Chiltern Birder

 Autumn is clearly coming in with mushrooms and toadstools appearing in the fields and woods. This fine specimen was one of many on my walk today.       The walk took us along Green Lane to White End near Latimer. There was quite a sight with the sky around one of the houses in the hamlet full of house martins. They all suddenly settled on the roof, apparently basking in the sun for a second before all taking flight again. Suddenly they all flew off towards Latimer only to return a few seconds later and settled on the roof again. It was quite a spectacle and I wished I was able to linger all morning to watch it. The return along Bun's Lane was noteable for the birds invisible in the canopy as the trees met over the bridleway. I know that I disturbed at lease one jay and one green woodpecker judging buy the angry calls close above my head. In the garden I will have to dispose of the contents of the two fat feeders but the sunflower seeds are still being taken by occas...

I was walking through Latimer today and heard what sounded to me like a ring necked parakeet calling in Parkfield and another among confiers further up the road. This is certainly the closest that I have encountered them to Chesham although I have seen and heard them in Rickmansworth and once in Chemies. I seem to have seen so many roe deer recently that walking through the woods to Latimer without seeing any seemed quite unusual. What I did realise today is that I have seen more roe deer than muntjac durling lockdown, when driving at night in normal times it is the other way round. Out and about the bluebell season is long gone but plenty of opportunity to appreciate the delicate flowers of the grasses, at least until they are cut for silage, plus the occasional field poppy. The garden has gone very quiet, the blue tits seem to have followed the starlings and I can go several days without topping up the feeders.

I was walking on Ley Hill Common today and had just stopped to admire the bluebells when I saw a deer walk onto the path ahead of me.   The photo doesn't really show the scale, it wasn't fully grown and for a second I had thought it a large muntjac. It stayed still without any interest in me for a long enough to allow me to get out the phone and take the picture. Still unaware of my presence in then walked into the woods across the path and I approached much closer but without the opportunity of a photo. Finally it realised that I was there and bounded away with some wonderfully balletic leaps. With the Covid-19 lockdown I have been taking some longer walks. On a byway between Latimer and Flaunden I was lucky enough to see a yellowhammer on the hedgerow. While I have often seen these birds perched on the hedges while driving down the local lanes this was the first occasion when there hasn't been a sheet of glass in the way. The number of birds singing on that walk...

I took a trip down to Leigh on Sea yesterday. Timing was based on weather and personal committments and, as usual, I ended up being there at the wrong state of the tide. I parked at Two Tree Island and saw teal resting on the creek bank as well as the usual redshank and a few gulls. Walking down to the old town there were quite a few redshank around but I didn't see or hear any other waders, they were probably at the water's edge on the other side of the Leigh Sand. The first thing that struck me was the absence of turnstones around the cockle sheds. These have been a feature of this location for many years. Unlike my last couple of visits there were no egrets in Leigh Creek either. On the mud there were plenty of gulls, black headed, herring and both lesser and greater black backed. There were no brent geese visible on the mud and talking to locals I was told that they had all left. However, walking towards Chalkwell I saw two parties on the foreshore. Luch of course meant ...

I thought that we had a solitary pair of bullfinches coming into the garden until today. This afternoon we had a pair of cock birds in the garden plus one hen. Having been watching these birds regularly it was clear that the red breasts were fading slightly and they had a very slight hint of orange rather than the very pure brick red of earlier in the season. One suprise in the front garden last week was a solitary cock sparrow. I can never really get used to the fact that a species that was the most common in my childhood garden is so rare here. Out and about the bluebells are just coming out and a few walks in the woods will be in order in the next couple of weeks. While driving towards Latimer a pair of red legged partridges posed in a field entrance allowing me to stop and give my passenger a good view. Back in the garden there were a couple of holes in the vegetable bed that were clearly caused by a badger. Luckily away from the seedlings that I planted out last week. The occa...

I had quite a suprise driving back from the garden centre this afternoon. In the road between Latimer and Ley hill was a flock of ten juvenile pheasants, 7 cock birds and 3 hens. They proceeded to run down the lane away from the car milling back and forth across the road. One eventually ran down the side of the car and some of the others made for the hedgerows. As I carried on at walking pace the rest ran in front of me, one or two finally diving into the verge and the rest finally remembering their wings and taking flight.

High summer and early autumn is always a quiet time for birds in my garden. I no longer feed after my summer holiday as I have ended up throwing away far to much mouldy fat or seed. Normally I would wait until November before putting the feeders back out but a party of long tailed tits appeared in the front garden today so I think that it might be worth while trying a single fat bar for the moment. For the past couple of weeks I have seen a lot of roadside signs saying "beware of deer" in places where I wouldn't normally see them. Last weekend I decided that they might be justified when I encountered a herd of roe deer in the road between Ley Hill and Latimer. While muntjac are seen often enough the roes tend to be shy and this was only the third time that I have had a good look at some in all the years that I have lived here.

This morning had some very interesting moments. I went down to Rickmansworth to take a walk around Stockers Lake. Making my way up from the car park I saw that the black swan was still in residence, this time on Bury Lake with a group of mute swans. The songsters were in fine voice and  I was lucky to see a garden warbler singing. On the water were the usual selection but I only saw chicks with the coots. The common terns are returning and in a wooded area a wren managed to beat the warblers on volume. When the flags come into flower the display around the lake edge will be magnificent. Driving home I stopped at Codmore Wood to take a look at the bluebells which are now fully out. Walking in the wood I saw a group of three roe does. They were wary but I stood still and they did not run, giving me the best view of the species that I have ever had. The large mobile ears were very striking giving, for a moment, the imression of a very elegant donkey. They kept a wary eye on me, th...

Driving home just after midnight last night I had just passed through Latimer when a badger suddenlty emerged from the hedgerow and turned its head to face me. Luckily I was anticipating wildlife at that time of night and slowed down promptly otherwise it might have been yet another ex badger on the tarmac. What was a surprise was to get the full face in the headlights, it is unusual to get a good look at the mask as they are usually crossing at right angles or running away. At the edge of the little orchard in Codmore Wood Road there was a muntjac eating windfalls. As the lights startled it we could see pieces of apple falling from its mouth. In the garden the birds seem to be thinking about nesting with a pair of robins not only not fighting but collecting dead leaves and taking them into the honeysuckle on the side fence.

Escaped ornamentals can be a problem to identify but that wasn't the case with the black swan that I saw on Stockers Lake today. I almost missed it as it seems to spend far more time with its head down than a mute swan. Apart from that a walk around the lakes at Rickmansworth produced nothing exciting in terms of unusual species. There were plenty of tufties, pochard, coot, mallard, mute swans, cormorants and gadwall as well as a solitary shoveller. I passed a heron very close to the path who seemed quite unconcerned about my presence and was also lucky enough to see a great crested grebe swallowing a fish. Undergrowth had been cleared from some of the islands and one seemed to be full of lapwings. There are bird feeders by a couple of hides which were getting attention from blue and great tits and one also had a party of rats feeding on the discarded seeds underneath. Judging by the sizes I would guess a family party of two adults and two juveniles. On the wooded part of the...

An evening trip down to Hillingdon yesterday was rewarding in wildlife sightings. On the way out a muntjac was poking its head out from the hedgerow by Latimer crossroads as if waiting for a gap in the traffic. Maybe natural selection is favouring the ones who don't run straight out. Comin back at around midnight Blackwell Hall Lane was very rewarding. First a barn owl was perched on a branch above the road. Its always striking how they show up in the headlights. Second there was a badger snuffling along on the verge. I had the camera in my bag on the passenger seat but he headed for the hedge as soon as I slowed down. Finally the strangest sight on a country lane, a police car! I have seen patrols in that area several times recently, normally seeing one is as surprising as seeing a badger. I assume that there have been some problems with machinery or stock thefts recently.

Driving home from Chenies today I had a strange encouter with a buzzard. On the lane between Flaunden Bottom and Ley Hill a buzzard was flying, in the same direction as me between the hedgerows persued by a crow. Unfortunately I couldn't take in the full effect of this as I had to negotiate oncoming traffic in the single track road. Yesterday a buzzard was circling above Cowcroft Wood and making a lot of noise. Apart from crows and kites there was not much else in the way of birds but there was a rather handsome puffball in the pasture between Broomstick Lane and the wood. I had left my phone on charge so I didn't manage a picture. Last week I visited Fishers Green and again not much to report. It was a little early for winter migrants and there was the usual selection of water fowl but far fewer gadwall than last year. In the garden I have had a few sunflower seeds in the feeder and these have been gradually taken, mostly by robins. I have added a small fat bar today, I ...

Not much to see in the garden recently. I have fat bars hanging at both front and back but only very small quantities are being taken. The only thing of any note was a flock of long tailed tits in the garden a few days ago. However, driving between Latimer and Ley Hill today I did see a small thrush fly into a roadside tree. As it landed it fluttered its wings to show a flash of red. I have seen thrushes in flocks which might possible have been redwings already but that was my first positive identification of the winter.