I was out on my own today and on arrival went straight to shoveler hide on lagoon three. A Green Sandpiper flew in just after I arrived but there was no sign of the regular group of Redshank and presumably they had moved off the lagoon during the recent cold snap. I found five red-headed Smew and two male and three female Red-crested Pochard but there was little else so I went to crake and lapwing hides but saw little from either and the light was pretty poor from lapwing. I walked back to the car park for lunch calling at redshank hide on lagoon two where I saw a Red Kite flying low over the bund.
Great Crested Grebe from crake hide
Grey Heron from crake hide
Grey Heron from crake hide
Wren from shoveler hide on lagoon three
Female Pochard from crake hide
After lunch I walked as far as
fieldfare hide calling at snipe hide on the way out and harrier on my
return. There was little on the wet
meadow area from snipe hide but there were quite a few common passerines
feeding in the scrub alongside the footpath where I had some nice views of a
part of Long-tailed Tit. There were quite
a few birds visible from fieldfare that consisted mainly of Wigeon and Tufted
Duck but there was also circa fifty Goldeneye and a Buzzard flew over. As I walked towards along the footpath
towards harrier I had nice views of a single Lesser Redpoll that was feeding in
the scrub and grasses on the right.
There were two male and two female Goosander resting on lagoon one and I
eventually saw fifteen as they came into roost.
There were also four Curlew feeding on the wet meadow and a Buzzard was
perched in a bush on the far side of the lagoon.
I eventually walked back to
the centre an spent some time overlooking lagoon one but other than the
Goosander there was little else.
Long-tailed Tit on the walk to harrier hide