Early February has been productive so far at my Local Patch, Staunton Harold Reservoir. Patience and persistance seems to be paying off.
2nd February – 11 Red-legged Partridge, a year and a site year tick and an adult Yellow-legged Gull. Also several Yellowhammers visiting the feeder with regularity, which is pleasing as these birds are now on the brink of disappearing from this site.
3rd February – A morning spent playing catch-up on one or two good county year ticks – Red-necked Grebe at Ogston Reservoir; 1st winter Little Gull at Carsington Water and 7 Bewick's Swan at Twyford, a real bonus species, as I arrived on site expecting to find just 5 Whooper Swan. There have also been several Bitterns frequenting the Derbyshire Wildlife Trust Reserve at Wyver Lane, near Belper. I haven't yet seen these birds but Alan Shaw kindly sent me a videograb of one of the birds which I have featured below.
Bewick's Swans & Whooper Swans – Twyford, Derbyshire, 4th February 2013 – Tony Davison© – Note the size differences and the amount of yellow on the bill of the two species. A family party with 5 youngsters is most unusual for Bewick's Swan.
Whooper Swans – 2 of the 5 birds – Twyford, Derbyshire, 4th February 2013 – Tony Davison©
Bittern – Videograb by kind permission of Alan Shaw©
4th February – A party of 6 Bewick's Swan flew high over the reservoir heading in a southerly direction at around 08:30
8th February – A 2nd winter Yellow-legged Gull was sitting on one of the marker buoys this morning and just as I was about to leave, 3 drake Goosander flew over the reservoir. Goosander are very scarce at this water these days and the first I've seen here for a number of years. In the 1980's & 1990's they were much more common and in good numbers at both Staunton Harold and Foremark Reservoirs.
9th February – Finally got Sparrowhawk for my Staunton Harold year list
10th February – A real miserable morning, cold and wet with very grey cloud. A pair of Common Scoter was a nice find and soon brightened up the morning and with Green Woodpecker giving a distant "Yaffle", puts me on 80 for the year at my local patch. My national year list moves on to 92
