Another Breeding Area Bites The Dust

31 january 2013            mid section          early morning

heavy over night rain, blustery shower 08:00 becoming sunny, strong SW 4/5

A quick scan of the canal from the old Tettenhall bridge produced nothing of note,so a walk through the Paddocks was the way to go.Plenty singing robins and 2 singing song thrush was all I had,but on entering the main Paddock I found that the council had beat me there for it had been scalped from fence to fence, no standing twig had been spared. Another meadow no doubt. (that's 3 we now have ) (wonder if Turners Field, Sandfields, Luppinfield and Canal Fields are next).I continued half expecting a manicured Shrike Bushes,but this area had been spared. As I walk though it started to rain so I sheltered under the very old and almost dead willow, which as I leaned against it began to sway alarmingly in the strong southerly wind,luckily the shower past and both it and I were still standing.Onto the Barleyfield and a buzzard flew lazily and low west over Shrike Bushes to Tettenhall Ridge.A tour around Barleyfield was uneventful, just 1 stock dove,4 greenfinch and a pair bullfinch. Lower Alders looked quiet from the outside but a few yards in and I flushed c10 goldfinch and chaffinch which were ground feeding and a goldcrest was searching a hawthorn tree. More goldfinch c6 were again ground feeding in Eddys Alders, 2 mistle thrush and 30 BHGull on Compton Field completed the Barleyfield tour,but I had to revisit Hanging Grds as I made my way to Compton Lock and there were 10 goldfinch,2 chaffinch and a pair bullfinch, the goldies may have relocated from LA. A song thrush was singing from trees on the railway walk as I moved through the now miss named Compton Rough. 2 little grebe below the lock and another 2 between here and Meccano Br, but none further north.A fruitless go for the kingfisher after a noisy dog walker emerged from the Prefab bridge and also no sign of the grey wagtail on the weir.