The Bird Blog - February 2024

21st Febuary

As the end of the month approaches my hoped for sightings of flocks of Redwing around the arboretum have not materialised and since my last blog my views of Redwing have continued to be sightings of solitary birds.

All around the arboretum there are more signs that Spring is on the way.

Over recent visits I have noticed the amount of bird song I am hearing continues to increase. Blue Tits, Great Tits, Nuthatches, Song Thrush are singing with Blackbird now joining this chorus of songs and calls. Yet I have not heard a Great Spotted Woodpecker 'drumming' in the arboretum, but this can only be a matter of time as I continue to hear one drumming from a local spinney.

In relation to the ponds, on one visit I saw two Moorhen. Hopefully these are a breeding pair and are looking for a potential site to build a nest. Certainly, the habit is right for them. Also, people who have stopped to chat have told me that in previous years they have seen a family of Moorhen in and around the margins of the ponds.

There is no indication as yet that any of the Mallard Duck are considering the ponds as a place to raise a brood of ducklings, but there is still plenty of time for this to happen.

Since my last blog I have continued to enjoy good views of female Green and Great Spotted Woodpeckers; Robin, Wren, Blackbird, Goldcrest, Song Thrush as well as four species of the Tit family.

I have also seen Jackdaw exploring holes and splits in the trucks of trees looking for prospective nest sites. Finally, whilst walking down Carisbrooke Road I caught sight of two Common Buzzard gliding towards Knighton Park.

For those of you who may be interested in bird migration. The Cuckoo monitoring programme being conducted by the British Trust for Ornithology shows the Cuckoos being tracked by satellite are now beginning to make their return journey from the Congo where they spent the Winter to their breeding grounds in the British Isles and Ireland; another sign that Spring is on the way!

Phil Taylor