Tuesday 08 August – Winford Manor

We didn’t fill the yard with our cars, but 24 walkers still required a fair meterage. After we had counted the Swallows using the barn, our host Melanie took us first to their ochre quarry at the back of Redhouse Farm. It is a large site extensively worked in the past with its refined product being shipped all over the world. The tranquillity was palpable, the sun came out and butterflies exposed themselves to our scrutiny. A Common Blue and a Gatekeeper; fresh out the packet, were much photographed. Bullfinch, Nuthatch, Chiffchaff and Robin were heard and after a long period of song, a quick flash of a Coal Tit. All these were below the lip of quarry, while above, a Raven scooted by and a lone Lesser Black-backed Gull rowed his way from the direction of Chew/Blagdon. Afternegotiating the many chickens, we saw a vast corvid cloud erupt over the trees, and not long after, at the coffee stop, we had good sightings of Goldcrest, Blue and Great Tit and a fair few Chaffinch. Leaving the fields, we turned right onto Hen Lane and followed it to Kingdown, spying a Tawny Owl box in a very exposed position. The houses in the hamlet were well populated with House Sparrow but nothing stirred beneath the closed canopy of Kingdown Lane. Once out onto Felton Common things brightened up, a Willow Warbler sang and a most obliging female Yellowhammer came and sat for an admirably long time. Various aeroplanes trundled over as we wandered towards the airstrip where the eaves of The Round House could be seen to be teeming with House Martin. Turning now to cross the common we came upon some Linnet, a couple of Stonechat and a Whitethroat; debate on the validity of Redstart was inconclusive, so it failed to get on the list. As we left the common, more Chiffchaff called above us in the bushes and a thin Buzzard -like call was heard but not identified conclusively. Our penultimate bird, and only seen by a few, was a Spotted Flycatcher, one of a family that were breeding here earlier. Our final and 34th species was a pair of Collared Dove, seen in the farmyard, where we offered our hearty thanks to Melanie for a delightful birding walk. Nick Hawkridge