Mud glorious mud, nothing quite.............

I didn't expect quite so much mud, but there was heaps of it on our walk around the Cotswold Water Park this afternoon. Dawn and I started off at the Gateway Centre and walked one of the six circular walks the Cotswold Water Park have put together.  The one we chose today was Walk no.1 which takes you on a 3 mile trek around pits 6, 9, 71, 67, 10, 11, Churn Pool and back around pit 6 again before you return to the Gateway Centre.

Walk 1 of the 6 Circular Walks

As we left the Gateway Centre there was a pair of Mute Swans in the Thames and Severn Canal which due to the recent heavy rainfall, was running quite strongly with the extra flood water. This was quite noticeable at the lock gates by the Canal Gatehouse as it poured over the Lock Gates.

Canal Gatehouse lock gates

Beyond the Gatehouse we walked through Cerney Wick and it was quite evident that there had been a fair bit of rain here as well.  The fields, River Thames and side streams were saturated in rain water, making our walk quite difficult along the muddy paths. A Chiffchaff certainly lifted our spirits as we waded through the mud.

Cerney Wick's muddy paths

The pathway improved slightly as we passed Pit 9 and a short stop revealed a fair number of water fowl. There were large numbers of Wigeon, Tufted Duck, Gadwall and several Goldeneye present. Further out there were Canada Geese, Cormorant and one or two Great Crested Grebe.

Wigeon in flight

Two drake Goldeneye

From Pit 9 we headed down past Pit 71 towards the old railway track. Last year the fields on the right used to have horses in, but it appears the farmer has put a few sheep in here instead. I guess its bad luck on the sheep as the field they are now in is absolutely saturated. You have to feel for them as they are in a right state wading through wet mud and water. Not a good move I think from the farmer. Having said that several hundred Back-headed Gulls thought differently and so did 60+ Pied Wagtails that found the conditions to their liking.

How many Pied Wagtails can you count in this photo? Answer at the bottom of  today's blog...

A lone sheep braving the muddy fields

From the old Railway track we headed back towards Pit 8 and yet again, through more quagmire.  Dawn and I have walked the Cotswold Water Park many times but today was definitely the worst it's ever been. 

More mud and water

Having managed to make our way towards Pit 8 there was once again a familiar sight.  Looking towards Pit 67 there was a Kestrel hovering.  Nothing unusual  I know, but it's been at least 7 months since we have walked this particular route and the same or different Kestrel is hovering over the same area of land it did last time we passed this way.

Kestrel

Its always nice to get a few new species on my 2013 Bird List and must admit I wasn't expecting to get Red-crested Pochard.  I know there are quite a few at Neigh Bridge but I wasn't expecting to see a pair on Pit 9. The photo isn't the best as they were quite a way out, but never-the-less I was well pleased to get a photo of them.

Red-crested Pochard

From Pit 9 on our right, we passed Pits 11, Churn Pool Trout Fishery on our left and then  walked over the River Thames towards Pit 6. As we did so there was a large party of Redwing in the adjacent Field, which took off as soon as we walked along the path.

Reed Bunting (Female)

Along the bank of Pit 6 towards the Gateway Centre we came across a female Reed Bunting in the Hedgerow. I just managed a photograph before she flew off.

All in all this was a really good walk and despite the mud & excess water we managed a total of 41 bird species, which considering the conditions was pretty good.

Here is the list of species recorded between 1:50pm to 3:25pm: Great Crested Grebe, Little Grebe, Cormorant, Mute Swan, Canada Goose, Mallard, Gadwall, Wigeon, Tufted Duck, Goldeneye, Red-crested Pochard, Kestrel, Moorhen, Coot, Black-headed Gull, Herring Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Woodpigeon, Collared Dove, Pied Wagtail, Starling, Magpie, Rook, Carrion Crow, Jackdaw, Wren, Dunnock, Chiffchaff, Goldcrest, Robin, Blackbird, Redwing, Song Thrush, Mistle Thrush, Great Tit, Blue Tit, Long-tailed Tit, Chaffinch, Goldfinch, Siskin, Greenfinch and Reed Bunting. Total 41

Oh and the number of Wagtails in the photo was 6.

Nightingale Wood

A quick walk around Nightingale Wood this afternoon, turned out to be quite disappointing. Only 14 species of birds were recorded and 3 Roe Deer in Brook Meadow.

Roe Deer

One of three Roe Deer in Brook Meadow

Of all the birds seen the only highlight was 1000+ Starlings heading west at about 3:10pm.  The other species noted were Great Tit, Blue Tit, Greenfinch, Pheasant, Blackbird, Song Thrush, Woodpigeon, Collared Dove, Jackdaw, Carrion Crow, Rook, Dunnock and Robin.

Stanton Park Lake

For those of you that know me well, then you will know that I have two passions in life, Bird Watching and Fishing. Ever since my grandfather sat me down in front of his living room window, which overlooked the bird table, then so my love for bird watching and wildlife began, 47 years ago. The fishing came a few years later, when my old school friends Peter Sorrell and Tim Lewry introduced me to night fishing at Westbere Lake in Kent.  I caught one of the biggest Roach of my life and it set me off on a fishing adventure that is still going strong 45 years later.

Sunrise over the Lake

Right less of the nostalgia. An early morning start saw me at the lake for around 7:35 am and with the Pike rod set up and the Sprat baited up on the hook, it was cast out into the deepest part of the lake by the dam. It wasn't long before the float dipped and after waiting the obligatory 10 seconds I set the hook and up came with probably one of the smallest Pike I have ever hooked.  Any smaller and I would have mistaken it for the bait I was using.  At 2 lb it was a bit on the small side but at least I wasn't going to blank. With the fish returned I recast and waited for the next encounter.

2lb Pike

By this time the sun had just come up over the horizon and a small gaggle of Canada Geese decided to try their luck and land on the water. Big mistake!!  The resident cob Mute Swan had other ideas and for the next 1/2 hour the six geese were succumbed to a continuous chase around the lake.  There was no way they were going to stay on the lake and the cob had a go at just about all of them, grabbing their tails and giving them a good scrap.  Eventually they gave up and took off with the cob in flight right behind them. Unfortunately for me he landed right smack on top of my float, but heh that's life.  The fish will be back.

A sharp reminder on whose lake this is!

And that goes for all of you.....

We've had enough

Mission accomplished

Once order was restored I knew it would be awhile before I caught anything, so it was rod down and binoculars to hand to have a look around and see what was happening around the lake. For starters it was quite noticeable that there were quite a few Black-headed Gulls, of which a few were now starting to change into their summer plumage. Why they are called Black-headed Gulls is a mystery as their heads are chocolate brown.

Also about were small flocks of Siskin and Goldfinches. Every now and then I could hear the call of a Redpoll, but all were flyovers. Another flyover was a Cormorant which having done a couple of passes of the lake decided to alight on one of the tall trees overlooking the water. With such a good lookout it wasn't a surprise to see it take off and do a bit of fishing.

Cormorant on his high perch

Once the drama of the Mute Swans and Canada Geese had died down, I was pleased to see the float go under again and this time give me a cracking fight with a 10 lb Pike. Great fun and once weighed and photographed it was returned to the water to fight another day.

10lb Pike

The rest of the morning was very busy with Great Spotted Woodpeckers hammering away, Long-tailed Tits fleeting about behind me in the bushes and Great Tits & Blue Tits calling continuously.  The sun was out for a little while and this seemed to bring the whole lake to life. Male Chaffinches were singing their hearts out and the Jackdaws were doing what Jackdaws do, being very noisy. The highlights of the morning were a Raven, Water Rail and Stock Dove, which were all new ticks for me this year.

Jackdaw

However the afternoon was a totally different, though not heavy, the rain fell all afternoon and birds, fish and just about everything slowed up.  A few Fieldfare passed over but all in all it was very dead.  At 3:10 pm I packed up and headed home. As I was loading up the car I noticed a Blackthorn that was just coming out in flower. This must be the earliest I've ever seen one in flower.

Blackthorn in flower

Before I headed off I did a count of the birds seen and heard and came up with 43, which isn't too bad from one location.. En route home I came across a Common Buzzard by the main entrance to Stanton Park and managed to get a photo of it before it flew off.

Common Buzzard

Coate Water

With the weather not looking too bad, I paid Coate Water a visit. I only had an hour so decided to park up close to the cafe and then walk down to the marina and back. By the time I'd got to the marina there was a steady downpour of icy rain. Fortunately it didn't last long and instead there was an icy blast of cold air driving in from the north.

There were plenty of ducks on the water, mainly Mallard, but a bit further out there were Tufted Duck, a few Pochard, of which one drake came in quite close and even further out there were 9 Goosander and yet again a pair of these was also close into the bank.  A Cormorant was just beyond the diving board and on the board was a solitary adult Lesser Black-backed Gull, which was later joined by a first winter.

Canada Geese in flight

 

Pochard (drake)

 About 9:45 am one of the regular walkers came up onto the dam and spread out large handfuls of grain to the birds. First the feral pigeons came down, then a few Mallard and then a Carrion Crow.  I'm not sure what he threw into the water, but whatever it was, it had every bird in a frenzy, there were Black-headed Gulls, Canada Geese, Swans, Coots and Moorhens all battling away for a morsel. One or two of the Black-headed Gulls were just starting to turn into their Summer plumage.

Black-headed Gull almost in Summer plumage

Black-headed Gull in winter plumage

Black-headed Gull almost in Summer plumage

A bit further down from the Diving Board on the right of the path there was a Grey Heron stalking in the margins and all about the grass banks Moorhen were scurrying around.

Grey Heron

Busy Lagoon

With the ice all gone now, I thought I’d give Liden lagoon another visit. The wind was really bitter and though snow had been forecast, we fortunately missed it.

There weren’t that many gulls about, and apart from one Herring Gull, all the others were Black-headed Gulls.

Black-headed Gulls in winter plumage

In Flight

 The resident Mute Swans were a bit put out, as three adult interlopers had arrived on their patch of water.  Once seniority had taken place the interlopers headed up the bank and were last seen heading off towards the Community Centre followed that is by 20+ Canada Geese.  It was also interesting to note that last years juveniles were also being moved on by their parents and though less forcefully were none-the-less aware that they soon would be evicted from the Lagoon.

The 3 interlopers being seen off by the Residents

The interlopers on their way towards the Community Centre

The 3 Juveniles, very wary of mum and dad.

Back to the water.

Happy Again

All around the Lagoon was a continuous chattering of Siskins and I estimated there was probably in the region of 60+ birds. In amongst them were a dozen or so Goldfinches and every now and then I could just pick out a Redpoll. Unfortunately though, I didn't get to see one.

Siskin in flight

Male Siskin feeding on Alder Cones

A pair of Goldfinches

There were quite a few Mallard present and along with them, there were 4 drake Pochard, 12 Tufted Ducks (9 drakes) and a “Redhead” Goosander. Other water birds were several Coot, Moorhens and a single Great Crested Grebe, still in winter plumage.

Three of the 4 drake Pochard

"Redhead" Goosander

Great Crested Grebe

Tufted Duck (drake)

Other birds noted on my walk were: Carrion Crow, Magpie, Starling, Blackbird, Woodpigeon, a single Collared Dove, Dunnock, Great Tit, Blue Tit, Long-tailed Tit, House Sparrow, Chaffinch, a Great Spotted Woodpecker and a Pied Wagtail.

Great Tit (female - slender black markings down the chest and belly)

Great Tit (male - wide black markings underneath)

Collared Doves

This afternoon the resident pair of Collared Doves were back in the garden. They were just as nervous as they were the other day with their continuous sky gazing. I managed a few shots to show their poses, as they surveyed the garden and their surrounds.

Sky gazing

Puffed up

A gaze down at the corn

In flight

The pair still on edge

Stanton Park

At long last some decent weather and an opportunity for a good walk around Stanton Park.  Though a bit on the chilly side, the sun was out and there wasn't a cloud in sight.  I arrived at 7:40am as the moon was just dropping down and the sun was coming up.

The setting Moon

A Mistle Thrush was singing away from the tree tops and a pair of Great Spotted Woodpeckers flew across the car park.  Just as I was about to leave the car park a Grey Wagtail came bounding over and headed towards the lake. I'd decided to walk anti-clockwise round the lake and I'm glad I did as a huge flock 200+ Redwing and Fieldfare took off in batches of 50 or so from a tall tree in the field, adjacent to Stanton House. Later a couple of dozen or so were seen feeding in the field alongside the main track into the park.

Fieldfare

On the lake a drake Goosander was swimming alongside the 30+ Mallard and a single Black-headed Gull was the only gull to be seen. There were quite a few Coot and one or two Moorhens on the water and the resident Mute Swans were up by the dam.

Goosander (drake)

Around the waters edge in the alders, a flock or should I say a charm of Goldfinches were feeding on the cones.

The lake

Behind the dam as it drops down I could hear a Red-legged Partridge but couldn't locate it. Further around a party of Long-tailed Tits were foraging and a single Goldcrest was trying to keep up.  Along the pathway were dozens of Snowdrops, just ready to burst into flower.

Snowdrops

A really good spot to see birds up close has to be the feeders on the main path from the Car Park.  And sure enough there were plenty of birds to be seen.  Another photographer was there and with his handful of seeds was topping up the logs alongside the track.  This was a great way to see and photograph the birds in a more natural surrounding.

There were Great Tits, Blue Tits, Coal Tits, Robins, a male Blackbird, Dunnock and Nuthatch all feeding from the logs, whilst the Long-tailed Tits seemed more at home using the bird table.  Surprisingly there was no sign of any Marsh Tits.

Blackbird (male)

A defiant Robin seeing off a Nuthatch

Something startled the birds and as I scanned the sky above I just caught a glimpse of a Brambling sitting in the tree behind me.  I just managed a couple of photos of it before it headed off into the woods.

Brambling

After 2 hours of walking and photographing the wildlife in the park, I had seen and heard 33 bird species.  Not bad on a cold but sunny winters day.