Whilst at the reserve I thought it only polite to have a little look around to see what I could find, however the first stop, as usual was the cafe. This actually paid off as due to the lack of seating inside I was forced outside onto the park benches. No worries I could bird while enjoying my cup of tea. Assorted tits and finches moved through the vegetation towards the bird feeders and the smell of a Sparrowhawk was in the air. However it was due to being sat outside that I found bird of the day - as a juvenile Iceland Gull flew low overhead, straight over the cafe!
A short walk around the reserve resulted in a very showy Great Spotted Woodpecker that was incredibly vocal high in the treetops (phone photo below).
Great-spotted Woodpecker (phone-scoped)
Great-spotted Woodpecker (phone-scoped)
However highlight was a very showy Kingfisher that caught a couple of fishes in front of us. Unfortunately it was sat in the dark under a bridge so I wasn't able to get a brilliant shot but the following gives an idea.
Kingfisher (phone-scoped)
I got home in time for a quick blast to Bubwith Bridge to see if I could scope anything off there in the fading light, a large flock of Wigeon and Mallard were on the river, a Barn Owl hunted a distant field and another Kingfisher flew down the river.
A great weekend!
