June 5, 2013
Meeting at the Beaufort Arms we collected Greenfinch in the car park, Jackdaw from the church spire and House Sparrow from the lane beside the ‘The Fox Inn’ and our access to the fields. This was a new walk through some lovely countryside and wooded valleys. Across the fields the Swallows skimmed and Swifts chased
June 2, 2013
Eleven members met in the village of West Pennard on a bright but cool morning. We then drove a short distance on to the Moor and parked adjacent to a farm drove. This was a first visit for the Club to this rather remote part of the Somerset Levels even though Glastonbury Tor was less
June 1, 2013
It was a glorious early summer evening. The midges were ‘dancing’ in numbers uncountable, but where were the Hirundines? Approximately 200 at the same time last year but a single Swallow and only ten Swifts on this occasion – really rather troubling. However, nine members identified 38 species, ten of which presented before leaving the
It drizzled most of the day and the target species – Bearded Tit – was absent… but all in all eleven walkers had a great day out in Wales. The walk started well with House Sparrow, Cetti’s Warbler and Chiffchaff in the scrub along the lane to the visitor centre. The feeders there were alive
May 27, 2013
Seventeen members met in this beautiful Oxfordshire reserve on a sunny, warm morning. The walk started brilliantly in the car park with a Cuckoo calling, the distant purring of a Turtle Dove and the song of Willow Warblers, Blackcaps and a Garden Warbler. The reserve is a mosaic of wet meadows, and reed bed together
May 22, 2013
The ‘Save Our Pub’ sign made a good perch for a Blackbird; let’s hope it works as well for the pub! Rain had fallen; the grey skies were thinning so we eleven set out with light hearts. House Sparrow, Robin, and Woodpigeon our sightings before a plunge down into Horsecombe Vale where the ‘squeaky wheel’
May 20, 2013
There were eight of us on this venture to Suffolk. We started out from Jane’s house in Portishead in misty weather and the day continued cool and overcast but our spirits were lifted with excellent views of three Stone Curlews from the hide at Weeting Heath. One male and female were clearly a pair. The
May 15, 2013
Due to the weather the annual BBQ was cancelled. Many thanks to Hazel and John for the invitation to invade their cottage garden. Good news – three Nightingales are singing in Lower Woods, the same number as last year.
Before we started our evening walk through Lower Woods there was a Treecreeper calling at the car park. The woods resounded with birdsong, made particularly difficult to identify by the Song Thrushes, which could be heard at all points on our walk. By the stream we saw a Spotted Flycatcher. This is the first time
May 8, 2013
26 members met at Natural England’s Shapwick Heath car park on the first hot day of the year. In the morning we walked towards Noah’s Lake but the way was barred as the bridge to Meare Hide had been removed for maintenance and the main path closed just before the lake. After a picnic lunch