Carr Vale Nature Reserve

On arrival the weather was bright with plenty of blue sky about but a very cold wind was blowing and the ground was also very wet and muddy. While we gathered in the car park several birds were spotted in the nearby hedgerows, magpie, wood pigeon, long tailed tit, goldfinch, great tit and a robin. 

We set off on the Stockley Trail leading to the ponds at the far end of Car Vale Nature Reserve. Lots of bird activity in the hedgerows as we progressed. A small number of thrush like birds were seen, they were not easy to get a clear ID against the blue sky. At the time the best guess was fieldfare, a later photo review shows they were actually redwing, a clear light stripe above the eye can be seen, a good indicator if the red under wing isn't obvious.

Redwing

We also spotted wren, blackbird, crow, jackdaw, chaffinch, bullfinch and got a fleeting view of a yellowhammer.

On reaching Carr Vale Pond we took a right hand path leading to the larger ponds on the reserve. We could see black headed gulls, cormorants, Canada geese, greylag geese, heron, wigeon, coot, lapwing, starling, tufted duck and gadwall.

Further along the path beside the main pond we reached a more sheltered viewing screen with a feeder station. We could see willow tit, blue tit, great tit, reed bunting, chaffinch and robins taking turns on the feeder.

Reed bunting

Blue tit

Looking over the pond again we saw moorhen, pochard, little grebe, dunnock and mallard. A cock pheasant flew over our path as we strolled back towards the car park. Nearer the car park we had a good view of Bolsover Castle, and by this time we were all feeling the chill wind and were in need of hot refreshment, so we left to find a café in Bolsover.

Bolsover Castle

The tally: 37 species

Magpie, wood pigeon, long tailed tit, goldfinch, blue tit, great tit, robin, wren, blackbird, crow, jackdaw, chaffinch, redwing, bullfinch, yellowhammer, reed bunting, black-headed gull, song thrush, buzzard, wigeon, cormorant, Canada goose, greylag goose, coot, starling, lapwing, heron, tufted duck, moorhen, gadwall, pochard, little grebe, willow tit, pheasant, dunnock, mute swan and mallard.

Willington Nature Reserve

Our first outing of the year. The weather was dry and bright with a light breeze about but ground conditions were very wet and sticky. As we gathered in the car park we spotted blackbird, blue tit, great tit and a goldfinch. We then set off up the lane towards the first viewing platform.

We didn't have far to go before seeing a group of long tailed tits busily foraging in the hedgerow. A great spotted woodpecker also flew in and gave us a very good view as it gazed down on us. 

Great spotted woodpecker

We pressed on further up the lane, dodging the many muddy puddles. We then spotted a distant swan on the bank of the River Trent. It looked bigger than a mute swan and had a very distinctive yellow area above its bill- a whooper! An unusual sighting.

We eventually arrived at the first viewing platform, tufted duck, coot, mallard and cormorants were seen.  Also, fly byes of crow, wood pigeon, grey heron and jackdaw.  

As we neared the main hide we could see a lot of activity around two feeders. The usual culprits mainly, except for a tree sparrow and treecreeper. The tree creeper was feeding on the spill off from the feeders- very unusual.

From inside the hide we could see oystercatcher, lapwing, a large number of greylag geese, Canada geese, no less than four snipe, pochard, mallard, reed bunting, gadwall and shoveller, to name a few.

Pochard

We left the hide and continued on to the last viewing platform on the site. We heard the call of a Cetti's warbler coming from the nearby reed bed. 

During our conversations as we walked along the path 'sexing' of robins cropped up, the males and females are almost identical and they both sing. This makes it difficult to tell them apart. During the breeding season the female does all the brooding so a nesting robin is most likely a female. There is however, a small detail that can distinguish them if viewed close enough, and preferably from above. 

Male robin

Female robin

The two pictures above show the brow hairline is straight in the male and the female has a 'widows peak'. This is generally not easy to see but sometimes it is more obvious.

We eventually returned to the car park and went off to the nearby Mercia Marina for refreshment.

The tally: 35 species

Blackbird, blue tit, robin, great tit, goldfinch,  black-headed gull, wood pigeon, long tailed tit, great spotted woodpecker, whooper swan, crow, mallard, coot, tufted duck, cormorant, mute swan, jackdaw, heron, chaffinch, tree sparrow, treecreeper, lapwing, pochard, greylag goose, Canada goose, reed bunting, oystercatcher, gadwall, snipe, shoveller, magpie, great crested grebe, greenfinch, house sparrow and dunnock.

2019 Summary

Time to look back on the year. We have managed to see 83 species of birds this year, two more than 2018. I think we are getting better as a group at spotting and identifying them, even their calls. I have compiled the group's species list, combining last and this years- see below. A total of 97 species in all, just three short of 100. I look forward to next years outings, and bagging three more species. 

 A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you all.

blackbird	great tit	oystercatcher
blackcap	green woodpecker	peregrine falcon
black-headed gull	greenfinch	pheasant
blue tit		pied flycatcher
bullfinch	grey heron	pied wagtail
Canada goose	grey wagtail	pochard
Cetti's warbler	greylag goose	redshank
chaffinch	herring gull	redwing
chiffchaff	house martin	reed bunting
coal tit	house sparrow	robin
collared dove	jackdaw	sand martin
common buzzard	jay	sedge warbler
common snipe	kestrel	shoveler
coot	lapwing	song thrush
cormorant	lesser black-backed gull	starling
crow	little egret	stock dove
dunnock	little grebe	swallow
Egyptian goose	long tailed tit	swift
feral pigeon	magpie	teal
fieldfare	mallard	tree sparrow
gadwall	mandarin duck	tufted duck
goldcrest	marsh tit	whinchat
goldeneye	meadow pipit	whitethroat
goldfinch	mistle thrush	wigeon
goosander	moorhen	willow warbler
great black-backed gull	muscovy duck	wood pigeon
great crested grebe	mute swan	wren
great spotted woodpecker	nuthatch	wood warbler
common tern	hobby	ruddy duck
greenshank	raven	ruddy shelduck
reed warbler	ruddy duck	shelduck
sparrow hawk	spotted flycatcher	willow tit
treecreeper	water rail

Attenborough Nature Reserve

A bright but cold start to our visit to Attenborough Nature Reserve- a winters day for sure. We set off from the main car park heading towards the rear garden of the visitors centre. On our way we could see Canada goose, mallard, tufted duck, coot, Egyptian goose, black-headed gull, mute swans, cormorant, gadwall and a goosander. The visitor centre garden was very quiet, no tree sparrows, just a blue tit on the feeders.

Gadwall

We then made our way back through the visitors centre and towards the bridge leading to the River Trent.  Along the path, in the hedgerow, we spotted both redwing and fieldfare. We also spotted dunnock, robin, chaffinch and great tit. Further along we entered the kingfisher hide. We could see greylag geese, wigeon, teal, cormorant, lapwing and a little egret.

Fieldfare

Redwing

We then moved on down to the elevated hide. There were fieldfare and redwing in abundance around the hide, along with, greenfinch, goldfinch, blackbird, crow and jackdaw. On the lake we could see goldeneye, goosander and wigeon, amongst a large number of assorted wildfowl. 

We then proceeded back along the path towards the Trent, spotting magpie, wood pigeon wren and yet more fieldfare along the way.

Magpie

We reached the Trent and walked along the adjacent footpath. Along the path we spotted long tailed tits, goldcrest, a chiffchaff (yes a chiffchaff) and a perched kestrel.

 

Kestrel

We then turned and made our way back to the visitors centre for refreshment. Along the way we spotted, moorhen, little grebe, greenfinch, goldfinch and a stock dove. A good mornings spotting.

The tally: 39 species

Robin, chaffinch, redwing, crow, jackdaw, black-headed gull, tufted duck, mute swan, goosander, gadwall, Canada goose, Egyptian goose, great crested grebe, mallard, coot, cormorant, tree sparrow, great tit, blue tit, wigeon, fieldfare, dunnock, lapwing, herring gull, magpie, little egret, teal, wren, greylag goose, wood pigeon, chiffchaff, goldcrest, goldfinch, greenfinch, kestrel, little grebe, goldeneye, moorhen and a stock dove.

Shipley Country Park

The sun was shining when we arrived at Shipley Country Park and there was very little cloud too. A very pleasant morning for a gentle stroll.

We set off towards the small garden area next to the visitor centre. Along the way we spotted a magpie, wood pigeon, crow, blackbird and a robin. In the garden we saw just blue tit, great tit, and a dunnock. 

Wood pigeon

We then made our way along the path towards the small lake. A very colourful shrub was spotted in the hedgerow which was later identified as European spindle- very pretty.

European spindle

As we neared the lake, the call of a green woodpecker was heard, it then suddenly appeared right in front of us, making a low undulating fly past- a bird often heard but seldom seen.

We then reached the lakeside and saw, moorhen, coot, black-headed gull, mallard, Canada geese, great crested grebe, mute swan and a muscovy duck.

Juvenile black-headed gull

We then set off, crossing the waterlogged grass towards Derby lodge and Mapperley reservoir. We spotted grey wagtail, nuthatch and a coal tit in the garden area near the lodge.

Grey wagtail

Nuthatch

We then reached the reservoir and walked along the bank, heading towards the visitor centre. Nothing of note was seen on the reservoir although a low flying cormorant made an appearance. We then carried on, back to the visitors centre for light refreshment.

The tally: 23 species

Magpie, crow, wood pigeon, robin, blackbird, blue tit, great tit, dunnock, green woodpecker, moorhen, coot, black-headed gull, mallard, Canada goose, great crested grebe, mute swan, muscovy duck, jackdaw, chaffinch, grey wagtail, coal tit, nuthatch, and a cormorant.

Carsington Water

It was a bright dry morning as we gathered in Carsington Sheepwash car park. There was a light breeze about, very pleasant for walking. We set off for the nearby hide at the Northern end of the lake. Along the way we spotted magpie, blackbird and wood pigeon. We always see at least a wood pigeon wherever we go.

From the hide we could see several of the resident cormorants on the shore along with a number of lapwing. On the water there were a large number of coot with a few tufted ducks amongst them.  

A view across Carsington Water

We then made our way back to the car park and set off on the path towards the visitors centre. We stopped at the first feeder station near the car park. There were blue tits, great tits and coal tit in attendance, non of them stayed very long on the feeder, preferring to just grab a seed and immediately taking it to the cover of a nearby tree.

Great tit

We carried on further along the path, spotting crow, magpie, jackdaw and dunnock along the way. We reached a viewing screen with a feeding station. This was not as busy as the previous feeder but we did spot a chaffinch amongst the visitors.

We proceeded further along the path where we got various views over the lake. we could see mute swan, pochard, great crested grebe, Canada geese, greylag geese, mallard, and grey heron. 

Eventually we arrived at the visitors centre for some well earned refreshment. There were a number house sparrows seen busily attending feeders near the entrance.

Coal tit

We then left the centre to make our way back along the path. We stopped at the main hide nearby. We could see tree sparrows, coal tit, moorhen, coot, little grebe, gadwall and a lone female teal.

Teal (female)

As we neared the car park on our way back we saw a great spotted woodpecker, a jay and a number of long tailed tits. A good day for bird watching and to finish our walk a red admiral obligingly posed for a photo.

Red admiral

The tally; 34 species

Magpie, wood pigeon, blackbird, cormorant, lapwing, coot, tufted duck, black headed gull, great tit, blue tit, nuthatch, crow, dunnock, coal tit, robin, pheasant, jackdaw, mute swan, chaffinch, pochard, great crested grebe, Canada goose, greylag goose, mallard, teal, grey heron, house sparrow, tree sparrow, little grebe, moorhen, gadwall, great spotted woodpecker, jay and long tailed tit.

Willington Nature Reserve

On arrival the weather was bright but quite blustery, lots of puddles about due to recent rain. We set off down the lane heading towards the various viewing platforms and single hide. 

Pic by Marshal

The reserve is maintained by Derbyshire Wildlife Trust and is essentially a number of flooded gravel pits that have been transformed into a wetland nature reserve.

As we strolled along the lane we could hear more birds than we could see, due to the dense cover. We did however get to see robin, wood pigeon, blue tit, blackbird, dunnock, magpie and swallows up above us. We eventually reached the first viewing platform where we could see coot, moorhen, gadwall, black-headed gulls, cormorant, heron, lapwing and an illusive snipe.

Snipe

We then walked further along the lane, spotting and hearing several chiffchaff along the way. We then reached the next viewing platform where we could see Canada geese, mute swans, a distant crow and a lone starling flying over. 

We then moved on towards the only hide on the reserve. A grey squirrel was spotted studiously watching us as we strolled by. 

Grey squirrel on guard

We then reached and entered the hide.  A good number of birds could be seen, many that we had already encountered. We sat a while and spotted great crested grebe, tufted duck, common buzzard and a kestrel. We also saw great tits, greenfinch and blue tits on feeders behind the hide. A dunnock and reed bunting were picking up the scraps falling from the busy feeders. 

Reed bunting

We then walked further along the lane until we reached the end of the reserve. We could here a Cetti's warbler in the reeds in front of us but it never made an appearance. We then made our way back down the lane to the car park. Several butterflies were about, a speckled wood posed very obligingly for a photo.

Speckled wood

The tally; 29 species

Robin, wood pigeon, blue tit, blackbird, swallow, dunnock, magpie, coot, moorhen, gadwall, black-headed gull, cormorant,  heron, common snipe, starling, Canada goose, mute swans, crow, chiffchaff, great crested grebe, tufted duck, lapwing, lesser black-backed gull, kestrel, common buzzard, chaffinch, great tit, greenfinch and a reed bunting.

Allestree Park

A warm bright start to our visit to Allestree Park. We set off from the car park to walk around the park in a clockwise direction, starting off through the nearby wooded area.

The woods were very quiet, most of the seasons hectic bird nesting activity and song was now largely over for the year, although there were still many young birds about. 

As we walked through the woods towards the park lake we saw wood pigeon, crow and a song thrush. On reaching the lake we could see coot, mallard, Canada geese, great crested grebe and a moorhen. One grebe was seen still attending to a nest.

A nesting grebe

We walked on around the lake along the path with nearby gardens backing onto the lake. Along the path we saw blue tits, wren, blackbird, dunnock and nuthatch. Before we left the lake to stroll across the fairway we saw magpie and tufted duck.

We crossed the fairway to reach the top of the park. We strolled along the top path before heading back across the fairways to the club house for refreshment.

Tufted duck

Moorhen

The tally: 17 species

Crow, wood pigeon, song thrush, coot, mallard, Canada goose, great crested grebe, moorhen, nuthatch, blackbird, dunnock, blue tit, wren, tufted duck, magpie, jay and pied wagtail.