Yesterday I Was Good and didn't abandon my shop-shop-shopping to go running off after Hawfinches. [Wandering up the hill to see the Cattle Egret was just being polite, remember...]
Today was of course another matter, and after well over an hour of the very lazy wind at Ide this morning I at last scored the flying nutcrackers in Devon! :D In 2.5 hours I got precisely 3 views of at least 2 birds. Wowness. Distant, brief [well, one was a bit over 30 seconds] and nowhere near as good as you can get at for example Bruton, but these were in Devon, so felt much better :) Other finches present included 3 Bullfinch, plus Chaffinches and Goldfinches.
Also LOTS of thrushes around - mostly Redwing, with Fieldfares and a couple of Mistle [plus Blackbirds and a Song]. I also learned one of the reasons why I've always dipped there in the past - duff gen! 'Go right at the roundabout, out of the village, and after you go down a slope there's a stand of tall trees' This is true, but it's not where the Hawfinches are. I can't remember who it was who told me where to go, so I can't name and shame them. Oh well, I knows now and I've seen those lovely big bruisers in Devon at last [I've dipped in most of the other places they've ever been, too, so it's not just blaming dodgy directions].
This afternoon I went for a brisk wander with the folks and Her Tillyness up around Mamhead. Cold wind and an unwillingness to stop and freeze to try to spot the calling birds in the trees meant not a lot was seen - though there were winter thrushes passing here, too. I heard some Siskins.
Goldfinch in the garden again, and a new record of 8, yes 8 Chaffinches!
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