October 6, 2013
About a dozen members met at Ferrybridge on the causeway to Portland on a lovely, sunny day. The Fleet at Portland was a bit quiet but notable sightings were 15 Mediterranean Gulls, Dunlin, Ringed Plover and Brent Geese with Wheatear, Kestrel and Swallow on the shingle bank. We then went to Wyke Regis where Jane
October 1, 2013
Instead of one of those “misty, moisty” autumn mornings with shafts of sunlight catching the seasonal colours, 21 members turned out on a wall-to-wall grey morning. However, before we set out our leader told us “This is a lovely walk” – and it was, through a varied habitat of lanes, open hillsides, deep tracks with
September 24, 2013
14 members met on a mild but foggy day for a walk circling Tickenham Moor and the Blind Yeo River, the fields and wooded slopes up to Tickenham Ridge, and prehistoric Cadbury Camp at the top. The moors showed Mute Swans, Mallards, Heron, and Buzzard; one member said there were moves to turn this area
September 21, 2013
Thirteen members met at the Meare Heath car park on a pleasant early autumn morning. A number of passerines were noted in the car park including Dunnock, Robin, Chiffchaff and Blackbird. The willows and alders on the first part of the Meare Heath reserve track held Great, Blue, Coal and Long-tailed Tits. As soon as
September 17, 2013
Thirteen optimistic birders set out from Kendleshire Golf Club on a dry morning, heading towards the ponds. Lesser Black-backed gulls and Black-headed gulls were flying overhead. Moorhen were spotted on the first pond and Mute Swans on the second. Four Coots were swimming across the lake where there was a new bridge. As we continued
September 15, 2013
It was a pity that only three of us turned up to join leader Andrew Slade from Burnham who was kind enough to lead this Club trip, but perhaps the rising south-westerly winds were discouraging. There were plenty of signs of migration that morning, if nothing particularly unexpected. Swallows, with a handful of martins, passed
September 10, 2013
A warm, still, sunny morning saw 23 members turn out for a walk along to the lodge from the causeway where we notched up 23 species before returning to the far side of the lake for another 11. There were no surprises and all the expected birds were there. The main sources of interest were
September 3, 2013
A happy bunch of 19 people left Winscombe village, walking towards Sandford Hill on a warm but misty morning. As we set off there was a variety of birds from Jackdaw and Herring Gull to Pied Wagtail and Collared Dove on the roofs. Across the fields we soon had Swallows overhead and reached a poplar
August 31, 2013
Twelve members met at Herriott’s Bridge on a warm sunny morning for this walk around the various areas of the Lake. At Herriott’s Bridge and pool we all observed three Black-Tailed Godwit, seven Ruff as well as Gadwall, Shoveler and Teal. A small flock of ten Long-tailed Tits flew into some dense bushes on the
August 28, 2013
The two groups, arriving on busesfrom different directions, met at the gateway to Leigh Court, Abbots Leigh on a lovely sunny morning, 14 of us in all. I decided to divert from the direct path to the river into Paradise Bottom and this proved fruitful. Tits of almost every sort were flitting high in the