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| Fieldfare (c) Bark |
I usually write this blog a couple of days after the weekend
concerned, and I was a little taken aback when opening my paper on Monday
morning to read the Country Diary/Nature notes column and finding it was all
about our patch, Otmoor. The column is always superbly written and this one was
no exception. It was lovely to have a view from someone else who is not an
Otmoor regular, at least within our familiar group of friends, and was writing
as lyrically about the place and expressing the same passion and delight in it that
we all feel.
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| Rainbow tangled in an oak (c) Bark |
This past weekend we experienced similar weather to that described
in the article, it was alternately rainy and grey and then stunningly bright
and sunny. It was very much a weekend of sunshine, rainbows and showers. The
rainbow ends sometimes appeared to be tangled in the bare branches of the oaks
on Noke sides and stood out brightly against the gunmetal grey and indigo of
the clouds, as the showers scudded through.
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| Goldies over Noke sides (c) Bark |
The numbers of Golden Plover and Lapwings have gone up
steeply and more than a thousand Goldies were feeding on Noke sides on both
days. When they all took to the air en masse at some real or imagined threat
they sparkled in the sun before settling back down to feed amongst the sheep.
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| Lapwings over the reedbed (c) JR |
There are plenty of raptors present to cause these frequent flushes. This weekend
both Marsh Harriers and Peregrines were noted and Sparrowhawks are regularly
haunting the Starling roost. As has become the norm we saw several Bitterns
this weekend. There is now a lot activity from them out across Greenaways, as
they move from one favoured feeding spot to another, the larger ditches and the
ring ditch are known to have very healthy fish populations. Because the field
is so open it is much easier to spot their movements from one place to another,
within the reedbed their flights are very much more clandestine. It was
interesting to note that they are not especially powerful fliers in strong
winds, we watched one individual battling to fly straight while heading into
the face of it.
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| Ashgrave Linnet (c) Bark |
As reported last week the water is finally starting to pool
on Ashgrave and consequently there is more out there to be seen. A small flock
if Linnets are beginning to haunt the bushes beside the hide and as the feeding
programme starts this week more of them will be attracted by the abundant supply
of small seeds. Stock Doves too are attracted to the handout and this weekend there
were six of them feeding out on the rotovated soil beside the large pool.
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| Fighting Pheasants |
We came across two cock Pheasants having a serious
altercation along the bridleway on Sunday. They were so caught up in their
dispute that we were able to walk right up to them and could almost touch them.
Despite their status as an introduced and artificially raised species their
colours and plumage has to be admired. Our ubiquitous Canada Geese are another
species that we take for granted and the sight of thirty or forty of them
flying low over head is still a stirring sight in spite of their feral status.
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| Canadas over the reedbed (c) JR |
To read the Guardian article please click on the link below:
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