Week commencing 19th November

Monday 9th

Weather: 8 degrees C, Wind NW, 15mph, Cloud 84%, Visibility Good, 8.5 miles

Headed over to The Ouse Fen at Needingworth for the morning. Haven't been here since September 2013 when I used to call in while travelling around Cambridgeshire seeing students. It's certainly 'filled out' with the planting and hedgerows looking really good.

Ouse Fen

It was good to find significant numbers of Redwing present, in fact the most seen so far in one location this year. The areas of water were pretty quiet with just Mute Swan, Gadwall, Coot and a few Tufted Duck present.

Mute Swan: Ouse Fen

Gadwall and Coot

A small flock of Linnet were bathing in a pool and a female Marsh Harrier was present, hunting over the reed beds.

Female Marsh Harrier

Female Marsh Harrier

Number of species seen: 28

Wednesday 21st

Bitterly cold this morning out along the Reach Lode bank. Memories of those hot summer morning walks certainly now taking a bit of a back seat with a wind chill factor bringing the temperature down to at least minus 1!

Little change to the flooding of the fen since last out there on Thursday. It would seem that the flooding for some reason has stopped. Interestingly there were people up at Pout's Hall with a NT landrover seemingly having a look at the inlets. Maybe they have had to close them for a while. Hopefully the flooding with commence soon  as the lower half is looking very empty of everything other than Pheasant. Not that there was much around period!

Female Marsh Harrier quartering Tubney Fen on out arrival. Good numbers of wigeon and Greylag and a distant view of a Short-eared Owl by the Barn.

Number of species recorded: 17