This year we did get a period of nearly a week around the middle of the month when the temperature remained sub-zero and the ground was covered in snow, unfortunately although most London reservoirs recorded several rarities during this time, we missed out here. The only interest the cold snap brought was the spectacle of more than one thousand gulls standing on the ice, and for a while water rails became very easy to see as they ran around on the ice at the edge of the reservoir.
Chris Farthing’s Woodberry bird highlights: December 2022
Photo credit: Chris Farthing
In the middle of winter birds don’t tend to move any great distance, which means we don’t often get any unusual birds here. The exception to this can be during a very cold spell, when birds may move to find food when the mud or water at their favoured location is frozen.
Kestrel
Photo credit: Chris Farthing
Despite the lack of rarities, the two birds which have been a regular highlight for a few months now continued to turn up and entertain on a daily basis. A kingfisher continues to show well all around the site, particularly around the water inlet and amongst the lagoons easily visible from the boardwalk, and a kestrel (above) also favours areas around the boardwalk, especially the large ash tree above the water inlet.
Four red-crested pochard
Photo credit: Chris Farthing
We had several visits from red-crested pochard (above) during December, most often two males but four visited together on the 25th. Peak counts for other ducks were fourteen shoveler on the 10th, four teal on several dates, and over sixty gadwall were on the water all month.
Whilst water rails were easy to see during the frozen period, the time to see snipe was the few days of low water levels at the start of the month. During this time up to five could be seen feeding on the muddy ‘beach’ area along the northern edge of the reservoir.
There is always some interest from thrushes in the winter and we had multiple song thrushes singing from around the middle of December. Redwings (below) were also plentiful, with flocks of up to fifty passing over and small numbers being seen in trees along the woodland trail.
Redwing
Photo credit: Chris Farthing
Other December highlights were the first returning reed bunting of winter, a female being seen on the 3rd and a few times over the subsequent week, and a great black-backed gull visiting on several dates at the start of the month.
The total number of bird species seen here in December 2022 was 61, very much in line with the December average from recent years.
[Photos by Chris Farthing]