Water, Water Everywhere

 I awoke to a beautiful sunny morning and decided to spend my time walking around the Oundle countryside in the hope of catching up with some interesting wildlife. The last traces of mist were lifting as the X4 dropped me off in the town and I made my way towards Barnwell CP. I was surprised by the extent of the floods seen from the south bridge, I knew we'd had lots of rain but was not expecting to see what appeared to be a lake on either side of the road. Highlight from here were a pair of Mandarins which were feeding on the edge of the floodwater.

Mandarins

Barnwell was waterlogged and so too were the fields on the other side of the river where small groups of Wigeon had gathered. From a bird perspective the park was quiet and that may have been due in part to the number of people wandering around. There was a small selection of passerines that included Marsh Tit in their number but generally pickings were slim. I abandoned the park before eleven and made my way towards the floods near Barnwell Lock. 

Passerine selection.

High water levels meant that I couldn't take my usual riverside route and had to head along South and Herne Roads before reaching a point from where I could view the waters. If anything the sheer volume of water meant that birds have dispersed over a vast area and I saw very little for my troubles. At least two hundred Lapwings showed distantly but there really wasn't much else on view. Grey skies and a threat of rain were enough to persuade me to give up and I made my way back into town.

Flood scenes