the way up to the top pool a couple of trees had fallen in the gales from a week or so back. One had crashed onto the island and the other across the path. The council I presume have cut a section out of the trunk so that you can now walk up the slope.

Two fallen trees

In the woods there was plenty going on with many species now pairing up. A pair of Long-tailed Tits shot past me as did a Coal Tit, a pair of Great Tits and a pair of Blue Tits. In wasn't just the birds either as I counted at least 4 Grey Squirrels, just around the lake.

Long-tailed Tit

Grey Squirrel

And another one

And yet another one

On the top pool there were 10 Mallard (8 drake, 2 duck) and a Coot. Strangely enough the resident Mute Swans were nowhere to be seen!

The Top Pool

The path between the two pools

As I walked between the two pools I could see a Magpie collecting twigs and as I came down the slope on the other side of the bottom pool, I could see her building a big nest on top of a swaying tree. Not the best of nesting sites.

Magpie collecting nesting material

As I left the pools and made my way back to the car I could hear more Goldfinches jangling away in the tree tops and a Squirrel number 5 on the path in front of me.

Goldfinch