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Water

The water table has finally risen enough to feed a small spring by the Water Meadow car park in Chesham which means that there is now a small stream flowing in the river bed under the town bridge. Not enough to bring fish back to that part of the river.

The garden is more active with birds, starlings are now visiting regularly and sparrows come into the bushes. A cock blackbird has taken up residence and the wood pidgeons are coming to the ground feeder as well. There don't seem to be as many greenfinches as normal yet but siskins are nowhere near as uncommon as in previous years. Unfortunately pair of wrens that were visting regularly either didn't survive the hard frosts just before Christmas or have moved elsewhere.

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No Choice

Taking my usual walk today it was striking how the autumn colours had come on in the last few days. When the sun came out I really regretted not having the camera with me. There wasn't much to see in the way of variety or numbers of birds. A couple of probable skylarks put up on a cultivated field but the gem was naturally a red kite. Circling over the fields behind my house at tree top height it finally came over my head as I reached the edge of the field. Living where I do I suppose that I should be blasé about them by now but when one comes overhead there is no choice. I still just stop and say "wow!"

Harvest

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Warm Winter

A recent visit to Fishers Green didn't find anything exciting in the way of water fowl. There was a decent sized flock of wigeon at the far end of Holyfield Lake but nothing rare. Walking back on the other hand I was delighted to see a treecreeper on one of the bushes alongside the Flood Relief Channel. The pale grey chest caught my eye so easily. At home I am feeding but there isn't much being taken. Based on previous years I should have ordered some more fat bars for delivery before Christmas but it looks as if my existing supply will hold out for the rest of 2015. Visits to the feeders are brief with log gaps but we had a pair of goldfinches today and during the last month we have had long tailed tits and one visit observed by a coal tit. After a long absence we also had a goldcrest in the garden although its interest was in the Old Man's Beard growing through next door's leylandii hedge rather than anything I had done.