After a cold night with rain and a sprinkling of snow, 28 people gathered on a bright, sunny, but cold morning. The Three Brooks Nature Reserve was, for me, a completely new location. Though surrounded by roads, houses and the M4, it is a surprising natural oasis. We set off northwards through a muddy Savage’s Wood, quiet apart from an obliging Great Spotted Woodpecker that most of us managed to see. There were soon encouraging signs of Blue Tits, Great Tits and Jackdaws everywhere, pairing off for the Spring. From the top corner of the reserve, we turned back south to follow a brook where one person got a brief view of a Little Egret, Cormorants flew over and others saw a Stock Dove and briefly a Kestrel. After a stop for coffee, we went up a short rise into some scrubland, pleasant but, alas, an almost bird free zone. Finally down to a pool, which had Mallard, noisy Black-headed Gulls and nearby,
Goldfinches. 24 species in all. Thanks to Jean for leading.
Dru Brooke-Taylor