MONDAY 4 MARCH
Despite the cold easterly wind, it was a glorious day - with wall-to-wall sunshine and clear blue skies. Temperatures climbed to a high of 8 degrees C, about average for the time of year.
More local Target Birding today, with two attempts at Lesser Spotted Woodpecker and Common Stonechat....
Stopped off at HEDGERLEY LANDFILL first thing but nothing interesting amongst the 5,000 or so foraging gulls, whilst two separate visits to CHURCH WOOD RSPB, HEDGERLEY, drew yet another blank on Lesser Spot - highlights being 2 singing male Dunnocks, 4 Song Thrush, 2 Common Treecreepers, Nuthatch, Jay and Goldcrest.
Met up with Graham Smith at STOKE COMMON and after two complete circuits of the site, eventually bumped into the 'two strange chaps' - oops - the 'two COMMON STONECHATS both of which were male. They were in the vicinity of the bench in the middle of the Common and exactly where both Peter and Adam have seen them previously. They afforded some reasonable views, allowing Graham and I to get some images (see above).
Otherwise, the batallion of Carrion Crow had now reached 65, with two each of Red Kite and Common Buzzard.
Joining up with Neil Wragg in the afternoon, I twitched his COMMON GOLDENEYE at THE ROACH PIT, MARLOW, where once again the first-winter female GREATER SCAUP was present