With plenty of Raptors being seen at Otmoor lately, with no work to do & nice weather predicted, seemed to be the ideal day to visit, especially with the weekends likely to be crowded now that the Starlings are performing.
Arrived at 12-30pm few cars in the car park, parkin' fee now been introduced, good value at two quid, free to members. Things began well as when we approached the bridge onto the moor, a silhouetted Stoat crossed the track with a prey item hanging from it's jaws, looked to be a Vole. Making our way along the bridleway constantly scanning for distant Harriers with no joy, just the usual, Kites, Buzzards & a Kestrel, spent a while near the grit tray just in case of Bearded Tit, no joy.
A flock of 9 Snipe flew over head, as roaming flocks of Starlings fed out on the Moor.
Watched over The Closes & Ashgrove from the comfort of the hide where the only birds present on the water seemed to be Canada Geese.
The seed put down for the wintering Finches was doing the trick with good numbers of Chaffinch, Linnet, Reed Bunting & Yellow Hammers taking advantage, at one point I counted 37 on the ground with many more in the bushes.
As we walked along the path to the first screen a work party engaged in some vegetation clearing, 4 Hares could be picked out on Big Otmoor avoiding the floods.
At the screen 7 Snipe blended in perfectly with their surroundings as they sat on a small reedy island, 9 more flew over, a male Marsh Harrier flew along the hedge line & out over the reed bed.
Moving onto the second screen the farm land at Noke Sides being completely flooded held a couple of hundred Greylag Geese.
15 Lapwing hung on to a raised spot clear of the water, in one corner at least 37 Pied Wagtails were picking what I presume to be insects from the surface of the shallow water.
A couple of approachable Hares provided a photo opportunity.
Not much to be seen from the screen, just a single Gadwall & Tufted Duck plus a distant unidentified Harrier.
Back tracking along the path a Cetti's Warbler gave a sharp burst of song; by now the sun was beginning to drop low in the winter sky interacting nicely with the watery landscape, where 9 Wigeon had dropped in since we passed by earlier.
We approached the first screen just in the nick of time at 3-47pm, as the Starlings were starting to perform above the reeds; twistin', turnin', formin' balls & funnel shapes, whoosin' sounds from their wings, didn't seem to last long, may be a few minutes, then it was down into the reeds, that wasn't the end of it as more birds streamed in from the north low over the reed bed, aiming straight for the cacophony of sound now comin' from those in the reeds, more doing the same approaching from the east & west, a job to estimate numbers, but I would say at least 20,000 birds, all this commotion attracted a Sparrow Hawk, as a Hen Harrier patrolled the far edge of the reed bed, by 4-10 they were all in.
Murmuration video, best viewed by clicking on the enlargement key, play at max volume.
Another Cetti's Warbler sang from the path side on the way back to the car, where once again at the bridge, our visit end as it began with another silhouette, this one being that of a Barn Owl as it drifted in front of us, no doubt also looking for a Vole.... as we admired the last rays of the day..
Don.
Images Copyright : Don Stone/Stewart Dennis.
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