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| December at Ballachurry Reserve |
The weather didn't live up to expectations on Thursday, 15th December and far from the promised dry morning, it started to rain just as I arrived at the Reserve! I headed for the hide but with little about I made use of the time for a quick tidy up with dustpan and brush until the shower passed over.
I eventually managed a proper walk round and here is what I recorded.
Birds:
SC209693 Blackbird; 7 x Long Tailed Tits; 2 x Goldcrests; 2 x Blue Tits; 2 x Great Tits. Chaffinch
SC210694 Great Tit; Blue Tit;
SC209694 ( from Hide) Blue Tit; 4 x Chaffinch.
SC208694 ( willows path) Goldcrest; Blue Tit; Great Tit; 3 x male + 1 female Chaffinch; Robin heard but not seen.
SC208694 (new compost heap area) Blackbird; Goldfinch;Robin; 3 x Long Tailed Tits.
One photo of a Long Tailed Tit shows it was taking Great Willow Aphids.
I decided to check the Robin nest box in the Alder tree near the road, hoping it had again been used this year. To my surprise it was full to the absolute top with Alder seed. SC209693
Fungi
SC209694 Scurfy Twiglet fungi continue to appear in the wood chip paths
SC209694 There is still Coral Spot visible on the dead sapling.
Apologies for the poor quality of the bird photos in this post. Light levels very low and birds determined to sculk! Put in as record shots only.
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| No room for a nest - full of damp seed. |
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| seed from the nest box |
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| Chaffinch hiding behind twigs |
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| Goldcrest doing likewise |
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| Coral spot on the dead sapling |
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| Just a record shot of a Long Tailed Tit |
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| This Long Tailed Tit seems to be eating Great Willow Aphids |
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| Close up of the same patch of aphids |
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| Hard now to imagine this Hogweed covered in flowers, caterpillars, and attracting Hoverflies all through the summer. |
Saturday, 17th December dawned bright and sunny of course. I was busy in the morning but decided to drop into the reserve during the afternoon, feeling sure the sunshine would have brought out the wildlife. In fact it seemed eerily quiet and at one point I wondered if I was going to see anything at all! Here is my eventual tally:
Birds:
SC209694 Song Thrush; Robin. Old nest now visible in hawthorn sapling near the path junction.
SC208694 ( compost corner) 3 x Goldfinch; Great Tit; Blackbird alarm call heard; Blue Tit; Robin
SC208694 ( boardwalk area) Robin; Wren;
SC209695 Dunnock x 2 together; Blue Tit;
SC209694 ( from hide) Moorhen; Wren; Robin heard but not seen; Kestrel flying over; Water Rail heard but not seen.
SC210 694 Goldcrest; 2 x Long Tailed Tits
Other:
SC209693 More and more Scurfy Twiglet fungi appearing in the wood chip along the path.
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| late sun on the reed bed |
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| Nest now visible in the hawthorn |
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| Scurfy Twiglet fungi along the path |
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| One of two Dunnocks in the hawthorn |
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| December Robin. |
