Local walk

Again, a wander back from the town at 9 this morning found me checking out another local wood for lesser spotted woodpeckers. Again, no joy but the supporting cast was well worth the time spent checking every tree in the 8 acre deciduous wood.
The highlight was a flushed woodcock, that was out of the wood and gone before I could even get my camera to eye level. Overhead, 3 common buzzards were mewing as they soared and great tits, chaffinches, wrens and blue tits called. On one birch a tree creeper zizzed and was noted whilst in another a flock of blue tits and something else: a goldcrest.

goldcrest

Also, messing about in the canopy were 3 nuthatches:

nuthatch

Before this I had noted good number of winter thrushes, especially a party of some 50 redwings, distant in a horse field. On the wires a mistle thrush was in good voice.

redwing

2 redwing

mistle thrush

As I wandered down the hill into the village I was aware of something watching me. At first I thought it was the polo ponies in the field or the 3 gentlemen taking refreshment  outside our local pub, but upon turning round I saw a fox keeping an eye on me. It posed for a few photos before heading off to its regular cover in the brambles. This has been a local for several years, but today was only using 3 legs, with the hind offside leg held high above the ground. Shall keep a check and hopefully just a thorn making walking uncomfortable

local fox

On the lepidoptra front, an early grey was the only moth representative in my trap this morning whilst on Brick Kiln Hill, a small tortoiseshell was my first of the year. I suspect the fox had watched with interest as I tried to improve upon my photos of the butterfly.

small tortoiseshell

early grey

All in all, a wonderful walk with a good mixed bag of nature. As always, a pleasure to be part of this.