Wag Of The Tale

 My day began at Wakerley Wood where Alan Shorrock and I had hoped to catch up with some Crossbills. Unfortunately we couldn't find any despite searching for quite a while but on the plus side we did at least miss the rain. Very little of anything was on view during our stroll and the only thing of note turned out to be Marsh Tit. Cutting our losses and calling it quits seemed to be the best idea and so we set off for Blatherwycke Lake.

Pied Wagtail and Egyptian Geese

Ten Mandarin Ducks were at their usual spot and we also saw three Egyptian Geese. A small selection of the commoner wildfowl were also seen with the most numerous being Tufted Duck. The highlight was perhaps a Kingfisher which we watched for several minutes though it was always distant. Next port of call was the churchyard where an attempt to see any Hawfinches failed, seems as if it wasn't our day for seeing chunky finches!. Redwings and Fieldfares were feeding in the Yew trees while Alan saw a Blackcap and several Siskins. Once we had left the churchyard I headed down to the bridge while Shozzer enjoyed a spot of lunch. My walk turned out to be worthwhile as I saw my first site Willow Emerald, sadly its visit was brief so I couldn't get a picture but it was nice to see all the same.

Fieldfare and Redwing

After a welcome pint or two at the Queen's Head in Bulwick we ended up at Eyebrook where things picked up. In the bay SW of the island a Wood and Green Sandpiper were seen briefly before they took off, efforts to relocate them failed. Our next stop was at the bunker near the island from where I thought I heard a Pink-footed Goose. After a brief look for the goose I searched through the flock of diving ducks near the plantation shore. A pair of Red Crested Pochards were the welcome reward for my efforts though they were too far away for pictures. Once again I heard the goose calling but once again efforts to find it failed. Two Dunlins were noted on the island where a Yellow-legged Gull was also present. By this time Phil Rogers had arrived and shortly after Alan found the Pinkie. We were treated to distant views of the bird associating with a gaggle of Greylags before it flew up into one of the neighbouring fields. Before we left we checked through the feeding geese and had several more sightings - a good way to conclude the day.

Yellow-legged Gull and Pink-footed Goose