FOUR FIRECRESTS

It poured with rain for the whole of Wednesday 21st but the discovery of four firecrests in bushes on the park clifftop brightened up the day. One of the firecrests was seen in the morning amongst a flock of tits passing through my back garden next to the car park. An opportunity in the middle of the afternoon to locate the bird proved successful with the firecrest being found still with some of the tits.

Despite the rain Martin Cock arrived to have a look too and we soon realised that we were watching 3 firecrests flitting around inside the bushes. One glimpse provided a great view of the bright fiery-orange stripe over the head. Although there were long-tailed tits, blue and great tits in the area, the 3 firecrests were mainly keeping to themselves and only calling quietly to each other. The constant raindrops bouncing off leaves made it tricky trying to locate the birds movement but they were watched for at least half an hour. Martin wandered back along the path and found a fourth and more vocal firecrest feeding by itself about fifty metres away.

These firecrests were feeding close to the same bushes where Martin found a firecrest just under two weeks ago here at the park. This group of four birds is the most we've had in one day here on the Island. Just to see one of these smart little gems in a year is always nice but to find four really brightens up any dull day and eases the pain of getting soaked to the skin!

A quick walk around the park produced 2 rock pipits, 4 sanderling, bar-tailed godwit by the beach while on the increasing pools in the fields were 2 gadwall, 30 teal, 5 redshank, 30 curlew and 25 moorhens. On the pond 25 wigeon were the main ducks while 2 redwing were heard calling and 2 song thrushes flew off. In the wheat field next to the park there were a few golden plover, lapwing, one black-tailed godwit, some curlew and lots of starlings.

Yesterday a stonechat was seen near the Golfhouse and a peacock butterfly was resting on a track and 20 meadow pipits were seen to the north of the park.