We spotted a large flock of linnets in the trees by the gate up to Pony Wood. They were dropping down to feed in the margin that goes up by the plantation.
Fraser told us that last week a sparrow hawk ( It was likely to be a male) took a small bird in his garden.
Here is Jonathan’s email
Greetings All,
There’ll be a volunteer session at Fairfield Orchard, Flora and Fauna this
Saturday, December 8th, starting at 10.00am and finishing at 1.00pm or
thereabouts.
On the agenda for this occasion:
* Retrieve the hand pump from West Field and store for winter.
* Clear up the last of the leaves down the track from Sunnyside Lane.
* Block with brash the gap between the track and the Orchard ‘wild area’.
* Tidy the fallen crack willow in the Orchard but preserving it as a
second ‘willow whip farm’.
* Replace four broken fencing posts including the two near Cromwell Road
which need wire repair.
* Trim round the standard trees left by the hedge flail.
* Continue hedge trimming between Lower Sowerholme and Flora Field.
* Deck the halls with boughs of holly, fa-la-la-la-la, la-la-la-la, owing
to it being the season to be jolly (optional).
And that’s about it for this time and for this year.
Very best wishes to you and yours,
Jonathan.
The flush count this morning revealed a measly total of 22 snipe, 3 of which were jacks. Three birds in the Hay Meadow, the rest in Big Meadow. The running total for this winter stands at just 58, the lowest it has been since we started the winter counts in 2013/14. But it is still mild and also today very wet in the marshes, so the snipe may well be on alternative feeding sites.
Better news was a sighting of two brown hares (separately) in West Field. A small roe deer moved off into Upper Sowerholme, and quite a large frog was disturbed in the Hay Meadow up towards Lucy’s Pool.