Bath Birdwatcher

  Saturday was our Bath RSPB’s monthly field trip and this time it was too the Somerset Levels. Our meeting point was the RSPB Ham Wall carpark. 16 members arrived and we all set off starting at Ham Wall. Lucy our leader is great at bird song and after seeing Magpie, Robin, Cormorant, and   Goldfinch while we waited for everyone to arrive, we set off and soon saw Mallard, Woodpigeon, Grey Heron and Buzzard. Lucy then asked us to keep quiet as a Reed Warbler was singing in front of us and she explained to those who did not know, how to tell it was a Reed Warbler. As we continued another warbler called out, or in the case of this bird shouted, it was a Cetti’s Warbler and very unusually was calling from an exposed perch giving everyone great views of a normally very secretive bird. A Great Spotted Woodpecker flew over and several Mute Swans were on an area of open water. Rook, Chaffinch and Great White Egret were all seen as we approached viewing platform 1, here we added Canada...

  This morning Mary and Tony decided to visit Newton St Loe for a walk, and of course some birding. We parked at the church and walked into the churchyard and here a Blackbird was our first sighting and as we entered the field beyond a Green Woodpecker flew over the herd of cows. As we continued to the road Jackdaw and Carrion Crows were flying over. A Blue Tit called and flew into the tree above our head and a Goldfinch was on the wires. Approaching the cottages Woodpigeon and Rooks flew over and a female Sparrowhawk flew from the fields and disappeared behind the cottages. The only bird seen down the woodland footpath was a Robin although many other species were singing from deep cover, never to be seen. Nothing new until the bottom lake where a Grey Heron was sat on a tree stump at the dam end of the lake and 13 Mallard were on the lake including a female with 9 ducklings (not included in the count). A Moorhen ran along the bank in front of us and at least 2 more were seen on th...

  This week’s birding trip was a morning visit to Newton St Loe but with just 2 of the 3 Amigos , Bryan and Tony as David had a previous arrangement. Parking by the Farm Shop a Swallow was calling from the wires and stayed long enough for me to get this picture. Swallow - NSL (Bath Birdwatcher) Also seen before we set off towards the lanes were Blue Tit, Jackdaw, Woodpigeon and Goldfinch. Walking towards the lanes we heard the call of a Greenfinch which Bryan found on the top of a tree and also a House Sparrow on a rooftop. A Pied Wagtail flew past and Magpie, Dunnock and Robin were also seen. From the lanes Lesser Black Back and Herring Gulls were flying in the distance. From the lookout point a pair of Pheasants were in the field immediately in front of us and a Buzzard was soaring in the 7 Acre area. As we continued up the lane we could hear Skylarks and as I scanned the sky I luckily found 2 Swifts but was unable to get Bryan on them but we did find the singing Skylark the 1 ...

  Severn Bridges from OPS - (Bath Birdwatcher) This week’s birding trip took us to Oldbury Power Station on the banks of the river Severn but it was just Bryan and Tony as David is sunning himself or rather birding in Spain. As we arrived in the Power Station car park a Kestrel was hovering over the trees and in the car park was a large group of other birders that we later discovered were from the Bristol BOC two of which we know well being also Bath RSPB members. Well we decided which ever way they went we would do the opposite, a bit of a mistake as it was to turn out. They went south so we went north where Goldfinch, Great Tit and Chiffchaff were quickly seen as were flyover Woodpigeon and Magpie. Walking past a small area of open water a Wren was singing in the top of a bush and we could hear a Reed Warbler singing in a patch of reeds but prover difficult to see however Bryan did find it and managed to get me on it as well, year tick no1. While looking for the Reed Warbler we c...

  Hodders Combe - (Bath Birdwatcher) T his Month’s RSPB field trip was to Hodder’s Combe in the Quantocks led by Tom Rodgers. Due to holidays I was the only one of the 3 Amigos who was able to go. We moved the trip from the 30 th of April due to the forecast with heavy rain predicted, to the following day May 1 st . 11 Members met at Holford car park for a 9.30 start. Lunch was to be carried and wellies was the footwear of the day as we had to make several crossings of a stream that runs through the Combe. We soon found a singing Goldcrest and a Robin lots of both species were heard singing all day. The next sighting was another species found by its song a Chiffchaff again several of these were heard. Walking by the stream we found at least 3 Grey Wagtails, Great Tit and a Treecreeper soon followed. We then did a slight detour to an area where Pied Flycatchers had been seen on a recce a week or so earlier, and nesting boxes had been placed for them to use and as predicted by box n...