Monday Mandarins Back On The Menu

 I went all retro today as I boarded an X4 packed with annoying school brats and headed over to Oundle, in a previous job I used to have Mondays off and often used to visit Barnwell when it was much quieter than on the weekends. Like many of the teenage kids I spent a lot of my time dodging showers while also enjoying the frequent sunny spells which were interspersed with them.

Mandarins

The park was as quiet as I hoped it would be and I met very few others as I strolled around. Mandarin numbers seem to be on the rise and over ten were present including the regular pair near Kingfisher Hide. I didn't manage to see or hear any Kingfishers today either here or along the Nene. Whilst wandering in the direction of Lowlands Hide a familiar croaking call drew my attention to a Raven which was my first ever at the park. Another Barnwell first soon followed as I caught a glimpse of the Water Rail that has taken up station here for the last few weeks. There are many good pictures of this bird online and I'll have to pop back and try and get a few shots of my own. Other birds noted from this hide included several Nuthatches and some flyover Siskins. Having enjoyed a chat with a chap that was photographing the wildlife I then moved on towards the river.

Nuthatch and Reed Bunting

My riverside stroll did not produce much in the way of interesting wildlife but was pleasant enough. I stopped to scope the floods near the A605 where a large flock of Black-headed Gulls had dropped in. A single Great White Egret was hunting in the shallows and there was a Little Egret too. Duck numbers seem a little down on recent visits but there are still reasonable numbers of Wigeon and Shovellers present as well as a few Gadwalls and Teal. From here I wandered back into town where a look around the churchyard failed to produce any of the hoped for Spring butterflies. My next action was to catch the bus home which was thankfully much quieter than it had been on the outward journey.

Great Tit, Chaffinch and GWE