Thirteen people joined this walk on a very mild, clear, calm and sunny day. We were rewarded with a good variety of birds mainly on the water. However overall bird numbers were quite low, in part probably because it has generally just not been cold enough this winter to drive many migrants this far south.

The birds were pretty spread out all the way around. By the time we got back to the causeway we had seen:

Red Kite, Great Crested Grebe (in good numbers including one still in its white and black winter plumage, Coot, Tufted Duck (lots), Wigeon (a few), Mallard, Cormorant, Robin, Wren, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Blackbird, Goldfinch, Dunnock, Magpie, Ring-necked Parakeet, Grey Heron (the heronry is filling up so good numbers of birds visible on nests and flying in), Shoveler, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Black-headed Gull, a solitary Common Gull (which are anything but common in these parts), Mute Swan, Goldeneye (both male and female but quite a long way off), Lapwing, Canada Goose, Blackcap (heard), Cetti's Warbler (heard on the causeway), Little Egret, Fieldfare, Gadwall, Pochard. Moorhen and Carrion Crow.

We had heard that the Smew was still around and two of the party were fortunate enough to catch glimpses of it from the riverside path shortly before reaching the signpost. So including the Smew we ended with a grand total of 34 species under our belts.

Dick Beeden