Wildlife sightings for 19th December 2012
1 Bittern - resr lagoon W end a.m.
1 Rock Pipit - scrape (island towards the NE corner) - came off the river a.m.
7 Redpoll - south route, with Goldfinches and Chaffinches
13 Siskin - a few in south route, the rest flew NW
14 Redwing - flew SW
Recent bird highlights: Goosander, Bittern, Little Egret, Peregrine, Woodcock, Jack Snipe, Yellow-legged Gull, Rock Pipit, Skylark, Bearded Tit, Brambling, Mealy Redpoll.
The two Bitterns have become a lot more noticeable as the temperatures have dropped, forcing them to perch higher up in the reeds above the frozen water surfaces and calling for more active feeding and flying sorties to and from the different reed fringes and reedbeds across the reserve.
The frozen water bodies have produced other highlights including Goosander and Jack Snipe. Many birds are being moved around the region in search of open water at this time of year. Hopefully we may get a visiting Scaup or Goldeneye as well this month.
Waxwing put in some very welcome appearances during the later months of November and early December, as they did across the whole country. Some perching individuals were well watched on the reserve.
This late autumn there’s been more sightings of Bearded Tit than in any other year, suggesting that the same two birds have been in refuge all the time amongst the dense vegetation of the main reedbed and grazing marsh. Keep listening out for the distinctive ‘pinging’ calls.
Small numbers of Redpoll and Siskin can be found daily, feeding on the Birch and Alder trees. Redwing and Fieldfare are best found in numbers when the sky is more overcast, prompting more migration flights than on very clear days.
