New bike = More birds!!!

Picked up a new bike last monday, and have been out on it nearly every day since. Its great as i need not spend money getting to all my patches now on the bus and can also travel a little further afield.



Wildflower meadow at Branshill Moor

For example on tuesday i biked down to Clifton, but managed to explore other areas of the patch, such as the farmland to the south of the village. This was rewarded by my first ever UK sightings of Corn Buntings, which are very rare in nottinghamshire and barton lane is one of the best areas to see these birds. It was lovely to hear them again after last hearing them in southern spain in 2009. I also saw my first Grey Partridges of 2010, flushing around 10 of them from the corn in one of the fields.

Comma Butterfly at Clifton Woods

I also spent a little bit of time in my usual patch at clifton, seeing several Buzzards, the Red Tailed Hawk over Branshill Wood, and Sedge Warblers and Reed Buntings at holme pit, along with the family of Swans which were still going strong.

On wednesday i biked down the beeston canal to Attenborough, after hearing reports of a Little Egret that had taken up residence there. I didn't see the bird until i was leaving, as it was feeding in the reeds on Clifton Pond, but i got good views of this rare visitor to notts. I also saw a Black-tailed Godwit in the same area, and got some cracking views of it, the first i've seen since last october when a bird was resident in the wet marsh at the same reserve. Also saw a couple of Oystercatchers over beeston lock.

Thursday i biked to holme pierrepont, just for the ride really, but did manage to get a few shots of the Greylags which were feeding with their young there. There were also plenty of Swallows, Blackcaps and Common Terns about, and i briefly saw a Buzzard too.

And heres a Wasp drinking from my parents bird bath, presumably to help make a nest