Barnwell Otter Again.

Another Monday at Barnwell where beautiful sunshine was the welcome order of the day and the wind had thankfully dropped too. While it was cold, particularly in the shade, it was a very pleasant experience wandering around the park.

My first stop was the Kingfisher Hide where I once again hoped to see some otter activity. First mammal on view was one of the many Grey Squirrels the inhabit the park as it joined the Dunnocks and Robins on the logs in front of the hide. Two pairs of Shoveller were a welcome distraction while a Great Spotted Woodpecker was busily drumming in the surrounding trees. Whilst looking at a Robin  I noticed some movement beyond it and also heard a crunching noise. The cause was an Otter fairly close in to the bank but typically it didn't loiter for more than a second or two before it swam off.  Luckily for me it stayed  feeding around on and off for about twenty minutes and I had some good views. Kingfisher was heard at least once though sadly it didn't hang around.

Dunnock, Shoveller and Blue Tit.

Winter chill was making itself felt by now and I decided to have a bit of a stroll with a view to getting some circulation going again. Quite a lot of the commoner birds were seen including both Siskins and Redwings while a Green Woodpecker called somewhere in the distance. Seeing as the feeders in front of Lowlands Hide were back and also filled I popped in for a spell.

Otter.

Nuthatches made frequent visits and their messy habit of feeding which involves lots of seeds flying in all directions proved very popular with the hungry Mallards waiting below. Male and female Reed Bunting popped in for a visit while several Robins chased each other around the area. At least ten Dunnocks were feeding around the bird table's base while a male Blackbird foraged loudly amongst the fallen leaves. With a few bits and bobs to do and more than happy with my haul I made my way back to Oundle and the bus.

Nuthatch and Great Spotted Woodpecker.