Well at Least it Wasn't Raining

On the plus side it was not raining when I left the house but that little detail brings me right round to the minus point, it was snowing instead. Fairly light at first it got heavier as the morning progressed though there were a few moments when it looked as if it might stop or was that just wishful thinking?

The Swamp

With the weather looking so unpromising I kept things nice and local and so caught a bus over to Kingswood Local Nature Reserve. While waiting for this bus I just about managed to pick out a Little Egret against the dull and snowy predawn sky. It was very quiet when I arrived at the wood with just a few dog walkers for company, I suspect that many pooches went unwalked this morning. Kingswood always brings back memories for me as I spent so many of my fledgling birding years here. With my visits now so few and far between I struggled to remember all of the old paths but it was still nice just bumbling about.

A couple of the rides within the wood.

Taking a track from the central clearing towards the Small Swamp I flushed a Woodcock up from the undergrowth which was a pleasant surprise in this urban wood. I used to see the occasional one but that was before the Oakley Vale and other developments went ahead and the countryside was that little bit closer. From here I made my way towards the big pond, known to generations of kids (mainly boys) as the Swamp it is the home of newts and toads though of course none were about today. Both of the ponds or swamps if you prefer can attract bathing and drinking birds but they didn't work their magic today.

Treecreeper and Goldcrest.

Other than that Woodcock there was little to report aside from the commoner species. At one point I was surrounded by a large flock of tits and it was fun picking my way through them. Lots of Goldcrests were feeding low down amongst the brambles treating me to some excellent views. By now  the snow was beginning to fall more heavily so I decided to take a walk back towards the Old Village. Stopping at a half frozen boating lake on the way meant that I was able to see that the two drake Pochards were still on site and there were also a couple of Cormorants. Leaving them and the large flock of grazing Greylags to their leisure I headed home for a much needed cup of coffee.