The first half of the month was generally quiet as with most February's, so local birding was the name of the game and considering this is Cumbria there really isn't much to see. A Long-tailed Duck was at Lake Windermere where three Otters (female + 2 cubs) which showed well:
I eventually gave up looking for Waxwings, but they continued to pop up everywhere including outside my kitchen window which is where I got this image:
Mid-month it kicked off again with the unexpected re-discovery of the Oriental Turtle Dove in Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire. I twitched the bird on the 15th but should have followed my gut feeling and not bothered as it was a no show. It was no surprise that the following day it was in the garden again and so a second attempt on the 17th took place. Right on cue, the bird flew over the road at 07:45 and into No.41, The Leys where we watched the bird for a good 30 minutes before the bird disappeared again.
On the 25th, Dan Houghton, Ed Bennett and myself made the journey north to Kennacraig for the ferry to Islay for a three day visit. Our aim of course was the Richardson's Canada Goose. Not really knowing where we was likely to bump into it, we scanned every flock of Barnacles from the ferry to Gruinart Flats RSPB but there was no sign. We did however find several groups of Greenland White-fronts. At the end of the day we did find it in a field next to the visitor centre which is apparently its favoured spot and so this was where we saw it for the next two mornings. other good birds on this trip were White-tailed Eagle, Golden Eagle, Chough, Black Guillemot and Iceland Gull.
Mid-month it kicked off again with the unexpected re-discovery of the Oriental Turtle Dove in Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire. I twitched the bird on the 15th but should have followed my gut feeling and not bothered as it was a no show. It was no surprise that the following day it was in the garden again and so a second attempt on the 17th took place. Right on cue, the bird flew over the road at 07:45 and into No.41, The Leys where we watched the bird for a good 30 minutes before the bird disappeared again.
On the 25th, Dan Houghton, Ed Bennett and myself made the journey north to Kennacraig for the ferry to Islay for a three day visit. Our aim of course was the Richardson's Canada Goose. Not really knowing where we was likely to bump into it, we scanned every flock of Barnacles from the ferry to Gruinart Flats RSPB but there was no sign. We did however find several groups of Greenland White-fronts. At the end of the day we did find it in a field next to the visitor centre which is apparently its favoured spot and so this was where we saw it for the next two mornings. other good birds on this trip were White-tailed Eagle, Golden Eagle, Chough, Black Guillemot and Iceland Gull.
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