Green birding in its purest form...

Since Boxing Day, my 'patch' has shrunk from around 2 miles to about 20 metres...and not through choice!

I've been floored, like many of the population, with a nasty bacterial infection and virus that has kept me housebound for the last two weeks.  The Warwick 100 team have totally stepped up, bagging over half of our annual target in the first week of 2023 - with greylag goose being our 50th bird.  A brilliant team effort, it's been great to watch our WhatsApp feed buzzing with everyone's sightings while they are out and about.

I, on the other hand, have been staring absently through my lounge window from under a blanket (think old lady in nursing home).  

I am lucky to have a good garden.  built on three levels on a steep bank, our top level is given over to a little wild woodland area with ferns, trees, shrubs, a tiny wildlife pond and a huge old sycamore right at the back (it sounds way posher than it is).  This brings in a fair bit of wildlife considering we live in the middle of a housing estate in Warwick.  Hanging seed dispensers, ivy left to roam and and ignored apples entice the winter birds to feed.  My absent staring for the last couple of weeks has produced a list of 20 species so far, without stepping foot outside!  None of these species are rare, or even of note really, compared to some of the garden lists I see on social media.  One of my Twitter friends has recently moved to a new house, with views of a mill pond and the potential for some amazing sightings.  Another, relocated to a remote island in Scotland, will have garden list entries I can only dream of!  But, I'm happy with my little urban collection of wildlife to keep me company while I rest up.

So, what about the rules of garden listing?  I keep mine like Patchwork Challenge.  Any sighting of a wild bird counts - whether it lands in my garden, on my neighbours' land, in the sycamore or simply flying over.

The RSPB's infamous Big Garden Birdwatch has more stringent rules, only wanting birds that land to be counted, I guess so the word 'garden' birdwatch is kept true, along with creating an easy process for families and occasional birdwatchers to follow.   The BTO has also been running garden birdwatches since 1995 and have a similar rule.  They state they are 'interested in birds that are using the resources that your garden provides', which seems fair enough, so high flyovers are not of interest.   They do give an example of a low-flying swift or swallow taking advantage of insects within gardens, however, so these should be counted, providing valuable information for research.  

However we decide to run our own lists, it is amazing what taking the time to watch one tiny area can produce (even if it isn't through choice).  I've learned that maybe, when I do finally end up in that nursing home, I can still keep a little birdwatching list!

Jenny wren

GSW in the sycamore

  

grumpy greenfinch

A wreath I made being put to good use!

End of Year Roundup for 2022

Well, just like that, there goes another year and everything is reset once more.  But, just before we get under way with our 2023 listing, the Warwick 100 would like to reflect on the past year.

An interesting 12 months, with several challenges thrown at us... our most prolific birder still unable to give as much time to the team,  Lizzy out for 6 weeks with an injured knee, Steve out for a few weeks with a new knee and a drought that evaporated every tiny bit of water that Warwick scrapes together.

But, in spite of all this, it has been another awesome year for the Warwick 100 team, showing that patch birding in an unlikely urban spot is fun and fulfilling in equal measure.

So, on to the stats for 2022... 

Our final tally was 113 species, down three on 2021 with a glaring omission in golden plover.  Pintail, jack snipe, white fronted goose and brambling have all been seen before but were not to be this year.  Still a pretty impressive haul, though, we are all pretty proud of ourselves!

Birds of note this year were tufted duck, whimbrel, whinchat, juvenile cuckoo and of course our ring ouzel.  The almost ticked white stork and Saker falcon would have been amazing, but our consciences wouldn't allow it!  Our hundredth bird was a garden warbler, seen on the 7th May.  We hit the 100 in April in the previous two years, but this was still a good result.

                                        

 

Other highlights include Rick's huge flock of sand martins at Kingfisher Pool in mid April.  He remembers dozens of them hawking close by, almost touching his head as they zoomed around.  Cheering, sprightly and beautiful little birds.  David loved seeing a water rail in St Nick's Park, while the teenagers from the local school chattered by in their convoy, totally unaware.  Steve V. always gets a thrill from seeing the first swift of the year over the town, happily reporting that there were a few more about this year, too.  We really enjoyed our social, getting to know each other a little better outside of the WhatsApp group.  More recently, it's great to see the Warwick starling murmuration starting to build.  While they roost on private land, a group of around 2000 can often be seen dancing over the trees near Warwick School - a joy to watch.

So the new year takes us back to zero and an exciting first few days, when seeing a nuthatch is a boooom moment.  Let's see what 2023 brings - hopefully more socials, less knee problems and lots and lots of birds!

If anyone would like to join the Warwick 100 team, do get in touch with Lizzy who can add you to the WhatsApp.

  

Ring Ouzel Fabulousness

Sometimes the stars just align...

I was in a coffee shop a few days ago, when I spotted a friend I hadn't seen for over a year.  Popping over to her table, we had a lovely natter.  Then she commented that it was very odd - she had only thought of me this morning when a strange bird had turned up in her garden.  I asked her about the bird...

"It was the size of a blackbird, just like a blackbird really, but had a big white patch on its chest.  I had a look in the bird books and I think it's a ringed ouzlett." She said.

Of course, up my heart-rate went, but I tried to keep calm and consider that it could just be one of our local leucistic blackbirds. "I have a dodgy picture that I can send to you, I took it on my phone."  She continued.  Heart rate a little higher.  The picture arrived an hour later.  Heart rate through the roof!

taken by my friend with her phone

She gave me her address and I hastily checked the boundary of the 100 area to see if it was tickable for the Warwick 100 list.  Ack!  about 100 yards outside.  Frustrating not to be able to get it on our list, but still a great record for Warwickshire (only the fifth ever winter rouzel, apparently).

I couldn't get away from work/life for a couple of days but, yesterday, I received a message to say he was in the garden again.  Having broken up from school for a mere ten minutes, I hotfooted it to the address and hid, shivering, in my kind friend's garden for an hour.   I'd only ever seen one ring ouzel before; on a birding trip to Dungeness some years ago, with Jack.  That one was flighty and a long distance away.  But here this one was, right above me in a rowan tree, an absolute beauty of a bird. He'd eat for a couple of minutes, fly off and return almost exactly eight minutes later.  

Hmmmm, I thought.  I wonder which direction he's flying in... 

A bit of following the flight path and peering down the road and my mood lifted even more - he was flying straight into the Warwick 100 area as part of his circuit!  Bird number 112 for the year and an amazing, if chilly hour spent.

Thanks so much to my non-birding friend for taking an interest and telling me about the 'strange' bird.  She doesn't want her address given out, so apologies to people who I know would want to have seen him.  But it just shows that some brilliant birds can turn up in the most unlikely of places!

  

taken by Lizzy

West Midlands All Dayer

Having been birding for some years now, I've learned that it can be a bit of an isolated hobby at times.  

For many birders (myself included) this is usually no bad thing, as we are a strange bunch - perhaps not as social as some, generally happy in our own company and pretty understanding of the fact that our passion is really rather boring to most.  But everyone needs some sort of social interaction and to feel part of a group/pack/clan at times.  The Warwick 100 team provides this for me on a local level.  While I still mostly bird alone, I know the team is there, only a WhatsApp message away.  Other social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter allow me to keep in touch with birding friends across Warwickshire, the West Midlands and the whole of the UK - giving me a wider sense of belonging.  

The West Midlands All Dayer is a twice-yearly event, organised by the brilliant Phil Andrews, where some 27 birding sites across the region come together to record all birds seen in one day.  It is a competition, with the big guns like Branston GPs, Belvide and Ladywalk recording numbers that we in Warwick can only dream of.   But taking part is lots of fun and it's great to have a day where even a blackbird or robin can be exciting!

I set my alarm for 5am on Saturday, hoping to get barn and little owl before sunrise.  Nothing doing, sadly, but there were lots of the usuals, with the beautiful skies over the golf course making the early start worthwhile.

Once the sun had risen and I'd collected as many new entries as I could around the golf course, I went to photograph the starlings on the wires before moving to the Saxon Mill fields.  Suddenly, a noise I hadn't heard since my last trip to Bardsey Island came out of nowhere.  I knew immediately what I thought it was so, starlings forgotten, I started to look up and around.  There it was, in the distance, but definitely heading toward me.  I grabbed the camera to get the record shot, then straight to the binoculars to enjoy my first ever whimbrel on the patch.  My day was made before 7am!

Onwards to the Saxon Mill and a stroll up to the sheep fields to see if I could bag wheatear or yellow wagtail.  More of the usuals added to the list, I arrived at the fields to find several marquees and a crowd of villagers setting up a horticultural show.  Ah well, never mind!  A very late swift was a surprise overhead as I walked back to the river.

At this stage, others in the Warwick 100 were starting to contribute from their respective patches - bullfinch, peregrine, collared dove, jay, blackcap and greenfinch all added to the list from various members of the team.  

I stopped for lunch (and to watch a very entertaining Everton v Liverpool match) while sparrowhawk and grey wagtail joined our growing list.  

Back out late afternoon, with just a couple more birds added along the river, including gadwall and Cetti's, there were still some major omissions; no sign of Canada or Greylag goose (and no chance whatsoever of a Tundra Bean!) Ravens are usually a daily sight over my house, but not today, and others like treecreeper and mistle thrush were staying firmly hidden.  As I started to flag and think about going home, a message came out over the WhatsApp from Chris...whinchat on the racecourse...

This I had to see for myself - I hadn't seen one for years.  I hotfooted over to the racecourse to see this little beauty and have a natter with Chris, who pointed it out to me.  Another super bird on the list for the day and I think a great one to finish on. 

It was so nice to have been involved in the event, with the Warwick 100 now having a total (59) we can try to beat at the next All Dayer.  We are also very pleased to be the only site to record whimbrel in the region - Warwick ain't so bad after all!

Well done to all the sites that took part and a huge thank you to Phil for keeping all the records.

See you in Spring!

Lizzy

  

We Did It! (Here are some stats for you to enjoy)

I can't imagine that there are many birders that don't like a statistic or two.  

We tick, we research, we list, we update our lists, we compete, we correct, we study, we make new lists. So enjoying a good bit of data collection and analysis kind of comes with the territory.

Now the Warwick 100 team have hit (and exceeded) our target for 2022, I thought I'd do a bit of research into previous years to compare and contrast.

We started recording sightings as a team in Warwick in 2017.  Although we kept personal lists then, we didn't publish a Warwick total for the year.  We did spot some pretty special birds, however, including a ring ousel, several redstarts, wheatears and chats.

So here's some data from when our official records began...

   

Year	Total bird species recorded	date we hit the 100	best birds
2018	107	30th June	pied flycatcher, osprey
2019	113	5th June	Bewick's swan, whimbrel
2020	115	19th April	cuckoo, manx shearwater
2021	116	9th April	hoopoe, jack snipe, pintail
2022	102 so far	7th May	nothing of any note...yet!

It has taken longer to get to the 100 this year - sadly, our most prolific birder hasn't been able to put so many hours in.  This also means the heady heights of double figures past the hundred is probably out of reach for 2022.  We missed a fair few of the early Spring migrants we would normally have ticked (hopefully we can pick them up later in the year) and we really haven't seen anything out of the ordinary to get excited about yet.

What we are doing though, is adding more statistics toward the Warwick 100's historical records.  Adding more data that can be poured over but, more importantly, having fun as a team while doing it.  

We have a social get together planned to celebrate hitting the 100 and to put a few names to faces for those who haven't met yet.  And, you never know, something amazing might fly over the pub garden to add to the list...we'll keep you informed!

Lizzy

We are looking forward to celebrating hitting the hundred!

A bad case of Missing Bird Syndrome!

It's great to see new bird sightings from across the country all over Twitter, now that spring has firmly sprung, with even the Warwick 100 adding three birds to our tally in the last two days (reed warbler, swift and whinchat).  But, like us, there must be many birders with some really obvious, and quite annoying, gaps in their year lists so far.  

This could be for a variety of reasons.  Finding time to bird in busy lives, ongoing impacts of Covid, loss or change of patch habitats, unusual weather conditions or, sometimes, just sheer bad luck.  It took me a month to see a kingfisher this year - usually a daily sighting along the River Avon in winter.  Bullfinch didn't make its way onto the Warwick 100 list until Valentine's Day and took even longer for me - I only saw my first last week!  Missing Bird Syndrome (MBS) can be nasty...

Even Gary Prescott (The Biking Birder) hasn't been immune to MBS.  He is already up against it by birding completely carbon-free, as he attempts to become the 2022 Big Green Big Year European champion.  In addition, he has had to balance his cycling around the country with family commitments in the Midlands, charity work and, more recently, a bad back.  So far, he's seen a very impressive 198 birds, but had to wait far longer in the Wyre Forest than previous years to finally see a wood warbler, just three days ago!  We're pleased he found his missing bird and wish Gary all the best and lots of luck for the rest of his challenge.

Looking at the Warwick 100's list of 'still to finds', it can be broken into sections...

Birds we should absolutely have seen by now (MBS) - barn owl, brambling, little egret, little owl, golden plover, lapwing, shoveler.

Birds we had last year that we should see again soon - common sandpiper, common tern, garden warbler, hobby, little ringed plover, redstart, spotted flycatcher, yellow wagtail.

Birds seen before that may turn up again - cuckoo, jack snipe, Mediterranean gull, pintail, shelduck, great egret.

One-offs.  Seen before - not expecting to again - Bewick's swan, bittern, greenshank, hoopoe, manx shearwater, osprey, pied flycatcher, ring ousel, whimbrel, white-fronted goose.

The Warwick 100 team bird purely for fun.  It really doesn't matter if we don't beat last year's total and it really doesn't matter if we don't get a repeat of some of the amazing birds above.  With only a small window of opportunity in Warwick during Spring and Autumn passages and limited habitats, we will always be up against it spotting the migrants, but hopefully we can cure our case of Missing Bird Syndrome with some of the regular and resident birds soon! 

😉

Lizzy

Biking Birder VI - 2022 - Another Green Birding UK Year (bikingbirder2016.blogspot.com)

 

Birdsong in the Ballroom

One of our team members, Rick, has published a book all about urban birding; diarising a year of the birds and wildlife spotted in our local park.  It is a beautifully written book and well worth a read.

A couple of weeks ago, Rick was invited to speak at an event in Warwick town centre - he's quite the celeb!  Here is the local write-up on the event... 

The Regency ballroom in the Court House – Warwick's Town Hall – echoed to the sound of spring birdsong on April 13^th. The occasion was the monthly tea, talk and quiz staged by 'Unlocking Warwick', the Town Council's volunteer group.

Rick Thompson - a member of the Warwick100 Birding group and the Warwick Natural History Society, gave a fascinating talk about the surprising wildlife to be found in St. Nicholas Park, in the centre of town, as featured in his book 'Park Life – a year in the wildlife of an urban park'.

It was a full house in the ballroom as Rick showed pictures of some of the obvious and easily identified birds that are regulars in the park, such as the pair of mute swans, heron, the unpopular magpies and the noisy blue tits and great tits.   He described the excitement of springtime, when more than 20 million birds arrive in Britain, from more arid climes in Africa and southern Europe, to breed.

All birdwatchers know that identifying small birds is as much about bird-listening as bird-watching.  So, with the aid of the Collins Bird Guide App and a linked loudspeaker, the audience was able to hear some of the vocal residents such as the robin and wren, and also migrant warblers, arriving in the park in mid-April.

The ballroom rang with the sound of the easily identified chiffchaff, and the slightly more difficult songs of the blackcap, sedge warbler, whitethroat and Cetti's warbler - all to be heard now at Kingfisher Pools, near the footbridge in St. Nicholas Park.

Rick reflected on the importance of urban parks and contact with nature for physical and mental wellbeing. Scientists call this 'exposure to greenspace'.  The beneficial effects of regular contact with the natural world can be measured, and became invaluable to many during the pandemic restrictions.  Rick went on to say that observing wildlife closely and gaining some knowledge of the plants, insects and birds, makes his regular walks in the park much more rewarding - uplifting the spirits even in the darkest of times.

After the talk, Rick signed copies of his book ‘Park Life’, and the teatime quiz followed.  Devised by Helen Fellows, it contained 25 questions about British wildlife…do you know what a male and female badger are called? Or the name of an otter’s home?

We are very proud of our Rick and look forward to more books and talks from him in the future.

Park Life: A Year in the Wildlife of an Urban Park: Amazon.co.uk: Thompson, Rick: 9781839751738: Books

WNHS

 

For the love of listing

We birders do love a list.

Life, year, day, green, UK, world, garden, holiday – the lists go on!  Some birders keep one list, others several, with various ways of recording; from handwritten notepads, to complicated excel spreadsheets, to online apps.  Some keep their lists to themselves, some publish to the world.  It really is each to their own. But for all of us as we bird, our lists grow longer and the chances to add to them, particularly life lists, become fewer.

What brought this to mind recently was one of the Warwick 100 team, when I reported our first house and sand martins of the year, commented that he had never seen any martin of any type.  Oh to go back to those days of being new to birdwatching! Back when a house martin was a lifer; that feeling of excitement when a brand new bird went onto my most important of lists.  So I guess this is why birders year list, day list and set themselves never ending challenges – to try to capture that joy again.  Nothing beats a lifer, however, which is why some birders twitch; going against their spouses, employers and their eco-ethics to get that all important, adrenaline pumping moment.  I choose not to twitch, so haven't had a lifer for a long long time, but that's ok.

I keep three personal lists on top of the Warwick 100 challenge – life, green and wild wee.  Yep, you read that right!  That last one currently stands (or squats, as I’m a girl) at 34, with Dartford warbler my best wee list bird.

The Warwick 100 team only exists because of a list – to reach 100 species of bird as quickly as possible each year – and I have to admit, this is the one that I am most invested in.  So for now, I’ll enjoy watching the excitement in our newest team members…and make sure I try to wee in more interesting places!

Lizzy

BUBO Listing - World Bird Listing

Rite in the Rain Official Site | Shop All Weather Products

Plastic Fantastic!

There was great excitement in the Warwick 100 team a couple of days ago, when a report of a white stork flying North of the Saxon Mill came in.   Confirming that the source of the sighting was a respected one, it went on our list with smiles all round.

Unfortunately, the source of the bird itself was not so positive - in all likelihood being the presumed escapee seen at Otmoor RSPB on the same day, or possibly from the White Stork Project, in SE England.  It was kicked off the list as quickly as it went on, with only a couple of singing willow warblers keeping the smiles going in the team.

It got me wondering about 'plastic' birds around the UK; questioning when they should or shouldn't be added to a list.

• What actually is a 'wild' bird?
• What are the differences in tickability between escaped, released or introduced birds?
• When or where does a plastic bird become wild?  How many generations does it take before they class as resident, if ever?
• Does it really matter, when everyone's list is their own anyway?

What a minefield!  Here's what I learned from a very basic bit of research, which I hope I've understood correctly...

Under the Wildlife and Countryside Act, a wild bird is 'any bird of a species which is resident in or is a visitor to the European Territory of any member state in a wild state.'  Helpful for animal welfare and protection, but not so much for our birding list.

Melissa Mayntz states that the bird 'should be observed in the wild (so the peacocks at Warwick Castle are out) and behaving as a wild bird would be expected.  Domesticated birds, escaped pets or birds that are deliberately imported, such as for a zoo, are not acceptable.' (so the peacock we found in our garden last year is also out!) 

She also talks of pure lists only containing 'established birds that have had viable breeding populations for at least several generations.'  Nicely put, but still a little vague.  

Thankfully, I have just discovered the BOU official British List (late to the game, I know), which really clears things up in my mind.  Birds are categorised from A-F, depending on length of naturalisation and establishment, along with self-sustainability of feral, introduced and re-introduced populations.  Those in A,B and C appear to count, whereas birds in D, E and F do not. Nice and clear.

So I guess this means that red kites, Egyptian geese and ring-necked parakeets are in, but white tailed eagles, wood ducks and, indeed, our white stork, are out.  It remains plastic...for now.

Species categories - British Ornithologists' Union (bou.org.uk)

News — White Stork Project

Seeing things in white...

Our majestic mute swans, of Kingfisher Pools, have made their decision on where to nest this week and settled into their breeding season.  It's always fascinating to watch them as they decide on a spot, build, sit, protect, feed and nurture their brood each year.

photo by Rick

The family have certainly had their ups and downs...big broods, no broods, kidnapping, poisoning...it's quite the soap opera here in Warwick!

The survival of cygnets to adulthood is naturally fraught with danger.  22% of baby swans die in their second week (swanlife) through bad weather, starvation, accident or predation.  In a large brood, the slowest and weakest can be judged as jeopardising the family, so may be chased away or even killed by the cob.  While sad, this is nature working as it should; keeping the mute swan population strong and self-regulated.  

Where I struggle is when human intervention effects wildlife...

Poisoning - 2014

The whole family was rescued from the pools and looked after at a sanctuary in Droitwich, while the cob was treated for lead poisoning.  Thankfully, he recovered and the pair, with their eight cygnets, were returned and had a successful year.  

Theft - 2019

This was a tragic year, when a local resident witnessed the sitting pen being lifted from her nest by a gang.  While it is possible for a male to take over and rear cygnets alone, this year the whole brood failed and the cob looked totally lost.  The local angling shop were quick to state that they haven't sold lead weights for years, it was never discovered where the poison came from.

Success - 2020

Possibly helped by Lockdown and fair weather, 2020 produced 9 cygnets - all surviving.  I'm not sure whether the old cob had found a replacement partner or whether this was a new pair, but it was heart-warming to see such a huge family after the sad year before.  

Uncertainty - 2021

This was very interesting.  On the 16th March, 8 eggs were spotted and all was well.  On the 28th March it was reported that all the eggs had disappeared.   Theories came thick and fast - predation from fox or mink?  Theft by humans?  'Bad' eggs being thrown out of the nest by the adults?  It was soon discovered, to our relief, that the eggs were absolutely fine and had just been buried under the reeds!  A clever trick by the parents, while away from their nest.  Once hatched, however, it was not such a happy story, with only two surviving cygnets by mid May, from the eight hatched.

So, what will 2022 bring in our local soap opera?  Kingfisher Pool is now busy again with anglers, joggers, dog-walkers and our little Warwick 100 team.   The swans don't seem to mind and we look forward to seeing how their family fares this year.

Lizzy

 

photo by Alan Anscomb

Seeing things in black and white

We have a celebrity here in Warwick...a handsome devil who turns heads.  A common topic of conversation around St Nicholas' Park, even the least birdy of passers-by will stop in their tracks and wonder what kind of exotic wildlife they might be witnessing.

It is, in fact, our 'pied' blackbird, who has been a regular around Kingfisher Pools for over 5 years now.  

Pic by Lizzy 

He has a genetic condition called leucism, where some of the melanin pigment is missing from his cells.  This produces his unusual mottled plumage - white feathers growing among the usual blacks.  Different to albinism, his eyes and beak remain dark...more attractive in my mind than red-eyed, somewhat cold-looking albino wildlife.  

Leucism has been found to affect one in 30,000 birds (Avianreport.com) so is pretty rare, but interestingly, a recent study by the BTO has found that blackbirds accounted for 40% of all reports of leucism.  This might have more to do with blackbirds being a) more commonly seen and b) black, so easier to spot contrasting white feathers, but that is quite the large proportion! 

A few of the Warwick 100 team have been birding in St Nicholas' Park for many years now, having seen different blackbirds with white markings in the past.  Surely that can't be coincidence? Is there a hereditary line of leucistic blackbirds going back generations?

pic by Alec

Indeed, just last year a new partially leucistic blackbird was recorded nearby.  This, along with spotting our friend earlier in the year with a beak full of worms, would suggest that his fancy plumage is certainly not holding him back from success with the ladies!

Pic by Alec

As we wait for migration to begin, and in the current absence of new additions to the 100 list, at least we can continue to enjoy our very own 'rarity'.

Lizzy

Small patches don't necessarily mean small rewards

A nationwide birding initiative started this year to spot as many birds as possible, within a 10km radius.  As a group, myself and The Bradburys had already come up with a similar initiative, way back in 2017!  The Bradburys used to birdwatch on the Racecourse and I loved having them there, but they decided to find somewhere closer to home and subsequently moved across to Saxon Mill fields - although they soon found winter birding there quite dull.  At that time I was becoming increasingly dissatisfied with Racecourse challenges and, with some weird issues beginning to manifest themselves with a patch further afield, I was starting to make connections with local land owners to explore new options

Meadow Pipit by @1stbirdoftheday

. We all really needed to find something to keep ourselves motivated and decided to set ourselves a challenge - to try and see 100 bird species per year on our existing patches within Warwick.  We created a radius limit to just over 2kms from the centre of old Warwick Town.  We are now in our fifth year, have collected a few more local birders along the way to help us with the challenge, and Lizzy has now embraced low carbon birding by walking everywhere.

The issue I had with the Racecourse was that it was heavily disturbed taking a full morning to cover every single part of it and the other patch was no longer a pleasure to share with others and their attitudes.   So, in 2019, I started to concentrate on a new area.  This new patch was small, so could be done thoroughly within an hour and better still, I was the only who birded the area and it isn’t that disturbed.  Small, however, does not necessarily mean less birds and I had soon amassed a total of 110 bird species on there. Besides the birds I have also enjoyed sharing the area with otters, foxes, roe deer, muntjac, bank voles and grass snakes, all within a stone's throw from the centre of town.

Whinchat by @1stbirdoftheday

Even recently, during a yellow warning of wind from the Met office, a visit gave me chiffchaff, marsh tit and a green sandpiper.

Birding such a small patch has given me the joy of seeing a surfacing otter only 4 feet away, a muntjac so intent on feeding that it didn’t  notice me, three kingfishers buzzing one another, a green sandpiper bobbing away at the water’s edge and countless other experiences from the exciting to the more mundane.   Don’t get me wrong, I will have days that yield nothing at all but, most of the time, there is something that may spark my interest.   While small has not brought me a huge site list, social media likes or recognition in whatever birding scene there is in Warwickshire (with my name in black and white on county reports or slaps on the back for finding something rare - not that I care about either anyway), it has given rewards far greater and more important to me...  

It has given me the incentive to get up and out early, it has helped with my mental health, it has given me new “true” lifelong friends (instead of superficial social media acquaintances), it has given me the joy of sharing my enthusiasm with others and seeing their faces light up as they see something new.  It has also given me fond memories often shared with others from jokes about Chaffinches to comments that a particular bird call reminds a friend of me, because I taught them to identify it.  Anyway, I need to finish this now as I have to be out the door to meet that good friend to go walk on that small patch of wildness in Warwick.

RH

Please don't laugh at our rarities...!

We had a few new additions to our list this week including chiffchaff, woodcock and lesser redpoll - birds we would expect each year.  However, some birds that in many places are an every day sighting, really get the pulses racing here in Warwick...

Tufted duck

Spotted by Rick, this little beauty is the first tuftie to be recorded in St Nicholas Park for 6 years! 

photo by Rick Thompson

Apparently, it is the UK's most common diving duck and there's even more of them in the UK in Winter as they travel here from Iceland and Northern Europe.  They just seem to choose not to come to the centre of Warwick!  

It isn't just us, though.  It does make me feel a little better to know that a tufted duck seen on Bardsey Island in May 2019 was only the 35th record since records began back in the 1950s! (George Dunbar, Birdguides)

Red Kite

This was spotted by Chris over Warwick on the 6th Feb, with another sighting (probably the same bird) by James in Leamington, on the 11th. 

Following the first reintroduction of red kites in the Chilterns in 1989, and further introductions in other areas, they have spread far and wide...but not quite reached Warwick yet.  There is a pair in the village of Barford, just down the road, and it may be one of these that we see popping into town on the odd occasion (although Warwick Castle does have a red kite display as part of their falconry show, so I suppose it could have been one of theirs).  

Hopefully we'll start to see the real deal more regularly as the numbers of this majestic bird continue to rise and disperse further.

Egyptian goose

A first for me in Warwick, this pair were canoodling on a temporary flash at the Saxon Mill fields this morning.  An invasive species, it is illegal to keep, breed or release them, but they are common in Norfolk and around Greater London and, while it was an absolute BOOOM moment for me, they are considered a real pest in some places.  I remember talking to someone at Rutland Water in early Spring some years ago.  He didn't love them at all, saying that it was a real race for the Rutland ospreys to return quickly before the Egyptian geese started to nest on their platforms!

photo by Lizzy Bradbury

So, our list now stands at 75 so far for the year.  Only 25 more species to go to reach our target and, with Spring on the way, we have every chance of hitting it 😊.   Whether that will be through spotting everyday species, ones that are scarce for us or maybe...just maybe...a real rarity, is yet to be discovered!

Lizzy