Saturday, 27 February 2021

Visit to Noak Bridge Nature Reserve – 27th February 2021

Date: 27th February 2021

Time: from 8:15 a.m.

Weather: dry, sunny, light wind, 2°C to 8°C

Like the visit to my other local patch site around St. Nicholas Church yesterday, it was again a beautiful sunny spring-like morning with hardly any wind although early on there was still some remnant ground frost.

It was a very productive morning and I recorded 21 bird species, including 6 additions to my site list for the year, the highest total since last spring and summer.

The 6 additions to my site list for the year were Bullfinch, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Collared Dove, Moorhen, Lesser Black-backed Gull and Canada Goose.

The most notable was a male and female Bullfinch in the trees at the back of Meadow Pond, the same location as my 2 records last year in May 2020 and July 2020. I initially saw the female but Bullfinches have a strongly monogamous pair bond so I then very quickly saw the male.

I heard a Great Spotted Woodpecker “drumming” whilst I was sat by Willow Pond and I saw a Moorhen and heard another at this same location. My records of Collared Dove (1), Lesser Black-backed Gull (1) and Canada Goose (2) were all of fly-over birds.

In addition to these species, there was a male and female Mallard on Puckles Pond.

The reserve was very noisy this morning. No, not the usual sound of traffic on the adjacent A127 but the noticeable increase in the abundance of bird song with the approach of spring. I heard and also saw the following species: Wren, Robin, Dunnock, Great Tit, Blue Tit, Blackbird and Goldfinch but surprisingly no Song Thrush.

Finally, I saw 3 Grey Squirrels during my visit: 2 individuals in the wooded area along the track between the storage shed and the East Meadow and 1 in the wooded area around the Spanish Steps.

Species recorded during this visit were as follows (heard only records in italics):

Blue Tit
Great Tit
Long-tailed Tit
Robin
Wren
Dunnock
Blackbird
Bullfinch
Goldfinch
Pied Wagtail
Great Spotted Woodpecker
Woodpigeon
Collared Dove
Jay
Magpie
Carrion Crow
Mallard
Moorhen
Canada Goose
Herring Gull
Lesser Black-backed Gull

Grey Squirrel

Here are some photos from my visit:













Photo: Robin













Photo: Robin













Photo: Robin














Photo: Robin














Photo: Robin













Photo: Robin













Photo: Robin














Photo: Robin













Photo: Robin














Photo: Woodpigeon














Photo: male Mallard














Photo: Magpie at nest













Photo: Grey Squirrel
































Site totals to date (2021 totals in brackets):

Birds = 40  (26)
Mammals = 2  (1)
Butterflies = 18  (0)
Dragonflies and damselflies = 9  (0)
Reptiles = 1  (0)
Amphibians = 0  (0)

💚🦆 🦉🦋🐝🦊🦡🌼 🌳💚
Stay safe, stay well, stay strong, stay connected with nature


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