Across the Border

This past Saturday we had some time at the end of the day to head into Notts, so we did the Carburton - Budby Common double bill. Buzzards entertained from the pull-in at Great Lake and a small flock of Mandarins clattered around the trees. Give it a month or so for Honey Buzzards and perhaps last summer's Osprey will return too.
The Nuthatch vid comes from Carburton.

To Budby before sunset, again a little early in the season for the best action there, Tree Pipits with that go-bezerk trill at the end of their song were the big feature, Linnet and Yellowhammer among them. Late May to early June we'll definitely return for the Cuckoos, Woodcock and Nightjars, Woodlark ought to be singing too.

Surprises

During a birding trip to Clumber Park in Nottinghamshire on an unsuccessful hunt for the park's famed Hawfinches, a couple of surprises presented themselves around a nearby layby used by birders to spot the Honey Buzzards.

We've seen several of these bottle-green-black pheasants along that stretch of road, birds presumably released during the shooting season.

Then along the fence a pair of shy wild Mandarin Ducks turned up, perched along the top feeding from the seed pots.

Pretty, long time and very welcome Chinese interlopers to our countryside, all seen from our mobile Volkswagen birdhide.