Chiltern Birder

A glorious day for a walk today, too glorious considering the present drought. I took my usual circuit down Bottom Lane then across the field path back towards Tylers Hill Road. Bluebells were in leaf in the hedgerow, hopefully natives rather than garden escapes, and a few snowdrops were in flower. A few minutes later I was serenaded by a skylark, the first that I have heard this year. A little further down the lane I heard a buzzard mewing although by the time I was out in the open it had gone. In fact, apart from a few crows and pigeons and a solitary blackbird everything seemed to be out of sight although the various songsters were making plenty of noise and I could hear a green woodpecker somewhere over towards Botley Road. In the garden I have seen a long tailed tit on the starling bar as well as the regular blackbirds and blue tits. Still no starlings however which is a huge change on previous years.

After a remarkably mild winter we have had a week of very cold clear weather followed by reasonably heavy snow overnight. Despite the freeze the birds have not rediscovered my garden although the numbers of blue tits coming to the fat bar seem to be increasing slowly. It is still the same fat bar, in previous years I would probably have been onto the third by now. The snow did bring a blackbird onto the feeder and a pair were roosting in my neighbour's leylandii hedge. I will have to be careful to check that I am not disturbing a next when I next trim my side. Nothing much of note, the Chess is still dry and there have been a disturbing number of dead badgers on the roads recently.