A bright winter's morning inspired me to head out for some birding around the Arundel area and was very glad I did as was really productive. Midweek and early morning gives you the best chance of seeing some birds before the crowds descend.
Surrounded by the backdrop of Arundel Castle and the very picturesque Swanbourne Lake, some interesting birds were seen, allowing some photographic opportunities as well!
Starting along the Millstream, at least three Cattle Egrets were in a nearby field, a bird which is quickly establishing itself in the area. The birds were feeding well and it was great to see the interactions between them occasionally calling to each over. Nearby a Mistle Thrush moved through the tops of the trees and walking to the lake I found a Peregrine Falcon perched up surveying the nearby lake, a bird that is nice to see fairly close by.
The lake itself held good number of Gadwall, a duck you can see well here and although they are not very colourful, they are very smart bird indeed, given close inspection. Amongst the Mallards and Tufted Ducks was a pair of Egyptian Geese that swam out to the main island. A Grey Wagtail flew over calling, as did two Siskins.
Searching the nearby woodland edges a Bullfinch flew across the stream and melted away and in the same area I saw my first Firecrests of the day that performed well, I could also hear Treecreeper nearby. Another Bullfinch appeared and gave brief views before disappearing again. There must of been around four Firecrests in this area and were shortly joined by a roaming tit flock which contained Long-tailed Tits. Walking back through the WWT car park a couple of sharp metallic calls had me looking up and a Hawfinch flew over and headed for the bank but unfortunately carried on.
Join us on 15th December where we will be hoping for similar birding and more check out our events page for details.