Patchwork!

Well, my final total for the year was 152 - not bad, considering Ben Lewis only scored 8 more! I didn't register, so this is purely unofficial...
Highlights were three different Monty's, four Ospreys, a Little Stint, several Whinchats and a Wryneck!

Winter sunshine at Strumpshaw....

OK: nothing rare, but a thoroughly enjoyable walk with Linda & Jane (my elder daughter)
There were a few highlights: Nuthatch, Marsh Tit, a flock of Bullfinches, a few Snipe... Most unexpected was a Peacock (butterfly!) sunning itself along the river path.

Back home, the thrushes have followed us up from Maidenhead! There were at least a couple of hundred Redwings in the garden.

The thrushes are coming!

A Christmas spent in Maidenhead produced the expected Buzzards & Red Kites: what was more surprising were the huge mixed flocks of Redwings and Fieldfares that seemed to be all over Berkshire! Wherever we went, the bushes and trees were full of them! One unexpected sight was a Kite sitting in a meadow near Benson...

Buckenham Marshes

Took a stroll around a somewhat birdless Buckenham Marsh this morning: bumped into Strump regulars Rudolph Hucker and Mike Hunt and grabbed long-range shots of a few bits and pieces (including a 'Sentinel' AWACS plane....)

Last of the Summer Wine crew's pre-Christmas Fen stroll!

Great morning at the Fen with Brian, Kim, Mike & Norman - nothing rare, but great craik! The Harrier was, I believe, tagged at Sculthorpe, Is the Blackbird continental?

Happy Christmas to all birders in the Yare Valley! (And those unfortunate enough to live elsewhere!)

Full house at Strumpshaw!

I met up with Mike, Brian & Adrian at Strump today for a couple of hours in Fen Hide and a walk around the reserve. As is usually the case this time of year, we managed reasonable views of all the speciality species: Bittern, Otter and Kingfisher, with back-up from Reed Bunting, Fieldfare, Mistle Thrush and Redwing.

Linford with Martin

A lovely day in the Brecks with my oldest birding buddy (apart from Linda!) We eventually saw a flock of 15+ Hawfinches, but only one posed distantly for the camera. Other highlights included a brief view of the Two-barred in the carpark, a Firecrest, loads of Nuthatches and a Roe Deer at Santon