Welland Valley Wandering

Genuinely cold for the first time this Autumn with a light frost out in the countryside. Despite the date there were no fireworks or much to fire the imagination on my walk today. I headed over to East Carlton Park to check for Bramblings before strolling along part of the Welland Valley and heading home via Brookfield Plantation.

Brown Hare and Pheasant.

My walk through the town showed that Redwings are now well established, they were seen nearly everywhere today. Cormorant and Heron at the boating lake would not have amused the fishermen setting up but I didn't mind looking at them. Leaving the town a Hare was having its morning wash in a field close to Cottingham and was joined briefly by the first of many Pheasants.

Long-tailed Tit.

Middleton Lane was alive with Bullfinches feeding on dried blackberries, there were certainly more than ten present. A Chiffchaff calling from some Ivy was almost certainly a wintering bird rather than a lingering Summer migrant. Arriving at East Carlton I noticed an almost total lack of beech mast on the trees which rather dented any hope that I may of had of seeing Bramblings. Sadly I couldn't find any and even Chaffinches were scare. Not a bad selection of the commoner species present of which my favourite was a Sparrowhawk annoying the local Jackdaws.

One of few birds prepared to pose today...

The Welland Valley was dullsville with very little of note, it's a horrible road between Cottingham and Rockingham anyway what with speeding cars and no shortage of roadside rubbish but when there's nothing to see it's terrible. The next stretch was no improvement really with just a single flyover Redpoll seen and I headed up into the fields along a public footpath. Straight away a Raven appeared while Yellowhammers and Linnets began to show. Other birds included both Skylarks and Meadow Pipits which I suspect may have been wintering birds rather than migrants.

....and one of the others.

Close to the flooded quarry off the Gretton road another Redpoll flew overhead and Green Woodpeckers called noisily. Here I saw my first ever November Common Darters in Northants, I've had them in both Norfolk and Devon before but never in the home county. A male and a female were seen basking in the sunshine. Several Siskins and a large tit flock were found in Brookfield but the most impressive sight were some Fallow Deer stags which were sadly a little too nervous to pose for pictures apart from one less than brilliant one. A Red Admiral was found taking in some rays, I wonder how many more I'll see this year?

Female and male Common Darter.

I'm off to Norfolk tomorrow for five days so there should be a few different sort of things to see even if it's not a wildlife break, last year brought sightings of Waxwings, a Lapland Bunting and about 60 Shorelarks so fingers crossed!.

Red Admiral.