Another beautiful weekend (mainly) with clear skies and unseasonably warm temperatures.
Henry and I walked around the Hanglands again yesterday and were treated to a great view of a lesser redpoll that flew up timidly from a ditch and sat watching us from bramble. This used to be a common bird of hedgerow and woodland, but has seen a catastrophic decline in recent years. If I see one once a year, I am lucky. There was also a red kite wheeling in the blue sky above us and some great early catkins on the hazel.
Today I got a brief glimpse of a stoat at Etton - Maxey pits, dashing around in a rabbit warren near the main Tarmac entrance. I have seen three stoats so far this autumn. This is not a very scientific way of doing things, but that is three more than in the rest of the year - perhaps a mini-local revival, for this predator, which like the redpoll has declined significantly in recent years. They are great to watch!
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