I was back at Holme Fen from early on, and the weather was much more conducive to some birding. Highlights included a flock of 8 Crossbills over, and a pair of Ravens was displaying along the east coast main train line. I saw a single Blackcap an…

 Today was a real stinker weatherwise, raining all day. Yesterday, while we were in Norfolk, my friend Chris found a Firecrest at Holme Fen, not far from Peterborough, so this mornign I tried to relocated it it. All I got was very damp!

 My dear wife Jo and I went up to north Norfolk today, as I thought she may like to see a bluetail. Sadly, there were no bluetails showing, and neither was the Rufous Bushchat, though I did bump into an old field Dave, from my school days; he was …

 Today’s Mound vis mig session at Ferry Meadows produced a moderate count, with not much movement. The highlight, though, was elsewhere in the park at ‘Roman Point’ where there were abut 25 Lesser Redpolls.In the afternoon (I have this week off),…

 The highlight of today’s activity was at Deeping Lakes LWT, where I investigated the couple of Pink-footed Geese which had been reported on the east pit there. It turns out that one of the geese was an adult Pinkfoot, but its companion was a juve…

 There was not much moving at Ferry Meadows again, this morning, so I abandoned the park to search for Rock Pipits at Maxey. I always say, that 17th October is peak Rock Pipit day. I have found them on this date before, and remember the date, as i…

 There is a bit of a north-easterly wind at the moment, and this has had an odd effect on the vis mig at Ferry Meadows. Namely, the birds were mostly migrating NNE this morning! These included the first migrant Blackbirds of the autumn (9 high-fly…

 The weather was atrocious this morning, so I skipped the usual Ferry Meadows cycle and vis mig session. Instead, my wildlife watching consisted of popping into the garden and noting some fly over Sky Larks and the sound of migrating Fieldfares. I…

Again, the migration at Ferry Meadows was just on the cusp of something special which did not really spill over. I noted 89 Fieldfares, 113 Redwings, 155 Woodpigeons, 45 Starlings and 7 Lesser Redpolls. I popped into the garden for a bit and was please…

Ferry Meadows ‘vis mig’ threatened to be exciting this morning, with a bit more Fieldfare action than previously, but it never really amounted to a huge movement in the hour or so I was recording. That said, I did record 40 species from The Mound, incl…

 Still enticed by the prospect of relocating the Holme Fen Firecrest, I was back in the morning, searching. A juvenile Hobby was a late bird, and I also had vocal Brambling and Chiffchaff, and a handful of Goldcrests. But, sadly, still no Firecres…

 Still enticed by the prospect of relocating the Holme Fen Firecrest, I was back in the morning, searching. A juvenile Hobby was a late bird, and I also had vocal Brambling and Chiffchaff, and a handful of Goldcrests. But, sadly, still no Firecres…

 Still enticed by the prospect of relocating the Holme Fen Firecrest, I was back in the morning, searching. A juvenile Hobby was a late bird, and I also had vocal Brambling and Chiffchaff, and a handful of Goldcrests. But, sadly, still no Firecres…

 The weather was atrocious this morning, so I skipped the usual Ferry Meadows cycle and vis mig session. Instead, my wildlife watching consisted of popping into the garden and noting some fly over Sky Larks and the sound of migrating Fieldfares. I…

 I was back at Ferry Meadows this morning, vis migging. There was the start of a decent east-west movement of Woodpigeons, plus more Redwing movement (less than yesterday). Key counts were:Woodpigeon, 750Redwing, 220Starling, 170,Snipe, 2,Siskin, 50

 As it was not clear where the Lammergeier had roosted, I started the day looking for scarce finches etc at Castor Hanglands NNR, just west of Peterborough. Immediately, it was obvious that Redwings were on the move. In the first 2.5 hours I was t…

 I arrived at the Nene Terrace site at first light, this morning, to see at least 30 cars already there and a crowd gathered near the Lammergeier tree. I set myself where I had been the previous evening and awaited sunrise. The vulture left the r…

 I started the day at the Lincolnshire village of Cowbit. The reason I was there is the Lammergeier had chosen to roost on a Rook’s nest in an Ash tree just on the north edge of the village, and I knew it would be still there at first light. So, I…

 Lammergeier, south of Moulton Chapel, Lincolnshire, 8.10.20The Radde’s Warbler business at the beginning of the week was pretty darn hectic. But last night’s news took the biscuit! It emerged via all sorts of convoluted social media routes, that …

 Once more I was in position at Radde’s HQ, Peakirk, at first light. A Barn Owl was easily the best bird, though (and, by the way, I did return last night, and failed to see or hear it again). In the evenign I checked out Deeping Lakes, and apart …

 Yes, it was a Radde’s vigil at dawn this morning. Very soon after I arrived I heard the warbler calling on the west side of The Folly, exactly where Jonathan Taylor had seen it on Sunday. Approaching 8am, the bird appeared, creeping along the fol…

 Today was a strange one. I started as usual, attempting to record vis mig birds. But, it wasn’t long, after a lovely quiet start (with hardly a peep out of the distant traffic), that the park filled up with marathon runners and swim-run athletes …

 Naturally, at first light (in fact while it was still dark), i was at the site of the Radde’s Warbler (a bird I had never seen) on the banks of the channel called The Folly, which flows into the Maxey Cut of the River Welland. A few other birders…

 I had a late start (owing to excessive rain, and trying to sort out a power cut which wasn’t our fault) and tried to see if anything had dropped in at Deeping Lakes, today. But, by the time I reached the site, the reported three Shelducks, Dunlin…

 This morning saw me back in the FMCP saddle, on my favourite viewing platform, chewing the fat with the locals and feeling that more should really be migrating over. But it wasn’t, just the usual trickle of Meadow Pipits and a handful of Swallows.

My phone (which is also my alarm) crashed in the night, so I missed the window to go vis migging at Ferry Meadows this morning. Compensation came with a nice Chiffchaff in our garden later in the day, while I was enjoying a cuppa and dreaming of Yellow…

 Today was a terrible day of ‘dipping’ which is birding parlance for failing to see birds! It started in the rainy morning, when my friend Don Gardener (Mr Ferry Meadows) phoned me to tell me he had 25 Common Scoters on Overton Lake FMCP. I cycled…

 The Meadow Pipits were trickling through in slightly increased numbers at Ferry Meadows, this morning, before work. Nothing spectacular (if Meadow Pipits can ever be described as such), but a more or less steady drip of groups of three or so pass…

At Ferry Meadows CP, this morning, we saw our first Redwings of the autumn, with a flock of 7 flying along the distant ridge on the hill above Castor village. I expect more to say the least, in the coming weeks.In the evening, I went to Tanholt Pits in…

I had a brief check of the Welland along the Deeping High Bank in the late morning. The best thing was a flock of about 1,000 Golden Plovers, hanging out in the ploughed fields with Lapwings. They were very flighty, but are going to need some work to t…

 Early this morning, I met my friend Hugh Wright for a bit of overland ‘seawatching’ from Ring’s End/Guyhirn. It is the one place I hope to see seabirds in the Peterborough area, being at the furthest east of the official Peterborough Bird Club (P…

 It was a quiet morning at Ferry Meadows CP ‘vis migging’, though the NW winds held a bit of promise. Sometimes NW winds can bring birds from the North Sea/The Wash, cutting across the wind. At lunchtime, I drove down to a viewpoint along the Rive…

 I recorded about 30 species this morning at my Ferry Meadows CP watchpoint, including the first Chaffinch I have had apparently migrating, this autumn. Other ‘highlights’ included a steady if trickle of small groups of Meadow Pipits (at least rea…

 This morning when I woke up I found a tweet telling me that my friend David Chambers had found a couple of juvenile Little Stints at what we call Tanholt Pits, south of the village of Eye, just east of Peterborough. So, instead of vis migging thi…

The action was quiet again at Ferry Meadows this morning. I think the first notable bouts of migration will start in a week or two. In the afternoon, my dear wife Jo and I went for a walk along the River Welland at Deeping St James (south Lincolnshire)…

Today’s Ferry Meadows CP, ‘vis mig’ session brought an indication of things to come with two flocks of Sky Larks, passing over, numbering 10 and 8 individuals. Other than the usual trickle of Meadow Pipits in ones and twos, though, it was a quiet sessi…

Easily the most interesting bird of the morning session at Ferry Meadows CP, was a Common Tern. It is reasonably late for a Common Tern, anyhow, with the adults and juveniles largely having gone south. This bird, however, landed on a nearby buoy and re…

For just the second time since spring’s ‘lockdown’, I left the Peterborough area, for a spot of out of area birdwatching. I went with my friend Will to north Norfolk, and we tried what I call the ‘Mark Ward method’ (after former BW contributor and Bird…

I have taken a few days holiday, but started as is my new habit with a cycle to Ferry Meadows CP. It was another excellent morning, with a Pintail flying over with a small group of Wigeon, a couple of Mistle Thrushes heading south; but best of all was …