I haven't had a great deal of time recently to properly get out and do some prolonged birding, however, this weekend I was a little more free to get out in the field.
I had all of Saturday (27/01) spare. Unfortunately, the forecast wasn't looking too promising, however I decided to just go for it as I hadn't had a full day's birding for ages. I decided to start local, before heading to a couple of sites over towards Northampton for a change of scenery. After a fruitless check of some floods on the edge of Brackley, I made my way down the A422 to Thenford, in an attempt to catch up with the vastly increased numbers of Hawfinch. Throughout the winter there have been up to 6 birds in the general vicinity of the church and grounds of Thenford Hall. However, towards the end of last week Mark Ribbons had a eye-opening 20 birds!
I easily connected with several birds during the half hour or so I was there. however not quite the dizzy heights of 20 unfortunately!
Next, I traveled the relatively short distance across to an area near Sulgrave, where Mike Pollard recently discovered a couple of Corn Buntings amongst good numbers of Yellowhammers. Corn Buntings are now sadly an incredibly rare species in Northants. I remember back in my early days of birding seeing good numbers - double figures in fact - at Pitsford Reservoir feeding station for example. Now I couldn't tell you a reliable site to see them.
Last week I had a quick look but failed to track any down, or any Yellowhammers for that matter, however a hunting Merlin was an excellent consolation!
Thankfully today, despite the blustery & drizzly conditions, I eventually latched onto a single Corn Bunting amongst an increased number of Yellowhammers and Chaffinches. There were also 4 Golden Plover and c120 Lapwings in the general area. Result!
With the rain beginning to increase in intensity, I drove across to Ravensthorpe & Hollowell Reservoirs for something other than farmland and woodland birds! The weather was a bit of a hindrance but all the same I had a good scan from the Ravensthorpe causeway adding a few year ticks and after quite a while, eventually tracked down the long-staying juvenile Whooper Swan feeding fairly close to the car park with a couple of Mute Swans. I drove down to the car park and trudged up the muddy track to get some closer views of the swan which proved to be very confiding indeed!
I gave nearby Hollowell Reservoir a go afterwards. I trudged up to the point and back seeing very little of particular excitement with just 3 Stonechat (1m, 2f) & a single Snipe.
I then began my journey roughly towards home, driving over through Daventry, to Boddington Reservoir for the gull roost, knowing that there have been quite a few white-wingers cropping up in roosts recently. As it was, it was dire for big gulls, with just 3 Lesser Black Backs & 11 Herrings, together with the usual large numbers of Common & Black Headed. I did though find an Egyptian Goose (first I've seen here), plus 7 Shoveler, 4 Wigeon & c3 drake Goosanders.
On Sunday (28/01), it was back to Thenford for an hour or so around lunchtime, for another crack at tracking down the big numbers there. After a few brief flyover sightings, I realised several were feeding in the yews by the front of the church. I slowly and carefully made my round there, managing to enjoy some wicked views of initially a female and then a male sat up in the trees.
Plenty of Hawfinches continued to move around the general area, making it difficult to gauge exact numbers. That was until a stack of Hawfinches piled out of the several yews around the church and congregated mid-air. They flew away from the church towards the village, briefly alighting at the top of a large tree, before melting away as only Hawfinches can! It was hard to fathom an exact number as it all happened quite quickly, however there was certainly at least 20 birds if not more. An incredible sight and sound too with the air ringing with their 'whisp' and 'tick' calls!
Away from the monster finches, the churchyard acts as quite a sheltered suntrap. This surprised me in drawing out first a very hyperactive Brimstone and then a Red Admiral, nectaring on the snowdrops. My first butterflies of 2018!
There was still one more surprise left in the day. Before doing the weekly food shop at Tesco in Brackley, I made a small diversion up the road to Hinton-in-the-Hedges, just west of Brackley, to check on the flooded fields for anything of interest, plus just in case I could bump into the Merlin again.
There was the usual sprinkling of Black Headed & Common Gulls, but also for a change, around 20 larger gulls too, with a few Herrings & Lesser Black Backed Gulls. Amongst these, I was surprised to find a smart adult Yellow-Legged Gull before scanning further on another gull which despite the distance looked a great shout for a 2nd winter Caspian Gull, with a clean white head, noticeable shawl around the neck and a general leggy appearance.
The distance made it difficult to feel 100% that it was indeed a Caspo and so it was later on that having had a closer look at the photos and spoke with a couple others, that it appeared to indeed be a Caspian Gull. Absolutely crackling record for the Brackley area! Some heavily cropped photos below.
