Tuesday 31st December [A pleasant day]
I spent several hours at the lake this afternoon, and saw the drake Ring-necked Duck and female Scaup. I also spent quite a long time watching the ‘Lesser Scaup’, the same as I had yesterday. I’d be interested to hear from anyone who spares a few minutes looking at it tomorrow, or, on subsequent days, instead of just ticking and running on to the next one for the year list. I see all the usual suite of characters of a Lesser Scaup, but for the last two days I’ve been having a few doubts about it. It may just be that the bird has been almost constantly diving and feeding, which changes its appearance, that has got me wondering, but….
Monday 30th December [A fairly pleasant day, if a little dull.]
The ‘Lesser Scaup’ and Ring-necked Duck were both still present today, but I couldn’t find the female Scaup. I’m keeping my fingers crossed they stay to get the 2025 birding year off to a good start. Mind you, the weather forecast isn’t great for New Year’s day, so birding might be quite difficult. I saw two Great White Egrets, counted 59 Canada Geese from Rainbow Point, 17 Goldeneye and three Goosanders off the dam at dusk, and the Common Sandpiper on the dam wall in a list of 44 spp. While I was walking towards Hellfire Corner I heard a Great Spotted Woodpecker drumming and at the dam, around 1615 hrs, I heard the Tawny Owls calling to each other at the bottom of Station Road.
Drake Ring-necked Duck, Long Bay © Nigel Milbourne 2024
Sunday 29th December [A nice day, with a light breeze.]
I went to the lake this afternoon to meet Melanie and Lionel P. who were coming down to put up a replacement barn owl box at the Top End, and to clean the North Shore box. This meant we were busy all afternoon until dark. I saw the ‘Lesser Scaup’ from the dam on the way to meet them, but missed the drake Ring-necked Duck in Long Bay, although Marc H. told me he had seen it. I also saw a Great White Egret in Long Bay and the female Scaup along Burmah Road from the car on my way to the meeting. The box replacement resulted in me having no more time to look for birds today, it was too dark by the time I got back to the dam.
Saturday 28th December [Misty and murky until lunchtime, then overcast but clear.]
Another extremely misty morning meant I didn’t go to the lake until nearly midday. I saw the female ‘Lesser Scaup’ from the dam, and met a budding young birder at the Lodge with his mum and younger sister looking for it. I told him what to look for and started scanning myself, but he actually found her by himself while she was asleep. A great spot by the young man. We went to Long Bay to look for the Ring-necked Duck, which showed very nicely, then on to look for the female Scaup. I spotted her preening, but before we could get the scopes set up she disappeared behind some bankside trees, which was a bit frustrating. I saw a single Great White Egret while I was there too. I drove back down to the dam at 1530 hrs to watch birds gathering to roost until 1630 hrs. I saw six (three adult drake) Goosanders and 29 Goldeneye among the masses of Aythya ducks. The gull roost may have included an adult Yellow-legged Gull but it was a bit too dark to be sure by the time I spotted it.
Friday 27th December [More still & misty conditions]
This morning I could barely see 200 metres, so I didn’t rush down to the lake, but when I got there I could see the ‘Lesser Scaup’ from the dam wall. The drake Ring-necked Duck was in Long Bay when I parked up at Green Lawn. I birded on foot from there to Top End gate and back. I saw four Great White Egrets and the Scaup again, after missing it yesterday. I stopped at the dam on the way back home and saw a Common Sandpiper on the wall, and eight (five adult drake) Goosanders that had flown in before 1545 hrs.
Thursday 26th December [Misty in the morning until the sun burned it off]
I looked out of the window just after 0800 hrs and thought there’s no point in going down to the lake, I’ll see nothing. However, it wasn’t too long before the sun burned off the gloom, so I drove down to the dam and got the scope out to look for the ‘Lesser Scaup’ which, although a little too far away to photograph, was nevertheless showing nicely. I parked up at the Lodge, where I met Dave H. who had just been watching the drake Ring-necked Duck. It was still in Long Bay when I walked past, on the way to Bell’s Bush barrier and back. I couldn’t find the Scaup along Burmah Road, where it’s been for the last few days, but viewing isn’t great along that part of the lake. I saw a Common Sandpiper at the dam, a Little Egret fly down the lake, and a couple of Great White Egrets. I heard a Nuthatch calling, I’d heard my first of the winter yesterday, walking through Fuller’s Hay on a walk to Burrington and back while dinner was cooking. I also saw a Primrose in flower, and that easily overlooked woodland flower, Dog’s Mercury, in several places.
Wednesday 25th December
Tuesday 24th December [Misty & still, but the breeze got up in the afternoon.]
I should have worn my tin helmet down at the lake this afternoon, there were gunshots going off everywhere! It caused a lot of disturbance among the wildfowl. I didn’t see the Ring-necked Duck at all, but did see the Scaup towards Top End, and the female ‘Lesser Scaup’ from the dam. She has develeoped a noticeable pale ‘ear’ patch now, which makes finding her a tad easier. I didn’t notice the patch last Friday and it doesn’t show on my photo below. I also saw three Great White Egrets and a pair of adult Goosanders before I left.
Monday 23rd December [A bit of sunshine this morning then clouding over with some drizzle in the afternoon]
I had a really good day at the lake today, finding a female Scaup, and seeing the female ‘Lesser Scaup’ and drake Ring-necked Ducks as well. The ‘Lesser Scaup’ was viewable from the dam in the afternoon. As I walked through Hellfire Corner I saw a small (circa. 10) flock of Siskins in the alders, counted three Great White Egrets, watched a Little Egret fly down the lake, saw a drake Goosander off the dam, the Common Sandpiper on the dam, and totted up 51 spp. for my day list. Not a bad day’s work by any means. Another large tree was brought down across the south side road, by the Top End hide, in the wind yesterday. All credit to Neil and the team at BW, they were quick off the mark to clear the way through, which meant they didn’t have to close the site, thankfully.
Sunday 22nd December [A bit of sunshine, but very windy.]
I set out with hope around lunchtime, the sun was out, and I had my camera with me. I saw the drake Ring-necked Duck in Long Bay, but just couldn’t find the Lesser Scaup. I also saw two Great White Egrets. Anyway, the wind really blew up as I started to make my way back to the Lodge, and many of the Aythya ducks gathered between there and the dam, in Pipe Bay. So, as I was barely able to stand up at the Lodge, much less hold my scope still, I went to the dam with the aim of looking from there. It started to spit with rain and the tops of the waves were being blown into spray but, miracle upon miracle, I managed to pick the ‘Lesser Scaup’ out. I showed Gary Thoburn, who was hoping for some pix, like me, then I left for home. Photography looked like mission impossible!
A few people have asked me about this unusual-looking duck, that has been frequenting Long and Home Bays. On the face of it, I’d say it is a female Pochard, they show a pale creamy patch around the base of the bill during winter, but is this one just a little different? If you look through the Pochard you will find a few that look quite similar, although I’ve wondered about one that seems to have a slightly darker back. So, I delved into my wildfowl library to try and understand what’s going on. There are three unusual qualities displayed by Swans, geese and ducks (i) the majority of species moult their flight feathers simultaneously in summer, resulting in their being unable to fly for 20-50 days, depending on species, (ii), when the flight feathers have grown again they migrate, and on reaching their staging and wintering quarters they then commence a complete moult of their body feathers. This moult usually occurs between autumn and spring and results in the so-called ‘breeding plumage’ of males, when mating occurs, then (iii) between February and July another partial moult occurs of some body feathers leading to a more cryptic plumage for females to aid concealment during incubation, rearing young and the flightless period, and slightly later in spring for males which also need to be better concealed while flightless than they would be in their breeding plumage. Of course, during a ducks first year there will be an additional moult. So, how does this relate to the female Pochard shown above? Well, Reeber (2015) describes the female plumage thus: “Head, neck and breast cinnamon-brown, darker on crown and nape, with pale brown to beige areas at the base of the bill, chin, throat, and foreneck, and a pale bridle extending behind the thin eye-ring and broadening and fading on the rear cheeks….Mantle, scapulars, and flanks appear uniform (light grey vermiculated dark) with diffuse darker-grey-brown crescents, formed by bases to feathers.” There will be differences in the plumage of birds depending on their hormonal activity – a feather’s shape and colour is actually controlled by hormonal activity. So, “advanced, delayed, or protracted moult timing, and level of hormonal activity at a given time, can therefore result in different colouration between individual feathers, even if they are part of the same moult.” I think the Pochard, above, fits the description for a female Pochard given by Reeber, but moult timing and hormonal levels have resulted in this bird looking a little different to those usually figured in the bird guides, but isn’t particularly unusual. In order to age it we’d need to see the upper wing detail, in much the same way we need to for Lesser Scaup, as I described on 10th December.
Saturday 21st December [Overcast, then the wind got up, with some rain.]
I waited until the afternoon, when the light improved, to go down to the lake with my camera, unfortunately I didn’t see the Lesser Scaup, although the drake Ring-necked Duck was in Long Bay as usual. I parked at Rainbow Point, and walked to Top End gate and back, but it seems most of the wildfowl were further down the lake. I saw Fieldfares coming in to roost, having seen a flock of Redwings earlier at Long Bay pines. In a list of 42 spp. I heard a Chiffchaff, saw 2 Great White Egrets, and counted 10 (9 drakes) Goosanders off the dam as I left.
Friday 20th December [Dry & overcast in the morning with rain in the afternoon]
I went to the lake this afternoon, just as it started raining, as usual. Ugh! Nevertheless, I wanted to see if I could find the female Lesser Scaup, which I did, to my surprise. Although, in the rain and very poor light it was something of a miracle that I got these slightly improved images compared with my previous efforts.
While I was trying to get a picture of the Lesser Scaup, I had the good fortune to have this 1CY Great Black-backed Gull feeding on a Pike carcass nearby, which made for a rather dramatic image.
Great Black-backed Gull, Green Lawn © Nigel Milbourne
As I was rather preoccupied with finding the Lesser Scaup, I don’t have too much other news, although I did see the adult drake Ring-necked Duck, five Goosanders, a Great White Egret, and a Common Sandpiper. I counted 27 Goldeneye and 33 Great Crested Grebes gathering at the dam end to roost as well.
Thursday 19th December [Overcast in the morning, with some sunshine in the afternoon.]
I couldn’t get to the lake today, but Marc H. let me know that he’d seen the adult drake Ring-necked Duck in Long Bay. Thanks Marc.
Wednesday 18th December [Overcast, some light rain late in the afternoon.]
I popped down to the lake early afternoon, after being grounded at home with a painful back yesterday. I saw the drake RIng-necked Duck in Long Bay where he usually is, although I have seen him feeding in Home Bay at times as well, but I could not find the Lesser Scaup anywhere between Home Bay Point and Wood Bay Point. Late in the afternoon, I received a message from Marc H. who told me he saw the Lesser Scaup in Holt Bay after I’d gone. I’d like to know where she disappears to when she’s not in Holt Bay, it would help me understand if she is continuously present at Blagdon, or flitting backwards and forwards between Blagdon and Chew (where she would be pretty difficult to find given the size of the place). I also saw a Great White Egret in Long Bay, and an adult female Goosander on the water and Common Sandpiper in flight, just off the dam wall later in the afternoon.
Monday 16th December [Dry & mainly overcast]
Phil, Skip and I did the WeBS count between 0940 and 1410 hrs. The water level was virtually 100% (a couple of inches from topping the overspill). We saw the adult drake Ring-necked Duck in Long Bay and the adult female Lesser Scaup in Holt Bay. The count details were as follows: Canada Goose 29, Mute Swan 11 adults & 3 Juveniles, Gadwall 43, Wigeon 50, Mallard 76, Shoveler 26, Teal 4 (undercount), Pochard 185, Ring-necked Duck 1, Tufted Duck 1158, Lesser Scaup 1, Goldeneye 21, Moorhen 19, Coot 1153, Little Grebe 9, Great Crested Grebe 21, Common Sandpiper 2, Snipe 24, Black-headed Gull 39, Common Gull 327, Herring Gull 2, Lesser Black-backed Gull 1, Cormorant 18, Great White Egret 2, Grey Heron 5, Marsh Harrier 1 adult female, Buzzard 1, Grey Wagtail 1. I also saw 4 dazzling Bullfinches. My day list was 46 spp. I sent my back into spasm before the count, tying my boot laces, so didn’t feel up to going down to the dam at dusk to count the Goosanders.
Sunday 15th December [Misty to start, with a stiff breeze. Clearing later.]
I spent an hour or so at the lake at lunchtime. I met Gary T. watching the drake Ring-necked Duck in Long Bay, alongside the drake Paget’s Pochard again. I couldn’t find the female Lesser Scaup though. There were 3 Great White Egrets at Top End and a Common Sandpiper on the dam wall. I noted 37 spp. before my bad back forced me to head for home. A little later, after doing a few flexibilty exercises, I felt okay to walk back down to the lake to watch the Goosanders flying in to roost. Martin K. joined me on the dam. We counted at least 15 (8 adult drakes) as it got dark, although there may have been up to 18.
Saturday 14th December [A reasonably sunny day, if a little cold by the water.]
There were barely any ducks in Long Bay when I arrived, but I eventually spotted the drake Ring-necked Duck in Home Bay, before he subsequently went back to Long Bay, where I watched him feeding next to the drake Paget’s Pochard (Ferruginous x Pochard hybrid). I spent a couple of hours looking for the female Lesser Scaup without finding her. She may have moved on, although her timing is quite bad, given the dreary conditions we’ve had in Blagdon since she arrived and the sunshine today. On the way back from Top End hide, where I had been looking at the perched Cormorants to the left of the hide, I saw a Cormorant fly down the lake with a white thigh patch (breeding plumage). It turned into Holt Bay so I tried to get a picture, but I failed, although I got a really close look. The white thigh patch before Christmas is an indicator of the Continental Cormorant ssp. sinensis and that is just what it was, the first I’ve seen this winter. I saw two Great White Egrets, a Red Kite and, having come home for a warming cup of tea and some toast, I walked down to the dam at sunset and saw 7 adult drake Goosanders, a good-sized gull roost and the (mainly) Jackdaw clattering put on a starling-like aerial display before settling in to roost.
Paget’s Pochard (Pochard x Ferruginous Duck hybrid) © Nigel Milbourne 2024
I first saw a (the) drake Paget’s Pochard on 20th Dec. 2008, then not again until 13th Dec. 2014, and then I’ve seen it every winter since.
Friday 13th December [Mist, drizzle & overcast.]
What a miserable day. At least the cold wind had died away to a flat calm. I birded the lake in the afternoon, although the light wasn’t exactly great. I saw the drake Ring-necked Duck in Long Bay, and what I think was probably the female Lesser Scaup in Holt Bay, although I couldn’t be really sure about the latter. There were absolutely hundreds of Aythya ducks all over the lake, which will take a bit of counting on Monday when we do the WeBS survey. I couldn’t find anything else exciting, as if two american ducks isn’t enough! There were two Great White Egrets and at least 11 Goosanders in a day list of 42 spp. I heard a Song Thrush and a couple of Wrens in song for the first time this winter, and the sound of gunfire down the valley just behind the Pumping Station as the ducks flew out and the geese flew in – I can’t begin to say what I think about that…
Thursday 12th December [Overcast & cold]
I went to Jack Willmott’s funeral today along with a few local birders and some of our former work colleagues. As a result, I didn’t get to the lake, but Brian T. photographed the drake Ring-necked Duck in Long Bay (see Avon Birds).
I was chatting to Rich M. on Tuesday, when we met at the lake, and told him the 1916 Little Bittern record at Blagdon had been reviewed and recategorised as ‘not proven’, and he subsequently let me now that both 1949 and 1950 records of Great Snipe at Blagdon had also been reviewed as part of the same process and they’ve also been designated ‘not proven’. In the case of the Great Snipe, as they were the only local records, it means the Avon area list is reduced by one to 346, and the Blagdon List to 250..
Wednesday 11th December [Overcast & cold]
I didn’t spend long at the lake today, but bumped into Rich M., Ken H. and Martin K. which was nice. The drake Ring-necked Duck was still in Long Bay and the adult female Lesser Scaup was in Holt Bay. I also saw 2 Great White Egrets and a Little Egret. Ken, who walked the south side, reckoned on seeing four Great White Egrets and a male Marsh Harrier.
Tuesday 10th December [Windy, cold & overcast.]
I spent four hours today trying to get some decent pictures of the female Lesser Scaup to no avail. It was a long time sitting in the cold wind getting steadily colder and colder. The Lesser Scaup was in Holt Bay, and the drake Ring-necked Duck was in Long Bay when I started birding, having cleaned, disinfected, and refilled the bird feeder first. Marc H. and Jan, and Andy M. came along later, and Andy felt happy that this bird is indeed the bird he found at t’other place. I also noticed the drake Pochard x Ferruginous Duck (also known as a Paget’s Pochard) in Long Bay on the way home, and spent most of my time with a Great White Egret at Holt Bay.
Now, after all the time spent watching the Lesser Scaup, let’s discuss its age again. The bird at Chew was initially called as a 1st-winter, as it was when I first saw it at Blagdon. However, I still don’t see the eye as pale, unlike Andy M., although I have only seen the bird in poor light. But, I have to agree that the white belly patch is more indicative of it being an older bird. The belly patch of a juvenile female is “ill-defined, pale with brown spots forming faint but neat streaking”, which is still the case in the 1st-winter, becoming whitish when adult plumage is attained the following winter. The head colour is largely irrelevant at this time of year as the moult will have occurred in October to November – both ages will show a dark head relative to the rest of the bird. The iris colour is also variable, although in general there is usually a transition from the dull dark brown of a juvenile, through yellowish amber in the first summer, to yellow or amber in an adult female. The clincher for ageing winter females is the colour/pattern of the upperwing lesser and median coverts. 1st-winter coverts are not speckled, whilst those of an adult are speckled at the tips, so do not contrast with the scapulars (see plate 446, on page 496, of Wildfowl of Europe, Asia and North America by Sébastien Reeber, Helm 2015. ISBN 978-1-4729-1234-3). This would be evident on a decent upperwing photo, but I have yet to manage that. Oh, for some sunshine! So, on balance, when I do get that picture, I’d expect to see speckled lesser and median coverts as shown by an adult as things stand at present. Update: I’ve just been through my photos again, and a couple of shots appear to show patterned lesser and median coverts, although they’re not conclusive, I might be imagining it.
Monday 9th December [Overcast & breezy]
I have just received notification that the permit-only areas of the lake will be open again from tomorrow.
Sunday 8th December [Bright & breezy]
Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like I’m going to get the chance to take some more photos of the Lesser Scaup until birders are allowed back onto site, unless it moves from Holt Bay towards the dam, and if the Ring-necked Duck chooses to stay in Long Bay, I won’t be able to give any updates on that either. By this afternoon, I thought it safe to get out for a walk, after spending most of yesterday indoors. It felt just like the covid restrictions though. I walked the public footpath along the south side of the lake and saw two couples walking along the BW south side road, despite the warning signs saying strictly no access. Anyway, I didn’t see either of the american ducks, but did see 47 Great Crested Grebes and six Goldeneye gathering to roost at the dam end, as well as a Great White Egret, a drake Goosander, two Buzzards, a Red Kite and a Kestrel, in a list of 38 spp. The scene at Top End from the access gate was horrifying because one of the huge trees has toppled over the lakeside road, just missing two other trees that have three bat boxes on them, and a wire had come down over the lane outside the Hatchery gate. I don’t suppose I’m going to be able to search for the ducks, fill the bird feeder, or check the bat boxes tomorrow – it looks like there’s going to have to be quite a clear up first.
View from Top End gate (Ubley entrance) this afternoon (phone pic)
Saturday 7th December [Storm Darragh – weather Red Alert]
I drove down to the dam this afternoon as the storm force winds abated a little. There were quite a few walkers venturing along the public footpath at Butcombe Bay despite the evident dangers. From the roadside, I had a look through my scope and saw several flocks of Aythya ducks and some gulls gathering to roost, but nothing of note among them. There was a Great White Egret hunkered down at Green Lawn, and the Shelduck was in the middle of the lake off Green Lawn. From the house, I could see that the whole east end of the lake was brick red, as was a vast swathe along the north shore – not great feeding conditions for the diving ducks, but I guess they won’t be going anywhere in a hurry in the prevailing conditions. The wind is set to keep howling tomorrow and turning northerly, but if it stays dry, I might put my boots on and take a walk along the south side public footpath across the fields, with my binoculars, but only if I think it safe to do so.
Friday 6th December [A nice day until early afternoon when the rain set in – Storm Darragh is upon us.]
Well, that was an interesting afternoon! I checked the dam and saw a Common Sandpiper, then filled the feeder at Lodge Copse, before driving along the south side road, intending to park at the Top End hide and walk back birding, as I went. However, I saw the drake Ring-necked Duck in Long Bay, then at Holt Bay I spotted a pale-backed Aythya feeding close to the bank at Rainbow Point. I thought it worth getting the scope out for a closer look and was amazed to see a female Lesser Scaup. Judging by the dark colour of the iris I reckoned it to be a 1st-winter (this is not definitive). I had a head’s up from Chris C. this evening that they think the Chew bird was an adult, and the photo he sent certainly looks like one, with yellow irides. Unless it was down to poor light this afternoon, I think this bird had a browner iris than the Chew bird. I drove to Rainbow Point to park up and see if I could get some pictures, where I met Marc Hunt. We got a few shots in the can, and spent some time watching it, during which I saw the wing flap and white secondary panel of the upper wing, with a grey primary panel. Brian Thompson joined me before I went, but with the light fading fast as the storm came in, the bird didn’t really come close enough for us to get any decent photos. It fed and rested on its own, moving around in Holt Bay among Tufted Duck, Coot and Pochard. I saw a couple of Great White Egrets while I was there, but I didn’t have a look at the Top End at all.
Three record shots of the Lesser Scaup showing (i) general features, dark head, peak at the rear, warm brown breast, grey-looking feathers coming through on the mantle, brown crescents on flanks, (ii) the underwing with grey greater underwing-coverts, and (iii) the bill with dark nail area, and sharply demarcated white facial markings down to the gape. The weather is going to be atrocious tomorrow, please stay safe everone.
Thursday 5th December [Pleasant enough morning then wet & windy by dusk]
Marc H. reported the drake Ring-necked Duck as still being in Long Bay today. I didn’t get to the lake, unfortunately.
Wednesday 4th December [Quite a pleasant day. although it clouded over late on.]
I went for a look at lunchtime and saw 2 Common Sandpipers on the dam wall, went through lots of Aythya ducks, and found the drake Ring-necked Duck back in Long Bay! I spent a while at Rainbow Point, scanning Top End, and noted that lots of the ducks were starting to get spooked. It was going to be one of two things… but I couldn’t see a Marsh Harrier and, as expected, it turned out to be an Otter. It swam across Top End and appeared to be carrying something in its mouth, but I couldn’t see what it was. I was about to leave, when a Shelduck flew into my scope field of view. I ran for my camera hoping to get a fly-by picture, but it landed in the middle of Top End. It swam right down the middle of the lake but didn’t really come close enough for a decent photo opportunity. Still, it was a long-awaited year tick, so I mustn’t complain. Also noted from Rainbow Point were seven Lapwings in flight, a Red Kite, eight Goldeneye, 70+ Pochard, and three each of Great White Egret and Buzzard.
Drake Ring-necked Duck, Long Bay © Nigel Milbourne 2024
Tuesday 3rd December [Misty early morning, clearing to sunshine by midday]
I didn’t get down to the lake yesterday, but this afternoon I birded on foot from the Lodge to Top End gate and back. However, I didn’t see the Ring-necked Duck either around the Lodge, Long Bay, Holt Bay or at Top End. The temperature inversion in the valley this morning would have made viewing very difficult, but if it’s not repeated tomorrow, I’ll go down and have a good look around with my scope for it. At the dam, I saw a drake Goosander way down at the end of Butcombe Bay, but forgot to look again on my way home to see if it had been joined by any others at dusk. Doh! I saw two Great White Egrets, the Common Sandpiper on the dam, a Bullfinch in the hedge by Long Bay pines, but nothing else out of the ordinary in a list of 42 species, although the corvid and Starling roosts are quite impressive.
Sunday 1st December [Overcast, clearing to sunny spells.]
This morning I have added a section to the Redwing page of the website, that I hope might encourage local birders to be on the lookout for Icelandic Redwings a subspecies with, so far as I know, just one accepted record in our area in 1899. Perhaps, those of you with cameras might be able to capture a photo or two of some candidates that you might come across this winter, or, have already got pictures of in the past, that might be worth submitting to the AOG Records Committee?
A visit in the afternoon that included a birding walk from Green Lawn to Top End gate and back, produced the drake Ring-necked Duck in Long Bay, the Common Sandpiper on the dam wall, and three Great White Egrets, that were worthy of note. There were a good number of Pochard that must have arrived overnight, probably between one and two hundred, although I didn’t count them, and I also saw several small groups of Redwings and Fieldfares roaming around close to dusk, looking for somewhere to roost I guess.