Crowborough, 09/10/2018 - 13/10/2018

13/10/2018
Again, sadly, little time for bird watching today in my garden, but again decent, although less than yesterday, numbers of Starlings and Jackdaws roosting, also two Siskin over.

Siskin: 2 (two flew over around late afternoon)
Blue Tit: 5 (2 adults and 3 juveniles)
Jackdaw: 10 (back to the numbers seen on the 10th)
House Sparrow: 1 (one flew in late in the evening)
Starling: 20 (again, a mixture of adult and juvenile birds)

12/10/2018
A quiet day on the birding front, with a little breeze, but I did not get much birding in, hence the rather low numbers etc. recorded. The main event of the day was the massive gathering of Jackdaws and Starlings just as the sun was setting.

Blackbird: 2 (two early on as usual on my lawn)
Blue Tit: 1 (one heard but not seen in the trees beyond my garden)
Robin: 1 (one of the pair of the last two days singing)
Jackdaw: 30 (a typically large winter flock originating from further down the hill)
Starling: 50 (a winter swarm flew over my garden consisting of both adult and juvenile birds)
Goldcrest: 2 (heard late on singing from the conifers at the end of my garden)

11/10/2018
A much better day even than yesterday, with lovely sunshine and clear skies, and I managed to find some of the really common species that I had dipped on in my short periods of time spent out in my garden over the last two days. It was good to see 6 Siskin flying over, the highest number I have seen here this week, although I only saw half as many Pied Wagtails flying over as I did yesterday. The biggest surprise of the day was the Chiffchaff that was in the vicinity of my garden pretty much all day, every now and again starting to sing!

Siskin: 6 (flying over my garden, the highest number recorded this week)
Redwing: 1 (flying over my garden)
Blackbird: 2 (feeding on my lawn)
Woodpigeon: 10 (erupted from the trees before an angry Carrion Crow charged through!)
Magpie: 2 (the presumed usual pair in the treetops)
Blue Tit: 2 (two feeding in my lilac, which currently has a flower out!)
Robin: 2 (the same two as yesterday singing)
Pied Wagtail: 2 (flying over my garden)
Coal Tit: 2 (two calling from the conifers at the end of my garden)
Jackdaw: 5 (down on yesterdays count at roosting time)
Carrion Crow: 1 (the usual)
Song Thrush: 1 (singing?!)
House Sparrow: 5 (in the same lilac as the Blue Tits)
Great Tit: 2 (two presumed males singing)
Collared Dove: 2 (on my roof)
Wren: 1 (one roosting under my neighbour's eaves)
Goldfinch: 4 (flying over my garden)
Starling: 3 (landed on my neighbour's TV aerial to preen)
Black-headed Gull: 2 (soared high over my garden around evening)
Chaffinch: 1 (one headed south over my garden - a migrant perhaps?)
Goldcrest: 2 (two singing in the conifers beyond my garden)
Chiffchaff: 1 (one singing around my garden all day)

10/10/2018
A slightly better day, and I was out for longer, especially late afternoon. Highlights were the couple of Siskin over late afternoon, along with the 4 Pied Wagtails I recorded around midday. Later that evening, between 2005 hrs and 2023 hrs I recorded  2 each of Song Thrush and Redwing over.

Pennybridge Lake:


My Garden
Siskin: 2 (over my garden mid afternoon)
Redwing: 2 (over my garden between 2005 hrs and 2023 hrs)
Blackbird: 1 (feeding on the lawn early on)
Robin: 2 (two males singing from either side of my garden)
Pied Wagtail: 4 (flying over mid to late afternoon)
Coal Tit: 2 (calling in the conifers at the end of my garden)
Jackdaw: 10 (beginning to form the usual large winter flocks in the evenings near my garden)
Carrion Crow: 1 (stirring up the Jackdaws as usual over my garden)
Song Thrush: 2 (over my garden between 2005 hrs and 2023 hrs)

09/10/2018
A rather dull day today, so not much to be seen, added to the fact that I was only out and about in my garden for a short while at midday and then later at night, doing some nocturnal vis-migging. The day's highlight was seen at around 2021 hrs when Crowborough's second Mute Swan flew over. I knew it was Mute Swan by the large dark shape that I could just see and by the sound that the wings were making.

My Garden
Blackbird: 2 (on my lawn)
Woodpigeon: 2 (also on the lawn)
Magpie: 8 (at least 8 all in the line of trees beyond my garden)
Blue Tit: 2 (in the trees beyond my garden)
MUTE SWAN: 1 (2021 hrs)