I have already admitted my feeling towards flowers, now it is time to reveal my least favourite birding habbo....WOODS!
OK some woods are good, like for example, Yarner Wood on Dartmoor - which in the summer months is full of very attractive birds! But in East Devon, you can pretty much take it as read that any woodland wander will produce just the usual suspects. And if there is an unusual bird in the woods you are wandering in, the chances are you won't see it because it has got a billion leaves to hide behind! But before anyone complains, I do think woods are VERY pretty places indeed, especially at this time of year.
There are two reasons why I will go into woods in this part of Devon:
1/ If I've got more than a 98% chance of seeing a bird that I could only see by entering these woods
2/ For money!
Which brings me on to the monthly woodland bird survey I conduct in a patch of woodland just to the west of Colyton, I have done this for about four years now. To be fair they are lovely woods, plenty of clearings, a few ponds and always plenty of birds. For example in winter, Woodcocks are ten-a-penny here, and 'nice' birds like Repolls and Siskins are fairly regular too. Anyway, this morning it was survey time.
OK some woods are good, like for example, Yarner Wood on Dartmoor - which in the summer months is full of very attractive birds! But in East Devon, you can pretty much take it as read that any woodland wander will produce just the usual suspects. And if there is an unusual bird in the woods you are wandering in, the chances are you won't see it because it has got a billion leaves to hide behind! But before anyone complains, I do think woods are VERY pretty places indeed, especially at this time of year.
There are two reasons why I will go into woods in this part of Devon:
1/ If I've got more than a 98% chance of seeing a bird that I could only see by entering these woods
2/ For money!
Which brings me on to the monthly woodland bird survey I conduct in a patch of woodland just to the west of Colyton, I have done this for about four years now. To be fair they are lovely woods, plenty of clearings, a few ponds and always plenty of birds. For example in winter, Woodcocks are ten-a-penny here, and 'nice' birds like Repolls and Siskins are fairly regular too. Anyway, this morning it was survey time.
Woods
More woodsAnd now and then they do offer me ornithological rewards. Like for example, last October at about 12:30 on the 30th, a Yellow-browed Warbler graced this tree....
A nice tree, though it does just look like 'a tree'There were no exciting highlights this morning, just plenty of the 'usuals woodland suspects'.... surprise surprise!
I came home via the river. The Osprey was fishing along the estuary, and I was amazed to see the lengths some people will go just to get that little bit closer for the chance of that ultra special photo...
I came home via the river. The Osprey was fishing along the estuary, and I was amazed to see the lengths some people will go just to get that little bit closer for the chance of that ultra special photo...
Whoops!
that's a big bird!
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