Saturday 14th January 2012
Sorry for the rather late posting, January has been a little busier than I had thought. Our Winter has been very mild here in the South West of England. Managed to get out and have a walk around Exminster Marsh, near Exeter, Devon.
It was a very overcast day, and it was pretty quiet bird wise. I had hoped to see the Glossy Ibis that had taken up residence on the Marsh, but my luck that day was not that good. It had done a runner for the day. But lots of wildfowl on display. One of my favourite sounds in the Winter is listening to the whistling of the Widgeon. I can happily listen to this all day long. There were a few hundred showing today, with Teal and Shoveler. Sadly the Red-breasted Goose had also done a runner today. But the sight of nearly 200 Curlew roosting on the Marsh along with a small number of Lapwings.
I caught sight of two Snipe flying directly overhead and drop down and just vanish, typical of the Snipe. They can just disapear from view. But stunning birds. A Sparrowhawk flew low and flushed the small Waders and they took flight for safety.. my chance to see and hear some Redshank.
In the trees a small number of Redwing's were good to see. It was good also to find a few Reed Buntings. A Cettis Warbler announced it's presence.
It was a pretty remarkable day for winter!! I'm going birding in the Hill Country of TX next Saturday and I just finished making my list of possible birds! A wigeon is at the top of the list! There are a few life birds that I'm hoping to put check marks next to!! Wish me luck! ~karen
ReplyDeleteHi Karen,
ReplyDeleteAhh I just love Widgeon, they have this really happy look about them. I will be keeping my fingers crossed for you. I still get a real buzz when I see a new bird, been a while now though. Good Luck. I am sure you won't need it. Enjoy being out and seeing some great birds. John