Birding Braunie

So there I was with a couple of hours to kill on a day off work and with all my chores ticked off, I quite fancied ticking off a few migrants missing from my year list. To get the most from the time, it had to be somewhere close and Wanstead Flats seemed the best option. The only problems are, a) I don’t have much luck there although it is well birded and always has some tempting birds. And b) it’s a weird place due to some weird folk wandering around and generally seem to be shifty-looking men hanging around with other shifty-looking men or loud dog owners on mobiles who feel the need to follow me and scare the birds out of every tree. Still, the birds are good Most of the action appeared to be near the main car park with Meadow Pipits , Skylarks and a couple of Wheatears basking in the warm sunshine and liking the worn out tree trunks that litter the place – in a nice way. Female Wheatear Another bird flew in close to the Wheatear I was vainly trying to photograph and I ass

The weather warmed up a little at the weekend and as my Saturday didn’t require me to hit my thumb with a hammer, I sneaked off to Rainham while the lady of the house had her back turned. There had been a few sightings of the wonderful Black Redstart and a couple of migrants in the shape of Northern Wheatears. I had highish hopes........ Didn’t bother with the RSPB reserve as the walk along the Thames river path was probably the best route to take to see migrants. Or so I thought. I walked west towards the stone barges and saw, well, nothing. One small bird flew ahead of me and disappeared – think it was a Linnet but couldn’t be sure. On the Thames a pair of Shelduck honked and small parties of Wigeon and Teal were seen. Further along the path there are a number of jetty/pier type things that have seen better days and are now defunct. A pair of Oystercatchers liked them although I think they had had a falling out. Oystercatchers, not talking The stone barges are the remains

I’m sure I don’t need to say that we have all experienced a rather prolonged and uncomfortable winter and early spring. The weather has affected all of us in some way and it now looks as though it will affect the springtime stirrings of many birds. With invertebrate food in short supply because of the cold climate right now,  the source of nourishment birds need to survive and prepare for raising a family is reliant on the food we put out for them. At the Bittern Watchpoint, the emphasis is of course on the Bittern and other waterbirds and mammals like Water Rail and Water Vole, but just as important at this time of year are the little guys. We have a regular supply of nuts and seed beside the hide that, when things are quiet, becomes the focus for many visitors to the watchpoint. Chaffinches, Robins, Dunnocks, Great, Blue and Long-tailed Tits, Reed Buntings, Great Spotted Woodpeckers, Jays and occasionally Lesser Redpolls all enjoy the rich picking the authority supply. Rob