BEARDED TITS

Amazingly, the scene this lunchtime was almost a mirror image of yesterday along the stream - the 10 or so Reed Buntings still present, the 3 Cetti' s (one of which afforded me my best ever views of the species), 6 Common Chiffchaffs and (for me at least) 1 of the SIBERIAN CHIFFCHAFFS (Mike McKee and Renton were still on site when I left so may have found more).

Also, along the stream, a Water Rail called, and a gorgeous pair of Grey Wags performed. On the Jubilee River, the drake Goosander was still near the weir and we had 2 BEARDED TITS (one seen another heard), with a possible third, in the reeds near the picnic benches (the original Bittern bed) which is back in Bucks of course (Brian Clews)

Freezing conditions continue to produce birds

WEDNESDAY 8 FEBRUARY

With a northeasterly wind increasing, the weather got even colder today. It was absolutely freezing out in the field, and encrusted ice suggests that bird populations are really struggling to survive the harsh conditions.

CHAFFINCH HOUSE, LITTLE CHALFONT (BUCKS)

The Fieldfare flock increased to 14 this morning, feasting on the fallen apples.

MILLFIELDS ALLOTMENTS, CHESHAM WATERSIDE (BUCKS)

No sign of the 3 Water Rails but a COMMON SNIPE was unexpected, with 3 Moorhens also seen. A Blue Tit was visiting the unfrozen greenery by the river, as were 4 Long-tailed Tits.

THE TRING RESERVOIRS (HERTFORDSHIRE)

Marsworth and Tringford Reservoirs are completely frozen over, with an increasing section of Startop's End now open and three separate ice-free patches on Wilstone. Numbers of birds in general were well down because of the ice but a redhead SMEW was a nice bonus and the first of the year.......

A COMMON TREECREEPER was in full song as I entered the MARSWORTH WOOD but there was no sign of the Bittern others had seen earlier. All 5 Grey Herons were absent also

The increasingly open patch on STARTOP'S END RESERVOIR was heaving with activity and at the extreme east end of the water, I was pleased to find a redhead SMEW.

No less than 41 Mute Swans were counted, the most this winter, with 10 first-years among them - 5 Great Crested Grebes, 134 Mallard, 1 drake Gadwall, 18 Teal, 10 Wigeon, 25 Tufted Duck, 103 Pochard, 233 Coot and 14 Moorhens.

Three Robins allowed themselves to be handfed on seeds by the hide and in a sheltered area of weeds on the south bank, 9 Common Blackbirds and 8 Fieldfares were feeding.

For the first time in weeks, I was unable to locate the Snow Bunting on the north shore

The first-winter DARK-BELLIED BRENT GOOSE was with 70 Greylags in the Cemetery Corner field on WILSTONE, whilst the three ice-free patches on the reservoir harboured 13 Great Crested Grebes, 2 Mute Swans, 18 Mallard, 149 Wigeon, 135 Teal, 22 Tufted Duck, 47 Pochard and 322 Coot. No Shoveler were seen today.

COLLEGE LAKE BBOWT (BUCKS)

Not an ounce of ice on the main lake and consequently lots of waterbirds - 7 Mute Swans (including 3 first-years), 194 Wigeon, 64 Teal, 46 Gadwall, the usual pair of RED-CRESTED POCHARDS, 54 Tufted Duck, 62 Pochard, 2 female Common Goldeneye and 92 Coot. 13 Lapwing were also present.

KIMBLE WICK (BUCKS)

A covey of 6 GREY PARTRIDGE (3 pairs) was in a crop field half a mile NE of Stockwell Lane along Kimblewick Road at SP 797 071.

ETON WICK (SOUTH BUCKS)

A site literally on the county boundary with Berkshire and accessed from the B 3026 at the east end of Dorney Common at SU 943 786. A stream runs north to the Jubilee River and is a known haunt of wintering chiffchaffs. In fact on Sunday, Dave Carter located a Siberian Chiffchaff at the site, with Chris Heard locating a second individual yesterday

It was probably too late in the day by the time I arrived at 1600 hours. Although I easily located 6 COMMON CHIFFCHAFFS in the Phragmites 110 yards north along the stream, I could not find the two Siberians. I was amazed at the hive of activity in the short reeds, with 2 CETTI'S WARBLERS putting on a good show, 8 Reed Buntings, 3 Wrens, 3 Grey Wagtails, 3 Pied Wagtails and 6 Long-tailed Tits all taking advantage of the conditions created by the warmer water. A Grey Heron was also fishing and 5 Common Teal were particularly approachable.

As dusk approached, it was clear I was beneath the flight line of RING-NECKED PARAKEETS - no less than 165 flying east towards Staines to roost.

Today's snippets

A juvenile GLAUCOUS GULL was seen at Spade Oak Pit, Little Marlow, today, with 2 BITTERNS still at Weston Turville Reservoir.

Two TREE SPARROWS in a Mursley garden were an excellent record, the only others in the county being a small wintering flock at Little Linford Wood. The WILLOW TIT remains at Linford NR, at the Woodland Hide.

A red letter day in the Amersham Recording Area (LGRE DIARY NOTES 6 FEBRUARY 2012)

MONDAY 6 FEBRUARY

Following Saturday night's heavy snow, a rapid thaw is now in process and throughout the day, the four to six inches of lying snow has been turning to slush. In fact, it felt quite mild, with temperatures at one point climbing to 4 degrees. It was very misty and for a while, it rained a little. Towards nightfall, the skies cleared and it does now look as though a frost will form.

With so much snow about, I took the opportunity to have a good look around my immediate Recording Area, the first time I have put such effort in this year. It turned out to be very rewarding, amongst the many highlights being a Common Crossbill, flock of Lesser Redpolls, big flock of Mandarins, 3 Green Sandpipers, 3 Common Snipe and so on. A red letter day in other words.........

SHARDELOES LAKE (BUCKS)

Shardeloes lake was virtually completely frozen over with just one tiny patch of ice-free water. Despite that, a mass of birds were packed in on it, including 82 Coots, 5 first-year Mute Swans, a drake Northern Pochard, 5 Gadwall, 2 Mallard, 3 Little Grebes and best of all, 11 MANDARIN DUCKS. The latter comprised of 6 drakes and 5 females. Several gulls were roosting on the ice including an adult Lesser Black-backed and 5 adult, 2 first-winter Common Gulls.

Also noted were Green Woodpecker, a hooting Tawny Owl, Coal Tit, Red Kite, Song Thrush and 2 Common Treecreepers.

In OLD AMERSHAM nearby, over 100 Fieldfares were in hedgerows along School Lane

PENN WOOD (BUCKS)

Had a concerted effort in the snow to locate Woodcock but failed in my quest. A big bonus however was a nice adult male COMMON CROSSBILL - a rare species locally - whilst a party of 20 LESSER REDPOLLS showed very well in a stand of Silver Birches. One of them was a very brightly plumaged pink male.

More ordinary fare noted included 2 Jays, Coal Tit, 5 Great Tits, 4 Blue Tits, 4 Nuthatches, Wren, 4 Great Spotted Woodpeckers (a lot of drumming activity going on), 12 Redwing and 3 Chaffinches.

THE CHESS VALLEY (BUCKS)

Walked a major portion of the valley, west as far as Bois Mill and east to Crestyl Cressbeds. The heavy snow had certainly forced a lot of birds into the valley.

On the Chess just east of Chenies Bottom bridge, no less than 8 LITTLE EGRETS were feeding together with a Grey Heron, whilst a female Grey Wagtail flew overhead.

LATIMER GREAT WATER was largely frozen but within the ice-free area was 9 Mute Swans (2 first-years), 165 Atlantic Canada Geese, 10 Tufted Duck, 5 Pochard, 47 Coot and 11 Moorhen. To the south of the lake, 4 LAPWINGS were walking bewildered about a snow white field. A single sub-adult Sinensis Cormorant was perched at the top of a tree to the west.

In trees by the hall were 4 Mistle Thrushes, 8 Fieldfares, 4 Redwings and a Song Thrush.

A further 8 LAPWINGS were in a field with horses to the north of Mill Farm Water Meadow, taking advantage of the soil exposed by the feeding animals. A Green Woodpecker took advantage too.

At FROGMORE MEADOW, I was very surprised to locate 2 GREEN SANDPIPERS on the Chess, both flying around noisily as I inadvertently flushed them. A further 2 LITTLE EGRETS were seen from the Water Vole Watchpoint, as well as 19 Mallard, 9 COMMON TEAL, 2 Little Grebes and a Great Spotted Woodpecker.

CRESTYL WATERCRESS BEDS were unfrozen and full of birds with the aforementioned TEAL coming and going, 2 Mute Swans, 14 Moorhens, a single LAPWING, yet another GREEN SANDPIPER, 3 COMMON SNIPES, a Grey Wagtail, 2 MEADOW PIPITS and a male Yellowhammer.

A deep guttural cronking call overhead immediately alerted me to a COMMON RAVEN, the bird flying across from Chenies village direction and heading off toward Limeshill Wood. Although JT had seen this bird twice since November 2011, this was the first time I had connected - the possibility being that it was one of the surviving pair that bred in the valley in 2009.

A Grey Heron landed in a tree east of VALLEY FARM and immediately sparked off panic amongst the LITTLE OWL colony. Once the resident pair in the heron's chosen roost tree started complaining loudly, it set off the rest, with eventually 5 different individuals alarming.

Limeshill Wood also produced 2 Nuthatches and 2 Jays.

Just as I was walking back on the boardwalk, I was alerted to a local pager message........

HILFIELD PARK RESERVOIR (HERTFORDSHIRE)

Just under 20 minutes later, I had joined Hilfield patch worker Steve Murray. Steve had discovered two GREATER SCAUP - a species I had failed to see in the county in 2011. Once by the jetty, I located them immediately - a fine adult pair, the drake with his resplendent green head, golden-orange eye, gleaming white flanks, lightly vermiculated grey mantle and black-nailed sky-blue bill and the female with her extensive white forehead blaze, fat rounded head, dark brown head and breast, pale cheek patch, subtly grey vermiculated back and grey sides. There was also a hint of a pale ring around the neck base and a fat spatulate bill, greyer in colour.

They were a spotless pair and a delight to watch, both Steve and I being treated to good views as they gradually swam closer inshore. Once fully 'scauped', I started to pan round and incredibly soon realised that there were actually SIX GREATER SCAUPS on the reservoir and not just two - four adult drakes, a first-winter drake and the adult female. A real treat and tantamount proof of what the weather is doing with the movements of waterbirds.

At around the same time, I watched 4 NORTHERN PINTAILS arrive (three drakes and a female), with the duck logcall also including 107 Pochard, 81 Tufted Duck, 5 Rufous Daniels, 6 Gadwall and 11 Wigeon.

The dusk gull roost was very impressive with well over 4,500 Black-headed Gulls present, as well as 150+ Herring Gulls, 350 Common Gulls, 33 Lesser Black-backed Gulls and a single adult Great Black-backed Gull. Other birds taking advantage of the ice-free water included 35 Great Crested Grebe and 6 Little Grebe

College Lake and Weston Turville Reservoir today

Highlight of a visit to College Lake this afternoon were 3 Dunlin on themain lake. Two were feeding together on the west shore, with the other oneon the east shore and in flight a couple of times.On the water were 5 Goldeneye, the 2 Red-crested Pochards and good numbersof the usual species.

Called into Weston Turville for the last hour or so of light and was pleasedto see a Chinese Water Deer in the cleared area, followed shortly afterwardsby a Bittern in flight over the far left corner, viewed from the hide at1702hrs. A few minutes later I was joined by John Mason and at around 5.30pmanother Bittern flew out from the closer area of reeds in front of the hideand disappeared behind the clump of willows at the far side of the reedbed.At least 2 Little Egrets came into roost and 4+ Water Rails were calling (Rob Andrews)

Three Year Ticks - Common Shelduck, BRENT GOOSE and SNOW BUNTING

SATURDAY 4 FEBRUARY (LGRE DIARY NOTES)

Another very hard frost with temperatures overnight dropping to -7 degrees. Consequently, many water bodies are now totally frozen over. It was another freezing but bright day but cloud encroached from the west and as darkness fell, snow began to fall (the first real snow of this winter). By 1900 hours, two inches was laying in my garden.

THE TRING RESERVOIRS (HERTFORDSHIRE)

Ice was the name of the day and very little of all four Tring reservoirs was unfrozen. Both Tringford and Marsworth were completely frozen over and consequently, most wildfowl and water birds were concentrated in small patches of open water on both Wilstone and Startop's End............

At STARTOP'S END RESERVOIR, 35 Mute Swans were amongst the birds crammed into the small ice-free area, along with 9 Shovelers, 25 Tufted Ducks, 5 Great Crested Grebes and 272 Coots

At least 15 House Sparrows were by Startop's Farm and 8 Goldfinches, whilst in the NE corner in the Bucks section, the first-winter male SNOW BUNTING was keeping close company with 2 Pied Wagtails

The first-winter DARK-BELLIED BRENT GOOSE was also in Bucks, the first time this winter it has been so. It was with 71 Greylag Geese and 83 Canada Geese 400 yards SSE of College Farm at SP 927 143 (in the second field along the lane).

COLLEGE LAKE BBOWT (BUCKS)

Due to the Tring Reservoirs being largely frozen over and the fact that the deep BBOWT pit rarely freezes, exceptional numbers of wildfowl were present.

Although the highlight for me was the single COMMON SHELDUCK, numbers included 6 Great Crested Grebes, 2 Mute Swans, 43 Mallard, 53 Gadwall, 122 Common Teal, 223 Eurasian Wigeon, 173 Tufted Duck, 213 Northern Pochard and 5 female Common Goldeneyes.

DAGNALL (BEDFORDSHIRE)

The corvids present here were having a field day with a freshly dead sheep laying in the field. The two resident COMMON RAVENS were in attendance and giving orders but also busy rebuilding/repairing their nest or simply making a new nest, frequently gathering material and taking it back to a pine.

Stock Dove, Great Spotted Woodpecker and 40 Fieldfares were also noted.

STEWARTBY LAKE AND ENVIRONS (BEDFORDSHIRE)

It seemed like all of Bedfordshire's finest were at Stewartby and the Millenium Park today and for good reason - a plethora of birds were on offer, due to the Arctic conditions

The main attraction had been an adult winter LITTLE GULL that Paul Wright had found and had later been seen by Neil, Peter Smith and others. It quickly moved from the main lake to the sewage works compound but whilst I was on site, had somehow managed to give us all the slip by disappearing westwards with a group of Black-headed Gulls.

Next up was Paul's BITTERN, showing regally in the sunshine at the fore of the reedbed in the NW corner. Looking across from the west shore, it was just left of the two light green buoys when I espied it, but as the morning drew on, it disappeared back into the reed fringe.

Over in the Millenium Park on MILLBROOK PILLINGE PIT, Lol, Bob, Roy Nye, Tony Hukin and I observed an adult MEDITERRANEAN GULL in the throng of small gulls present on the pit. It was just starting to get a blackish ear-covert patch and an orange tip to the bill. There was an incredible number of Common Gulls roosting on the pit - I click-counted 342 - along with 3 Herring Gulls and 11 Lesser Black-backed Gulls

The female COMMON SCOTER was still present in the SW corner of the pit, along with the 3 redhead SMEW, 162 Common Teal, 54 Wigeon, 6 Mute Swans (family party, 3 first-years) and 3 Little Grebes.

Returning back to the main lake at Stewartby, following another sighting of the Little Gull, scanning across produced 23 Little Grebes, 32 Great Crested Grebes and 22 Tufted Ducks, whilst the inlet in the NW corner yielded Common Snipe, WATER RAIL and a nice COMMON KINGFISHER.

Shortly after chatting to Steve Blain on the phone, mostly about Pintails and some exceptional flocks of them, no less than 44 NORTHERN PINTAILS and 4 EGYPTIAN GEESE flew overhead, the latter coming down on the Sailing Club green and remaining long enough for Bob, Lol and others to connect.

Forty of the PINTAIL flock made landfall on the Pillinge Pit, with 15 dapper drakes amongst them (Mark Thomas had seen 56 over Willington and 8 remained at Radwell).

Peter Smith also saw Common Redshank and the overwintering COMMON SANDPIPER at Stewartby but frustratingly I didn't hear about them until later.

MOGGERHANGER (BEDS)

The 'Corn Bunting fields' held 11 Common Magpies, a Common Buzzard and 170 Fieldfares but no Corn Buntings !

Nearby, a pair of GREY PARTRIDGES were half a mile west of the village and another 6 were seen beside the B658 south of BROOK END NE of Greensands Fishery.

DEREK WHITE'S AND BROOM GP (BEDS)

Steve Blain had seen 2 Shelduck and 3 Dunlin at Derek White's earlier but nothing of note was there when I visited in the afternoon but GYPSY LANE WEST LAKE retained the redhead SMEW and PEACOCK'S LAKE the single COMMON SHELDUCK, as well as 21 Mute Swans in one small area of open water

THE WIXAMS (BEDS)

Still 3 SHORT-EARED OWLS and 2 COMMON STONECHATS present but no Barn Owl or Merlin

MARSWORTH RESERVOIR, TRING (HERTS)

Returned to Marsworth late afternoon and enjoyed captivating views of up to 3 different EURASIAN BITTERNS, including 2 'scrapping' on the SW corner and one showing very well just standing forlorn and cold on the solid ice. The birds were very popular throughout the day with many observers obtaining photographs (see a nice selection above)

Two WATER RAILS were surviving the weather and were risking being caught by the no less than 7 Grey Herons standing on the ice, whilst the CORN BUNTING roost numbered 89 birds; a group of 18 Moorhens were together on Startop's

Alarmingly, many youngsters were risking life and limb by walking out on to the ice - some walking out over 40 yards. Total madness

Calvert Sailing Lake this evening

Warren Claydon has seen the juvenile KUMLIEN'S GULL I found earlier in the week this evening, as well as at least 3 additional ICELAND GULLS (the 2nd-winter and two juveniles) and the regular first-winter CASPIAN GULL

Furthermore, Hedgerley Tip still has a juvenile GLAUCOUS, a 2nd-winter ICELAND and as many as 7 different CASPIAN GULLS visiting