One night this week the young Tawny Owl was giving some very hungry calls from the trees in the garden and it may well be that the adults have now abandoned it. It will be a steep learning curve for it from now on

The Green Woodpecker has re appeared on the golf course and has been seen on two consecutive days. Two Grey Wagtails have been regular along the stream and the Long Tailed Tit flock peaked at fourteen.

Skylarks are still moving South in good numbers but no Fieldfares have yet arrived and the Redwings seem to have moved on.

On the third October the first of six Redwings of Autumn were feeding on the Hawthorn berries along the canal – four days later than last year’s early record.

A Buzzard was hunting on the Golf Course and there are still Goldcrests present and Jays are everywhere with the good Acorn crop. Several parties of Long Tail Tits are around and a Speckled Wood butterfly was seen on the third October.

Greenfinches continue to increase in the garden with a peak of twenty four on the fifth October.

What a spectacular week of Autumn weather with sunshine, no wind and no rain!

Last weekend we had our Ruby wedding and a funeral to attend and covered more than six hundred miles on motorways. However, it did enable us to prove that the Buzzard is the commonest raptor in Britain with sightings of one Sparrowhawk, five Kestrels and nine Buzzards.

On the local streams two Grey Wagtails have been feeding all week.

The bracken on the Golf Course produced not one but two new birds on the 27th September when two juvenile Whinchats were present and a Willow Warbler all catching insects in the early morning sunshine.

Rain, rain and more rain can this Summer get any worse?

A week of dry weather has been most welcome although sunlight has been at a premium

A Speckled Wood butterfly has been seen plus Peacock and Red Admiral but a small consolation for what has been another appalling butterfly Summer

I have been informed by a very reliable local farmer that in August a Corncrake called on two different days in meadows by his farm. This is an amazing record as Corncrake have not bred at that farm for nearly fifty years! Was it a breeding bird or passage migrant? It will be interesting to see whether it returns next year.

On some Rowan berries on the Golf Course there were thirty two Mistle Thrushes – the largest number I have ever seen together locally.

Rain, rain and more rain can this Summer get any worse?

Much better weather this week and the first Goldcrest of the Autumn was in a pine tree in our garden. At 5.00am one morning the young Tawny Owl was again calling for food before settling in it’s diurnal roosting place.

In the local woods and Golf Course a well grown Leveret was found and it is good to know that the local Hares are back and doing well. More Goldcrests have arrived with an East wind and a flock of twenty plus Siskins were present feeding in birches. Two Kestrels were hunting voles, one of them stood on top of the flagpole on the green!

Without doubt the highlight of the week came from a willow bush on the Golf Course. A small bird was scolding and finally showed itself to be a Willow Tit, only the second I have ever seen locally, the last being in our garden a couple of years ago. Will it stay?

Rain, rain and more rain can this Summer get any worse?

Over our road one wet day there were forty plus House Martins desperately trying to catch any airborne insects. At the Golf club the Swallows have abandoned any thoughts of second broods and most have already gone South.

On the only dry morning of the week I saw two Red Admiral butterflies at Dovestones reservoir – the first I have seen this Summer.

On the Golf Course Siskins are still feeding in good numbers and at least four Bullfinches were also present. Jays are now becoming more noticeable and with a good acorn crop beginning to mature they may stay with us all Winter. There are still three coming into our garden.