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Tuesday 15 November 2011

The patch and beyond

Spent a few hours out soon after dawn this morning on patch, spending most of the time in the Beer Cemetery fields. There was very little grounded with most the action above, including 17,600 Wood Pigeons...


Unusually all were flying east, which is a first for me! I guess this is to do with the wind direction. Also overhead I noted 20 Redwing, 2 Fieldfare, 1 Mistle Thrush and 1 Brambling.

A quick look at the river valley showed 12 Brent Geese still, but nothing else of note.

I then headed west (with Kev), to have a look at the Red-breasted Goose at Dart's Farm. A fine bird it is indeed...

(according to the pager there was a pale-bellied Brent in the flock too...we saw a slightly paler-looking juv dark-bellied - ever the cynic!)

We then dipped on the reported Pink-feet at Bowling Green, but at Exminster Marshes were surprised to see three White-fronts. The light was awful, they were distant and surprisingly elusive, so no chance to see the bill colour - but on structure my money's on 1 flavirostris and 2 albifrons.