Little Bunting, Langford Lowfields RSPB, Notts

 

Decided on trying for this Little Bunting as an addition to our year list, a bird we had seen last year, same hedge !  The weather was bitterly cold but we stood with the socially distanced crowd. After an hour Karen found it sitting out in almost the same place we had seen it last year !  The crowd were happy, some with a life tick !  After 10 mins the bunting disappeared but we did catch a glimpse of this female Brambling before we beat a retreat. Two new birds to the year list. 

And being as it was Good Friday and fish was the dish of the day, it seemed rude to drive past one of the best chip shops in our area, so a fish and chip tea it was !

and they were flipping delicious !!

Today at Spurn

Great Grey Shrike at Sammy's Point this morning 

It was one of those magical days when the bushes are alive with Goldcrests, hundreds of them! 

5 jack snipe were on Canal Scrape 

Wheatears - everywhere !

It was one of those magical days at Spurn. We started at Sammy's with a Little Bunting, Goldcrests and Wheatears everywhere, a Firecrest, Ring Ouzel and a Great Grey Shrike. 

5 Jack Snipe were out in the open feeding on Canal Scrape.

The day finished on a high with a Rustic Bunting in Church Field. A wonderful day !

Today at Spurn

Little Bunting at Sammy's Point - flushed by a dog walker !

 

Well, it has been one of those magical weekends with a staggering amount of birds on the coast. We headed to Yorkshire both days, Flamborough on Saturday and Spurn on Sunday. Just pulled up in the Crown and Anchor when a call went round that a dusky warbler had been caught and rung and was going to be released. Well, to say that two days ago we had never seen one, this weekend made up for it !  As it was released, a great grey shrike flew over along with a couple of ring ouzels. Two roe deer were rutting in the next field, oblivious to us birders. So, we thought we could catch up with a coffee and photograph a few bramblings when we had a text from John to say a corncrake was in the cow field and there was an organised flush. So, down there we headed to see a bird fly over the hedge to be flushed back again. Not a corncrake but a quail. The further away from Easington we got, the windier it was so we headed back to Kew area as most birds were there. Just got the flask out the car again and another text to say hawfinch in pub yard. It was all go !

Along the canal we had a very fleeting glimpse of another dusky warbler, a couple of mealy redpolls and a barred warbler.

Next came a call that there was a little bunting at Sammy's so we headed down there. It was out on the path but we couldn't get any closer for fear of flushing it...........later to be flushed by a dog walker anyway. Supporting cast at Sammy's also included a couple of great grey shrikes.

It was one of those fantastic, birds everywhere days and the count was staggering. Not a good day for photography as the gale force wind and the amount of people at Spurn beggared belief !

But so glad we joined the Friends of Spurn, felt very privileged to be allowed into the inner ringing circle !