Monthly Archives: January 2018

RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch 2018

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So I had planned to do my Big Garden Birdwatch on Saturday morning, what I hadn’t expected was the rain! I have to admit I’ve done two counts this weekend and submitted the best! The reason being neither was a good representation of the normal garden visitors.  Saturday afternoon are the figures I have used.  Sunday morning only produced 3 individual birds and 2 species!!! As you can see this years numbers are well down on previous years.  The wind and rain really has affected numbers, if it had been last weekend I would have had all the regulars plus 4 greenfinches and a siskin too!!  Lets hope next year the weather is kinder.

  2018 2017 2016 2015
Coal tit   1 2 1
Blue tit 1 2 2 3
Great tit   1   1
Long-tailed Tit       1
Blackbird 4 7 4 2
Woodpigeon 4 4 2  
Goldfinch 1 7 9 2
Blackcap   1 1  
Greenfinch     1  
Robin   1 2 2
Collard dove   2 3 1
Starling   3 1 1
House sparrow   3 1  
Dunnock 1 1   1
Pied wagtail       1
Siskin   2    
Chaffinch 1      
Total no. of species 6 13 11 11
Total no. of birds 12 35 28 16
Weather Wind, rain      

In addition to the birds in the garden in the past 12 months there have been hedgehogs, a fox and a squirrel visit.  All of whom get fed – the fox helps herself to anything that has been left by the birds or the hedgehogs in the summer! 

Wildlife Trusts Lower Moor Farm – New Year’s Day 2018

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Happy New Year! Today I decided to make the most of the final day off from work and take a trip out to Wildlife Trusts Lower Moor Farm.  It was raining heavily this morning but the sun was due to appear this afternoon, so I arrived at the site early afternoon as the clouds cleared.  I headed to the hide looking out over Cottage Lake.  The feeders on the left were covered in birds flitting back and forth; 5 long-tailed tit, 2 robin, 5 bullfinch, 6 great tit, 9 blue tit, 3 chaffinch, 1 dunnock, 2 blackbird, 1 starling and 2 reed bunting.  The long-tailed tits were flitting across in front of the hide and back to the feeders, they are such lovely little balls of fluff! some got a little braver and sat on the floor feeding by the hide. The rest of the lake was fairly quiet with just a few sightings; 2 cormorant, 2 carrion crow, 13 woodpigeon, 2 magpie, 4 mallard and 1 great spotted woodpecker.  A few people came in and asked if I had seen the otter?! Sadly not.  The sky clouded over at one point and a very light rainbow could be seen against the clouds.

I did take a walk around to a couple of the other hides, spotting 2 mute swans and a camouflaged grey heron.  It seems the otters were seen this afternoon on Swallow Pool when they crossed from one bank to the other.