Redpolls at Amwell

16th February 2026

I had a couple of hours to spare so thought I would pop down to Amwell to see if the Black-necked Grebe was still there. It would seem that everyone else had the same idea as it is several years now since I have seen so many birders at the viewpoint. The only passerine of interest there was this male Reed Bunting.

There were still a few Goldeneye out on the lake with the males looking absoluty resplendent in the sun.

And out in the middle were two males and a female displaying.

The Black-necked Grebe took longer to find as it had been favouring the north-western end of the lake and was best seen from the White Hide, but it eventually appeared from the other end of the lake and eventually settled down to feeding just right of the main viewpoint. This was its third day and apparently quite unusual for a Black-necked Grebe at Amwell to stay more than one day.

But the stars of the show today were the dozen or so Redpolls that were feeding in the sun in a couple of Silver Birches just down the track from the viewpoint. Winter finches have been quite scarce everywhere this winter so these were a welcome distraction.

Never thought I would see the day at Amwell where a Black-necked Grebe was the support act!!!

Operation Crossbill

14th February 2026

We have had a lot of rain recently but none for two days, so time for Operation Crossbill at Mayday Farm. Mayday Farm is an active conifer forest managed by the Forestry Commission and therefore attractive to Crossbills, but also a huge site and therefore not always easy to find Crossbills apart from small flocks flying over. It is therefore necessary to find a focal point for the Crossbills - a puddle.

Crossbills feed almost exclusively on pine cone seeds which are very dry, and therefore they need to drink frequently. After heavy rain there are numerous puddles across the site so the Crossbills could be anywhere, but after two days without rain there are only a few puddles left and the Crossbills know where they are and will fly quite long distances to drink from them.

I headed straight to my favourite area and as a bonus could hear Crossbills chip-chipping high in the tops of the trees when I arrived. Unfortunately this situation is not ideal as the birds are sillouetted against a bright sky and sometimes in shade, the worst combination for photography, but I tried my luck. Most of the birds I managed to photograph were females.

They then decided they were getting thirsty and dropped down to a lower deciduous tree on the other side of the track in much better light, and on this occasion only males. This is part of the usual routine and the tree is used as a look-out point to ensure it is safe to drop down to the puddle.

Once the puddle was deemed to be safe they dropped down in twos and threes, the females coming direct from the conifers. Here are some shots of the females with the first shot acting like a reflection pool.

And then the males.

I included this shot just to prove they were actually drinking rather than just posing.

Well, what a fantastic day, and as Hannibal Smith of the A-Team would say "I love it when a plan comes together"!!!

Three Gunners Park Firsts

4th February 2026

After a superb morning at Two Tree Island on the rising tide, time for a quick visit to see what Gunners Park has to offer. The usual Redshank high tide roost was on the island on the lake, but difficult to photograph as it is a long line of birds on the top of the bank so can't get them all in.

Here are a couple of groups although today there were 100+ birds present, one of the highest counts I have seen here.

On the sea wall was a single Dunlin sitting on one of the breakwaters......................

....................and a number of Turnstones trying to find a morsel in the nooks and crannies of the pebble sea defences.

At the coastguard end of the beach was a massive flock of waders including Dunlins, Sanderlings and Ringed Plovers, and I would estimate the total number of birds to be conservatively 1000+.

Luckily the Ringed Plovers kept to the edge of the flock.

So what were my three Gunners Park firsts? Well the first was this rather confiding Knot perched on a breakwater very close to the sea wall. Of course there can be thousands of Knot in the estuary during the winter months, but this is the first one I have seen at Gunners Park.

Second was the 1st winter female Scaup which was quite obliging on the lake.

And the third and by far the most unexpected was this Kittiwake sitting on one of the posts by the jetty. I know they are sometimes seen flying past here, but the first one I have ever seen here and even better that it was perched, albeit into the light.

Wow, that will do nicely!!!