General News – not my sightings:
White Tailed Eagle around in Wiltshire
Pied Flycatcher – Cloutsham
Cuckoo – Oare
Ring Ouzels – Triscombe
My weekly walks:
12th April – Great Wood Selworthy to Selworthy Church, St Katherine’s Well and Lady Acland’s path (recce for SASP walking group).
The usual birds heard like Blackcap, Chiffchaff, Song Thrush and just as we returned to the car there was a noisy Nuthatch making a different sound to the one heard a few weeks earlier but it was seen.
Bluebells in full flower and a few orchids just opening.
13th April – above walk with the group. Not much seen or heard, we are noisy and it is not about bird watching.
14th April – Home (Minehead sea front) along Greenaleigh track and part of Coast path to 2nd car park on North Hill, back alongside Moor Wood down to Higher Moor Farm and home.
Ravens calling below me around Greenaleigh Farm area. Chiffchaffs, Blackcaps, Goldfinches and Song Thrushes in the woods. Out on the side of North Hill Buzzards, Goldfinches, Linnet and Stonechat plus a possible House Martin (too far away to identify). Along top of North Hill walking back towards Moor Wood, Dartford Warbler (great views, not singing just slowly moving from gorse bush to gorse bush), Greenfinch and Meadow Pipit, may also have heard a Whitethroat.
16th April – Home to High Moor Farm track up to Moor Woods, out to 2nd car park & return, to apple tree and back down Moor Road.
On the way up the woods were very quiet compared to Wednesday, lots of rabbits in the fields. Once up by the Moor Wood car park and along North Hill there were, Greenfinch, Linnet, Song Thrush, Stonechat and heard Blackcap, Buzzard, Chiffchaff, Raven, Skylark (Skylarks seem quiet at the moment). On the apple tree a Great Tit and a Nuthatch. On the way back down Moor Road by High Moor Farm the Great Spotted Woodpeckers were drumming, at least 2 as they were hitting different sounding wood simultaneously.
Sadly no Dartford Warbler this time and no Cuckoo as yet.
Also seen was an Orange Tip butterfly and a Speckled Wood.
17th April – short circuit from Home up both Zig Zags to North Hill Road down to Greenaleigh Farm track return down Church Path.
Fairly quiet, usual birds singing, good view of Song Thrush on path with a beak full of food.