Druridge Yesterday

Two visits to the patch yesterday, in the morning I was there with Janet and the loppers and bow saw, doing some management work to the net rides in preparation for the spring - She's a hard task-master so I got no birding done...

In the afternoon I went on my own... The Budge Fields are looking good and they were covered with lapwing, redshank and curlew, most of these will be gone soon. The grass height looks excellent so hopefully it will be a good breeding year for lapwings and snipe......maybe even redshank.

There were a 12 grey herons on the fields too, huddled together in small groups, it was an icy-cold wind (then it started to snow), but I reckon they feasting on frogs, there is a lot of mating and spawning going on in the frog-world this week.

A peregine came though and put everything up - a welcome year tick, it took me til December last year to get one.

NWT have been busy with management works too, installing a new Budge screen. It's a metal job and unlike the previous screen, the windows are at a good height. Th last one was OK if you were a giant or a dwarf (I know, before anyone leaves a comment - i'd be OK...)

This nice toad was on the track

62 peregine

63 reed bunting