Woodstock Wildlife Record

I've had a good run of birds since mid-July on my Woodstock patch. Five or six Whinchats has been a great return. It seems to be a magnet for them. A rooftop Tree Pipit was a crazy bit of luck and a Common Redstart was a hoped for patch tick. On the morning of 14th September I took in my usual walk of the fields north of Woodstock. What was clear was the large influx of Meadow Pipits. Easily three figures in this relatively small area. A couple of Kestrels kept them nervous and they would perch on the overhead wires to keep an eye on them.  As I watched the spectacle, I glimpsed a bird hop up onto the wall surrounding Field Barn Farm. I couldn't quite believe it when I saw it was a Black Redstart. It quickly dropped into the yard and I didn't see it again over the next 45 minutes before needing to head home. I managed a few shots during that first sighting. It remained for the rest of the day as others were able to see it. Hoping it would hang around, I set out early the ne...

A family holiday on the Fife coast in mid-August allowed for some birding along the nearby beach in Kingsbarns and the area near the holiday home where we stayed. It was nice to be able to explore a different habitat to that from home and see what I could find. It is not a bad time to visit given a lot of seabirds and waders are on the move and checks of the recent sightings suggested some movement of large shearwaters off the Fife coast was taking place, albeit only small numbers. There is a hide at Fife Ness which is a good sea watching spot along this coast, but a key is required so my sea watching was done as part of my daily walks along Kingsbarns beach in the hope I would get lucky and pick something up off shore. Fulmars were present in good numbers and up to 30 chicks were visible on the cliff edge in nearby St Andrews. Gannets were constantly on view as the area is only a short distance from Bass Rock where hopefully their breeding population is now recovering. The only shearw...

I decided to use Ardley as my 3km patch to take part in the Patchwork Challenge for 2024. I visit it a lot anyway so it's no great hardship and a short drive from home. Most of it is private but public rights of way run through it so most of the area is viewable. It is a great little site with a mixture of habitat and always feels like it can turn up almost anything, and has a good record of doing so. The main hope is for some good waders during the passage months. The lagoon next to the facility building is small, but when the water level is right, can be very attractive for passage waders. 2022 was a great year with spotted redshank and curlew sandpiper during the autumn migration. Last year disappointed with barely any waders on passage. I've seen all three species of egret here, but even little egrets are a good bird for the site and not regular. It is also a good site for passerines such as Wheatears, Redstarts, and Whinchat at the right time of year.  January got off to a...