Still no sign of the birds we haven't seen yet

No-shows include Siskin, Kestrel and Kingfisher, all of which I looked for in traditional spots today without success. It was only a whistle-stop tour mind, as after my absenteeism of the last few days, a full day birding was out of the question.

On the Flats, our four Greylag at Alexandra Lake (henceforth Alex) have turned into six Greylag, and I added a pair of Goldcrest and a Dunnock, both of which had eluded me on the first. Eight Mistle Thrush were together on one of the smaller playing fields, a high count for this year!



In the park, the birds seemed to think it was spring. I counted no fewer than four drumming Great Spots, plus five others, and Great Tits were in full teacher mode. In fact Great Tits were in many modes, including one in the Old Sewage Works (henceforth OSW) doing a very passable Chiffchaff soo-weet impression that had me searching for a while. Once again, the Roding was a bird free zone, but the Perch and Heronry Ponds were very busy. The ice has retreated a great deal since the first, and there were good numbers of Pochard, Tufted Duck and Gadwall. Anyone who requires a decent photo of a Pochard could do worse than try Heronry, the birds come very close.

Anyhow, I returned home without adding a single new bird for the year, but I suppose we need to save something for later on.

LATE EDIT

Whilst out on the Flats this afternoon playing football with kiddo, a Great Black-backed Gull flew over Capel point headed east-ish. Score! Whilst I was distracted by this he actually scored.