BIKEIT

There is a mini patch working competition which has been very popular, especially on twitter, called Foot It! See here http://birdingbyfoot.blogspot.co.uk/ Which basically comprises of seeing what one can find within walking distance of their home. I was going to join in but I don't like walking around central Nottingham, it doesn't make for much of a pleasant stroll.

Anyway the rules are you have to walk around an area surrounding your home which is manageable without using any form of transport than your own two feet. You must compile a list of 'possible' birds you might expect to see in this area, and make it your goal to see each and every one of these within the month of January.

I am going to take part, but not on foot. I prefer cycling, so I'm going to try and see the 70 species that i believe it might be possible to see in a 3 mile radius of my house. Luckily I have some nice areas to go to such as Wollaton and Highfield Park, the river Trent between Lady Bay and Clifton Bridge, as well as the Canal and my Allotment. 70 species should be quite easy apart from a few which may cause a bit of a headache.

My Bike-it area!

Anyway here's what I think I might see. The green species are ones I'm almost 100% confident in seeing, the Amber ones will take either a bit of luck or a bit of effort, and the red ones are birds which I hardly ever see in this area but are known to be seen here occasionally. I think I can just about manage all but these red ones!

I've already seen a few within my area without even trying, but I'm going to properly go out and give this a go a few times throughout the month and update each time.