Winter Thrushes and a Barn Owl at Fowlmere

14th January 2026

The most noticeable thing about this winter so far has been the near absence of winter thrushes, and up until now I have seen less than 20 Redwings and Fieldfares all winter. Then last week I heard that some had been seen at Fowlmere, so time for a visit to see what was going on.

As soon as I stepped from the car I could hear Fieldfares clack-clack-clacking in the canopy of the trees around the welcome hut which was obviously a good sign. As I walked along the anti-clockwise route there were Redwings and Fieldfares everywhere, but difficult to photograph as small flocks were flying in all directions, and that part of the perimeter path is fairly wooded. So what is going on?

Well, as we know the combination of a wet spring and hot summer has resulted in an absolutely bumper crop of Hawthorn berries here in the UK. It is also possible that a similar weather pattern in Scandinavia has also resulted in a bumper berry crop there, meaning there is no need for the Redwings and Fieldfares to migrate south. So why are they coming here now? 

Well, I can only assume that the Scandinavian berries have all been eaten which has prompted the thrushes to come south, just three months later than usual. I also got the impression that the birds at Fowlmere were new arrivals as they were very unsettled, flying in flocks of up to 300 birds, landed for a few minutes and then moving on again.

As I moved round to the watercress beds and eventually into the Reed Bed Hide I was able to get a few individual shots of Redwings...................

.........................and a Fieldfare.

The advantage of the Reed Bed Hide is that it gives you such a commanding view over the reserve and it was possible to see flocks, almost exclusively Fieldfares, having a rest in the surrounding trees.

And even a couple of flight shots.

Having seen less than 20 winter thrushes so far this winter, I conservatively estimate that today there were 1500+, predominantly Fieldfares. Also, since these were taken I have heard Fieldfares over my house and others have reported seeing more winter thrushes, so it looks as though this is not an isolated incident and we can look forward to seeing a lot more over the next few weeks.

So what about the star of the show, the Barn Owl? Well, right on cue it stepped out of its box and onto its decking half an hour before sunset.

It sat there for about five minutes while it woke up, surveyed the scene, and then took off in search of a meal.

What a stunning bird!!!!!

A Jack Snipe at Lemsford Springs

14th January 2026

Jack Snipes are not routinely found on the cress beds at Lemsford Springs, but are known to feed on the surrounding fields. It is only when the fields are frozen that they move onto the springs where the relatively warm running water keeps most of the feeding area ice-free.

So once settled into the hide time to look around. Not too surprising to see the usual suspects of Little Egret, Grey Wagtail and Green Sandpiper

Also good to see the large dead tree put to good use with a Cormorant and a Heron.

This is the Heron sunbathing and using its wings as reflectors to reflect the sun's rays onto its body.

And more recently the new kid on the block, the Ring-necked Parakeet.

So how can you tell the difference between a Snipe and a Jack Snipe? Well luckily there was a Snipe feeding by the far bank and you can see it has a very long bill and a gold central crown stripe.

The good news was that the Jack Snipe was close to the hide, but the bad news was because of this it was in the shade. I normally go to Lemsford Springs after 12pm as by then the sun has moved round and the full width of the cress beds is in the sun.

Let's look at the Jack Snipe. The Jack Snipe is smaller than the Snipe, but this can be difficult to use as a differentiator when you are looking at a single bird with nothing to compare with. The more reliable features are the bill which is only about two thirds the length of a Snipe bill, and the lack of a gold central crown stripe. And of course the Jack Snipe's famous bobbing up and down action when feeding, but be aware that the occasional Snipe have been seen bobbing, and I have seen it myself.

Here are the rest of the shots, some of which show the lack of central crown stripe much better.

And finally at 12.00pm one in better light when the sun came round, and thereafter it tucked its head in and went to sleep.

Well, what a great way to spend a morning. Also good to have a catch-up with Ashley Cox and see Scott Poynter for the first time in 5+ years.

Now to see what Fowlmere has to offer.

A Freezing Day at Verulamium Park

7th January 2026

After days of pour weather the forecast for today was sunny intervals albeit near freezing so off to Verulamium Park. The two lakes were mostly frozen over but the river was free of ice so off to see if I could find any Kingfishers.

As I was walking along the river keeping an eye out for the Yellow-browed Warbler, I came across a Goldcrest looking for insects in the ivy of an over-hanging tree. It proved very tricky to photograph as it was obscured for most of the time, and when it did break cover you had a few milli-seconds to get your shot.

Both males and females have a yellow central crown stripe, but the males also have an orange stripe which is normally hidden from view except when displaying. So if you see any orange feathers in the crown stripe it is a male, but otherwise inconclusive. When going through the photos I came across this last one which appears to show a glimpse of orange at the back end of the stripe.

Cropping the photo confirms the presence of orange feathers under the yellow and therefore the bird is a male.

Moving further along the river a juvenile Little Grebe was preening under some more over-hanging trees.

What's not to love about a Little Grebe?

Now on to the bridge by the boating lake with ducks and gulls standing on the ice, but no sign of the 2nd winter Mediterranean Gull. However this Pied Wagtail seemed to be a bit ambitious in trying to find food on the ice but did provide a few opportunities for some shots. The one thing about ice is that it does provide some almost perfect reflections.

So what about the Kingfishers? Well, this year there have been two Kingfishers in the park, a juvenile male at the boating lake where I am now, and an adult male at the other end of the river by the Fighting Cocks pub. During my last visit on the 2nd December the juvenile was performing most of the time and the adult bird was very elusive. However, today it was all change.

The juvenile had been seen earlier but flew off at 10.30am and had not been seen since. However, the adult was showing very well from the footpath although would disappear for half an hour at a time. Here are the results.

Well, what a fantastic day and good to have a catch-up with Ashley Cox and meet Claire Nuttall.