Longham 1st and 2nd trips in March

On Friday the 4th I dropped in to Longham Lake on the way home from work to do some patch watching. February was very slow and with it now being spring though the weather does not know it as it was bitterly cold in the wind and by the time I had gone round the south lake it started to feel like snow but turned in to a hail storm.
Lucky by then I had seen all that I could see a round the lake and fields,it was Hampreston Fields that came up with the new birds for March and what a nice species to find my first for the site to boot.
While scanning the fields from the west bank going through the Swans and hoping for a Bewicks as one was reported earlier at Harbribge,but the were all Mute Swans I noticed a cock pheasant by some scrub.Then I started to look at the few remaining pools that were left after the recent flooding and found 16 wonderful Black-tailed Godwits.

Two of 16 Black-tailed Godwits

Sunday 5th I went back in the afternoon as I was over that way, well you just have to make the most of the weather at the moment.
The lakes were very quiet again though 16 pochard still remained on North Lake, walking along the west bank again I came across some Long-tailed Tits I watched these for a bit hoping other birds would be tagging along with them and they were this technique of standing watching and listing gave me another new bird with a Goldcrest. Their were 4 in total and I watched these for a while hoping as the were in and out of the brambles they would bring out a firecrest with them but this did not happen. Still it was nice watching these tiny birds zipping about searching for insects, along with these there were 4 very active Chiffchaff also here and there seaching for food.

South Lake looking back towards the North shore

These two days a total of four hours patch working as brought the list up to 58 species seen since the 1st of January. New and Recent birds in bold.

Mute Swan

Greylag Goose

Canada goose

Wigeon

Gadwall

Teal

Mallard

Shoveler

Pochard

Tufted Duck

Pheasant

Little Grebe

Great Crested Grebe

Cormorant

Little Egret

Grey Heron

Buzzard

Kestrel

Moorhen

Coot

Lapwing

Black-tailed Godwit

Black-headed Gull

Mediterranean Gull

Common Gull

Lesser Black-backed Gull

Herring Gull

Great Black-backed Gull

Feral Pigeon

Woodpigeon

Collared Dove

Kingfisher

Green Woodpecker

Meadow Pipit

Grey Wagtail

Pied Wagtail

Wren

Dunnock

Robin

Stonechat

Blackbird

Song Thrush

Redwing

Chiffchaff

Goldcrest

Long tailed Tit

Blue Tit

Great Tit

Magpie

Jackdaw

Rook

Carrion Crow

Starling

House Sparrow

Chaffinch

Greenfinch

Goldfinch

Reed Bunting

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