31 Tuesday Jan 2023
Posted in birds
When a bitterly cold wind is making the tips of your nose and fingers feel like ice, it may not feel like Spring is just around the corner but the birds seem to think it is. I’ve seen Magpies fiddling sticks into years-old nest structures, and heard Dunnocks and tits singing for potential mates. And, yesterday, this beautiful Song thrush was sitting atop a big mound of scrub and bramble, singing his heart out. I wasn’t the only person to stop, look and listen.
30 Monday Jan 2023
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A Nuthatch doing what its name implies, eating nuts (though I have a feeling the name actually comes from the way the bird hacks in to a nut before eating it).
28 Saturday Jan 2023
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I’ve had two interesting encounters with Little grebes in the past week. The first was being relatively close to this little cutie having a bath, a delightfully splashy affair.
Then, a couple of days later, I noticed this gang of Little grebes floating along the River Taff. At this time of year they often seem to congregate around the area where the Taff flows in to Cardiff Bay (I counted 28 thereabouts recently). I don’t know the reason for this but I wonder if it is some kind of pre-breeding behaviour, where the single grebes come together to appraise each other, looking for potential mates.
26 Thursday Jan 2023
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birding, birdwatching, British birds, Chiffchaff, Chiffchaff fly-catching, over-wintering Chiffchaff
So many flies, so little time …
Although the majority of Chiffchaffs still migrate to warmer southern climes for the winter, increasing numbers can now be seen over-wintering locally. This little beauty was feasting well on the hundreds of tiny gnat-like flies that had emerged in Monday’s sunshine.
23 Monday Jan 2023
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When life finally gives you a little winter sunshine, you might as well relax and enjoy it. This Common gull was doing just that, snoozing in the relative warmth of the midday sun.
21 Saturday Jan 2023
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I was hoping to hear my first Skylarks of the year but was instead entertained by a little posse of Reed buntings, fossicking for titbits amongst the tall tufts of meadow grasses. If a noise alarmed them, they’d flit up to a higher vantage point, on a branch of Field rose or the twigs of a nearby tree, to survey the area and check out its source but, as I kept very still, the birds seemed unconcerned by my presence.
18 Wednesday Jan 2023
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birding, birdwatching, British birds, Cardiff Bay birding, drake Goldeneye, female Goldeneye, Goldeneye
I know I’ve blogged about this drake Goldeneye very recently but I want to share yesterday’s magical experience. The drake was much closer than usual to the boardwalk along the edge of Cardiff Bay so I was able to watch its almost constant diving for food and to admire its stunning plumage when it washed and flapped its wings.
Suddenly, a flock of Tufted ducks flew in to join the couple of hundred already present and, amazingly, they were accompanied by two female Goldeneyes. It took ten minutes or so for the three Goldeneyes to find each other, and then I was able to watch all three interacting. It was enchanting!
14 Saturday Jan 2023
Posted in birds
Almost a month ago we had the pleasure of two Goldeneyed gals cruising around in Cardiff Bay. Now, and for the past few days, perhaps due to the very blustery weather we’ve been experiencing, we’ve had a drake Goldeneye visiting. He mostly maintains a discrete distance from the water’s edge but, yesterday, was close enough for slightly better photographs. He’s a very handsome bird, his head a glossy dark green, his body and wings a stunning pattern of blacks and whites, and I particularly like his white cheek patches. If yet another squall hadn’t come in, I would’ve stayed longer to watch him but I’m hoping he will linger and provide more viewing opportunities in more clement weather.
11 Wednesday Jan 2023
Posted in birds
To get this photo, I got drenched, hailed on, flashed by lightning and rumbled by thunder … but it was worth every drop of rain. Seen here with the Tufted ducks it has befriended and a local Gadwall, this female Ring-necked duck is one of two that have been in the local area for several months. They have mostly spent their days together on Lisvane Reservoir in north Cardiff but the turn of the new year has seen this particular duck spread its wings, spending a day or two in Cardiff Bay, and several days, as today, at Cosmeston Lakes Country Park.
09 Monday Jan 2023
Posted in birds
I always stop when I hear Long-tailed tits, partly because their little flocks are often accompanied by other small birds, which might include something of particular interest, but also because they’re just a joy to watch as they flit from branch to branch, picking up almost invisible invertebrates, hanging upside down or leaning sideways to check every crack and crevice. They’re mostly too quick for sharp photos but this little poser paused for a moment or two on a fence post, just long enough for a couple of reasonable images.
earthstar 
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