Wednesday 3rd May 2023 - Newton St Loe

 

As I mentioned last week there is no 3 Amigos this week as David is in Spain and next week Bryan will be on the Isle of Man. But this week Bryan his wife and Myself with my wife had a walk to Newton St Loe, not a bird spotting trip but a walk to enjoy the weather and scenery but with an eye out for birds so some were seen as you will see below.

The walk started with flyover Woodpigeon and Swallow followed by Jackdaw and Rook. In the bushes were House Sparrows and in the church grounds was a single Magpie. In the field were a few Carrion Crows and as we reached the road a Blackbird flew past. As we reached the road to Send a Cow (which by the way no longer exists and is now called Ripple Effect) a Goldfinch was singing from the very top of a tree with more singing close by. A Grey Heron flew over and a Chiffchaff was seen singing by the side of the footpath. A Speckled Wood butterfly was on the wing along with Orange Tips. A bird flew over the footpath in front of us which Bryan found running up a tree trunk, a Treecreeper which we were able to follow as it flew from tree to tree. Butterfly alley was quite quiet except for the constant calling of Ravens with 2 flying around being harassed by crows. On the bottom lake were 15 Mallard and a Moorhen plus a single Lesser Black Back Gull. A Robin was in the woods between the lakes. On the top lake were 7+ Moorhens , one having 4 chicks, and also 6 Coots with one having 5 chicks in tow. The pair of Mute Swans have returned after a few weeks absence.

One of the 2 Mute Swans NSL- Bath Birdwatcher

 A Goldcrest was seen in the Yews on the dam. A Buzzard gave us an ID dilemma when a bird if prey was hovering high in the sky and it wasn’t until it turned and flew it became apparent that it was a Buzzard. 4 Little Grebes were on the lake.

Little Grebe - NSL (Bath Birdwatcher)

 A Grey Wagtail flew by, but Mallards were very few but as some  flew from the bottom lake with others landing while we were there an exact count could not be made. As we walked around the lake a Nuthatch was seen at the top end followed by a Great Tit. One piece of excitement was, on the far side of the lake a male Sparrowhawk was chasing a bird which flew into a bush next to us, the hawk landed on to of the bush about 6ft away from us, but soon flew off when it realised we were so close. We never saw what it was chasing but it had a lucky escape. Our final sighting of the morning was a singing Whitethroat at the bottom of the drive.

Moorhen chick - NSL (Bath Birdwatcher)


 

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