Having been faced with terrible weather during my last two half days I feared the worst today as freezing fog enveloped the area. However, fortunately it cleared as I left work so I drove down to Cary Moor and walked out along the Macmillan Way. After a ten minute walk I reached the set-aside field and there were birds everywhere. Chaffinches were by far the most numerous but there were also lots of Reed Buntings and a few Yellowhammers. However, the pick of the crop were at least ten Tree Sparrows.
A testiment to the healthy bird population was the presence of a couple of Sparrowhawks, both of which had prey. As I returned to the car, the trees along the path were full of Redwings and Fieldfares.
At 3.00pm I left Cary Moor and undertook the drive to Cheddar Reservoir. A diversion due to roadworks cost me about twenty minutes travelling time, so it was gone 4.00pm by the time I parked at the reservoir. I walked round to the southern side ensuring the light was behind me and I scanned across the water at the mass of birds. There were at least twenty Goosander present and I eventually tracked down a female Red-crested Pochard.
A pair of Raven flew overhead and several Pied Wagtails were feeding on the water's edge. Other notable species on the water included hundreds (if not thousands) of Coot and several Common Gulls flew in, presumably to roost. As the light started to fade the temperature dropped quite noticeably, so at 4.45pm I headed on home.
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