A Fine Finale

 My search for Hawfinches took me to Blatherwycke where once again the weather was of the dull and grey variety. I positioned myself at the traditional spot in the churchyard and waited hoping to strike lucky. Almost immediately a wheezing call coming from the top of a tree drew my attention to a trio of Bramblings, my first of the autumn, that moved on before I could grab a picture. Moments after they had departed a Redpoll passed overhead while a Raven cruised silently past. There was a lot of bird song and calls at this stage and I turned my Merlin app on, it can be a bit dodgy but is still a useful tool. I quickly built up quite a list but they were all overshadowed when the distinctive "tick" call of Hawfinch alerted me to a couple of birds approaching from behind. They passed overhead and looked as if they might settle but instead flew through and were lost to sight. Another was heard calling from a large Yew tree but I couldn't find it. A desire to see the drake Red Crested Pochard that had been reported yesterday took me away from the churchyard and on to the lake.

Redwing and Raven

The pochard was easy enough to find and I had far better views than I achieved at Eyebrook last week. Initially it was loosely associating with some bog standard Pochards but drifted away from them and fed on its own. Whether our RCPs are feral or wild doesn't really matter, they're just stunning birds to watch. Away from the star turn I checked through a large flock of Greylag Geese without finding anything exotic and also sorted through the Mute Swans in case there was a Whooper hanging out with them - there wasn't! Egyptian Geese and a Black Swan carried the torch for feral wildfowl while there was a small selection of wild ducks too. Satisfied that I'd seen all there was to see I returned to the churchyard for another Hawfinch finding session.

Red Crested Pochard

My finch list was expanded soon after I returned as several Siskins passed by with at least one more Redpoll keeping them company. Flocks of Redwings kept coming down to the Yews but a possessive and protective Mistle Thrush would drive them off until their courage returned and they gave it another go. While watching the thrush shenanigans I saw a bulky looking finch fly out of the yew and settle in some bare branches. A squint through the bins confirmed it was a Hawfinch though it didn't linger for too long before it flew off. Happily for me it did loiter just long enough for me to grab a record shot, I'm hoping that this winter provides many more photographic opportunities. As it was now getting close to my pick up time I took a quick look at the Willowbrook where a Kingfisher ended my birding day on a good note. Back to work next week so it was good to end my holiday on a positive note, the fact that my local Wetherspoons was selling Rutland Panther for 99p a pint helped very much in that regard!

Merlin does get it right sometimes!