Chiltern Birder

On Monday I went over to Bampton in Oxfordshire. Normally when I go there at this time of year the swifts are very noisy but this year I didn't hear one. The local crows, however, were taking offence at the presence of a red kite and swallows and house martins were visible. Yesterday I encountered a red legged partridge sitting on a gate beside the road. I was able to stop the car and have a good look at his very handsome markings.

As I had to go over to East London yesterday I took the opportunity to go up to Amwell which I hadn't visited for some time. Since my last visit the lakes have been taken over by the Herts and Middlesex Trust who have put access with hides and a nature trail. It makes seeing the birds a lot easier but has also made the whole area seem tamed and less exciting. Despite the improvements the first spottings of interest were while crossing the canal with a cock reed bunting perching in the bushes and a pair of common terns flying along the cut. On the margins of the lake were lapwings, one bird with a magnificent crest as well as a variety of roosting water fowl and cormorants. According to the notice board redshank were nesting and I managed to see one at the waters edge as well as an oystercatcher fly across the lake. Other birds of note were heron, shoveller and gadwall. When I first visited this site around 20 years ago there was a pair of egyptian geese in residence, either they...