I braved the wind, rain and thick mud to go for my walk around the villages on the 5th. Highlights included around 200 Golden Plover, back at Park Farm after disappearing during December's wintry weather, twelve Corn Buntings at Hatchpen Farm and about 400 Linnets in three large flocks at Royston, Therfield and Reed. The pair of Gadwall was still present at Phillup's Lake, along with a Coot and 22 Canada Geese.
Male Gadwall, Phillup's Lake, 5 January
Canada Geese by Phillup's Lake, 5 January
On the 6th I visited the attractive little Lemsford Springs reserve, near Welwyn Garden City. This reserve hosts Green Sandpipers for around nine months of the year. Some of the sandpipers have been tagged and have been monitored here and at their breeding sites in Scandinavia. The warden, Barry Trevis, has some fascinating tales to tell about these birds, which feed at Lemsford on Freshwater Shrimps. I saw eight Green Sandpipers on my visit, together with eight Little Egrets and a Grey Wagtail. Ring-necked Parakeets have also found Lemsford - how long before they reach Royston?
Green Sandpiper (tagged), Lemsford Springs, 6 January
It is always nice to find a rarity on my 'Local Patch'. On 1 March last year I observed and photographed a 3rd winter Kumlien's Gull (the Canadian sub-species of Iceland Gull) at Hatchpen Farm in Reed. The bird over-wintered in the Cambridgeshire area in 2021-22, being regularly seen just over the county border at Heydon Pig Farm. This winter, presumably the same bird returned as an adult and was seen near Melbourn, 4-5 miles from my house, at the beginning of January. On the 10th I decided to walk up to Hatchpen again, not expecting 'lightning to strike twice', but it did! The very pale bird stood out on the ground amongst a mixed flock of around 200 gulls, before flying off west. I managed to grab a couple of flight shots of the distant bird in the gathering gloom which, when processed, showed it clearly to be an Iceland Gull although the distinguishing features of the Kumlien's sub-species were not visible. These are no more than 'record shots' - one day I'll get closer views of the gull in better weather!
Iceland Gull (Kumliens Ssp?), Reed, 10 January
Iceland Gull, Reed, 10 January
Another cold spell in the middle of the month, with frost and ice but no snow this time, meant unsuitable ground conditions for gulls. There was little of interest to be seen on my local walks, although, when I was on my way back from yet another failed attempt to see raptors and owls along the Icknield Way on the 17th at dusk, I was lucky to see a Woodcock fly across the path, near Wicker Hall. This was only my 4th sighting of this secretive bird in the local area, and my first sighting anywhere in the UK since 2021. Amazingly, I saw three other Woodcocks later in the week (see my UK Sightings blog). The frost and ice was replaced by thick mud towards the end of the month, and another gull-watching trip up to Hatchpen Farm on the 24th was rewarded by a sighting of a Yellow-legged Gull in flight, although there was no sign this time of the Iceland Gull.
The squirrels that had plagued my garden, gnawing away at the bird feeders, disappeared during the second half of the month but so, too, did the Goldfinches and Greenfinches. Had they found better sources of food? Despite my putting out loads of food (fat balls, peanuts, finch seed, sunflower hearts and apples) prior to my 'Big Garden Birdwatch' on the 27th, they didn't re-appear although, not surprisingly, the food attracted many Woodpigeons (maximum count six) and Jackdaws (also six) to the garden during the birdwatch.
Slightly further afield, I returned to Lemsford Springs during the cold spell on the 20th, after hearing news that up to three Jack Snipe were showing there. Two of the birds were hidden from view, but I had brief views of the third, which, annoyingly, spent most of its time hidden behind a lump of mud on the river. Two Common Snipe and at least nine Green Sandpipers were also present.
'Record Shot' of a Jack Snipe at Lemsford Springs, 20 January
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