A Couple of Hours at Fishers Green

 12th November 2020

A bit more restricted on our choice of sites now, so time for a morning visit to Fishers Green in search of finches and buntings. At Holyfield Hall Farm there several geese, predominantly Canada and Greylag, but also a handful of Egyptian Geese. Fifty years ago Egyptians were rare escapes in the Lea Valley, but are now both common and self-sustaining and have been elevated to Category C1.

What was a bit more of a surprise was a couple of Shelducks, but not sure whether they are regular here or not.

The hedgerows were very busy with the usual suspects like Blue and Long-tailed Tits, which frequently follow each other around in large flocks. I just love the buzzing sound of an approaching flock of Long-tailed Tits, and there is nothing like a few Hawthorn berries to set them off.

There was also a flock of around 100 Chaffinches feeding on a cover crop of Quinoa and Sunflowers, and it was nice to see a few Linnets with them. There was also a single Brambling but it would not sit up for a photo. Also a single female Reed Bunting although I am sure there would be more around.

But the star of the show today was a female Stonechat which was quite happy to sit and pose for photos with a back-drop of a few Hawthorn berries and rose hips. What a fantastic way to finish off the morning.