Down in the forest something stirred...

was it a bee or was it a bird, it was in fact Wild Boars sighted in the Forest of Dean!

7th-10th February.
The Wild Boars were sighted as we made our way home after an enjoyable long weekend in the Forest of Dean! The weather could have been kinder but on the other hand could have been much worse. Sunshine, rain showers and a cold at times wind blowing did not dampen the spirits in seeking out wildlife and enjoying good walks, good food and good company especially so at the Yat Rock viewing point!

Areas visited:
Symonds Yat: The Yat Rock area was a real treat in that we had our best views of Goshawks after several visits in the area in the past. 2 Goshawks were enjoying the fairly brisk wind blowing, I was informed that Goshawks are frequently seen in the air when there is a wind blowing such as we had that morning! It was quite gusty in fact! I had a good conversation with a very knowledgeable Lady who visits Yat Rock at least twice a week, travelling 30 miles each way in the process!
Buzzards, Ravens, Peregrine, Cormorants, Grey Heron, Goosanders, Mandarins and Canada Geese were other highlights at Yat Rock.
Yat Rock would seem now to be possibly a better place to see Goshawks in flight rather than New Fancy View which is the viewing area that attracts many birders for sightings of Goshawks. I have had very distant and I do mean very distant views of a Goshawk at New Fancy View on past trips. The trees in front of the viewing platform are growing at a pace which also hinders views in my humble opinion.

Cannop Ponds is a good place to park up and walk around or to just sit in your car by the feeding table and enjoy the bird species that frequent the table and area below the table. Take plenty of seed mixture if possible if you visit as the birds are always hungry whatever the season.
Marsh, Blue, Great and Coal Tit were hardly away from the table though a Nuthatch was forever trying to defend the seed and chasing them off! Blackbird, Chaffinch, Dunnock and Robin were also sighted frequently with a couple of appearances from a Great Spotted Woodpecker and a Grey Squirrel!
Mandarin Ducks and Mallards were good to see as they made their way through the low vegetation behind the feeding station in search of insects and  worms etc. Several Mandarins were also on the ponds.
Mute Swan, Coot, Moorhen, Tufted Duck, Grey Heron, Raven, Jay, Song Thrush, Cormornat, Woodpigeon, Jackdaw, Greylag Geese, Little Grebe, Nuthatch, Blackbird and Starling were also sighted whilst walking around the ponds.

Parkend.
Parkend was visited several times and many an hour spent here in the hope of sighting Hawfinch and/or Crossbills, unfortunately they did not put in an apppearance. However on my return I see they have been noted a few times at Parkend since my return, maybe due to the weather improving somewhat. However a Dipper was the highlight here! The Dipper was seen in the River Lyd which runs behind the Fountain Inn. Hooray!! Success with a Dipper after several dips on previous trips!

A few images attached. The light was not good when taking most of the pics...that is my excuse anyway.lol


                                                         Yat Rock
                  Goosanders, Canada Geese and a pair of Mandarins were seen on the river.

                              Buzzards flew close enough for a half decent photo.

 
                                   View from the viewpoint of the River Wye.

                                         
                                                     
                                                       Cannop Ponds.

                                                                3

                                                                   2

                                                                       1

 

Please keep dogs on a lead!!!

 

 

                           The female Mandarins blend in well in the vegetation.

 

 

                                                             Parkend.

The Grey Squirrels were quite photogenic in the absence of Hawfinch and Crossbills!

 

Fountain Inn, Parkend.

 

The Fountain Inn has a relatively small 'Beer Garden' but with a wealth of information and a handy 'Hotel' for bugs and beasties!

 

 

 

Go through the gate at the bottom of the garden, it is a public footpath, and you immediately see the River Lyd behind the garden and Inn.

 

I cannot tell you how excited and pleased I was to see a Dipper as soon as the small bridge over the river had been crossed! 

 

 

      New Fancy View.   

 

View from the viewing platform. Gloomy weather and not a bird to be seen!

 

The 'Miners Memorial' at New Fancy.

 

 

Finally the Wild Boars! They were sighted in the forest alongside the Speech House Road. If you look carefully you can just make them out, I did not venture away from the car just in case they spotted me. lol There were 4 adults and at least 6+ piglets with them.

 

 

It was a great few days away!

 

Thank you for reading, I hope you have enjoyed the post.

 

                                                                                         

 

 

 

I guessed it would only be a matter of time before....

...a Sparrowhawk visited my  garden during the cold spell of weather!  The prey it captured was a male Blackbird! This was on Monday and my garden has been somewhat quieter since! No doubt it will soon be brimming over with Woodpigeons again, 10- 14 of them on most days!

 

On a lighter note a 'pretty' Pigeon dropped in for a look around!

Big Garden Birdwatch, RSPB. 27/01/2019

A good garden watch this year! The gusty winds did not deter the birds and a surprise species was a male Chaffinch that put in appearance...most unusual and most welcome!
Thankfully the weather despite the strong winds at times was ok, no rain which helps enormously!

Sunday 27th January 2019.
My results between 9.00am and 10.00am.
5 Blackbird
2 Blue Tit
2 Bullfinch
1 Robin
2 Dunnock
3 Great Tit
1 Chaffinch
2 Carrion Crow
5 Woodpigeon
2 Magpie
4 Jackdaw

Bodenham Arboretum 23/01/2019

 

A few images taken whilst on a stroll around a frosty arboretum this morning. Mallards, Black-headed Gulls, Canada Geese, Blue & Great Tits and a couple of Robins were the only bird species to brave the cold!

 

 

                              

 

Fishing, tussling and runners!

No, I haven't taken up new hobbies!

A Grey Heron has returned to my garden several times lately in the hope of catching a fish in my pond! More often than not it does not stay around for long when the Crows spot it or if it catches sight of me watching it!!

 Showing it's crest, a Crow had mobbed it and it was not a happy Heron!

 

 

On the ground for seconds before it took flight!

 

 

Brake Mill Pools have a new species on the water, Indian Runner Ducks! I thought they were maybe hybrids from a local park until I was reliably informed otherwise whilst on a Sunday stroll by the pools. They have been introduced by the owner of the pools and local farmland. I shall hopefully see them out of the water one day, I think I will recognise them from the Mallards due to their size, erect stance and running as opposed to waddling!

 

A couple of male Blackbirds had a right old tussle/scrap in my garden yesterday. I have this week spiked soft apples on a couple of trees so maybe it is a food territory fight or maybe 'Spring' is in the air and they are vying for the attention of the female Blackbirds that frequent the garden. With cold weather imminent in the next few days I hate to think what might happen if Fieldfares spot the food in the garden as they are a very feisty bird and guard food with a vengeance!

 

When I initially spotted the birds fighting the one with it's beak open in the photo was on it's back with the other bird over it as though it was a bird of prey with it's kill and was pecking away at the grounded bird! Woodpigeons disturbed the birds and the one on it's back eventually shot up off the ground with a flurry of feathers floating down to the grass. I presume the open beak is due to shock and hopefully not as a result of an injury, it did not close it's beak as the other bird followed it around the garden for a short while. The Blackbirds in my garden for food earlier this morning all looked ok, I hope 'beaky' was one of them

 

Wren, Blue, Great and Coal tits, Long-tailed Tits, Dunnocks, Robin, Jackdaws, Carrion Crows and  Grey Squirrel are regular visitors to my garden along with 2x Red Fox that I have captured on a camera trap set throughout the night.

 

 

 

Happy New Year 2019.

My first bird of the new year was an early morning (5.30am) Blackbird in my garden! Woodpigeon, Dunnock, Robin, Bullfinch, Great Tit, Coal Tit, Blue Tit, Carrion Crow, Jackdaw and Magpie were the later arrivals.

An hour spent at Brake Mill Pool this afternoon added a few more bird species to my list, they being, Grey Heron, Mallard, Canada Goose, Mute Swan, Coot and Black Headed Gull.

Not a great number of species but it's a start and it was good to be outdoors on a walk.

A whirlwind 2018 !

Where has this year gone? It seems as though Summer has only just ended...well if you think hard enough!

With 2019 just around the corner I thought I had better end 2018 with a short post.

These last few months have been eventful in more ways than one hence my walks and wildlife sightings have been very much on a hop and a catch, the start of 2019 will also be similar.
However my garden sightings have been a delight these last few weeks, highlight species being Bullfinches, Great, Blue and Coal Tits, Long-tailed Tits, Dunnocks, Blackbirds, Robin, Crows, Jackdaws, Magpies, Jay, Heron and a lone Starling a couple of days ago, a species along with House Sparrows that are a rarity now in my garden. A single Fieldfare was sighted perched high up in a neighbours tree and Redwings were very busy earlier in the week as they sought out the local Rowan tree berries! They appear to have now moved on so I will have to have a local walk over the Christmas period to seek some out. The Foxes are still regular visitors!

I wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy, Healthy and Peaceful New year.