An hour locally with the Reed Buntings

January 29, 2011:
A beautifully clear, bright day but with the temperature only just above zero, seemed ideal for a stroll around Brockholes Wetlands. Very prominent were the Reed Buntings, often very frequent here, and regular nesters in the marginal reed beds during the summer.






Both of the main pools were mostly frozen over but on No.1 pool especially, a large number of gulls and wildfowl were concentrated on the limited area of open water. Apart from the usual large flocks of Mallard and Canada Geese, there were also many Tufted Duck as well as several Goldeneye and Teal. At the water's edge a Dunlin, a Snipe and several Redshank foraged.

Reed Buntings, Song Thrushes, and some more Waxwings near Preston

November 28,2010:
A short visit on a bright cold sunny day to Brockholes Wetlands was rewarded with sightings of many commoner birds, including Reed Bunting, Song Thrush, Bullfinch, Chaffinch and Fieldfare. However, a text message from Derek to say that a flock of Waxwings had been reported nearby on the outskirts of Preston caused the visit to be curtailed. Unfortunately, the Waxwings were in a very mobile flock and weren't where they were supposed to be but, when on the point of abandoning the search in failing light, about fifty alighted for a few minutes in a tall tree by the roadside.

Reed Buntings, Brockholes, Lancashire

June 2010:
Birdwise, things seem rather quite at the moment with many birds nesting or feeding young and the migrants yet to come. At Brockholes the reed beds surrounding the main lake hold several pairs of nesting Reed Buntings. One female, when taking a break from maternal duties, decided to perch obligingly close, although a male was more reticent.