Today's weather was about as good as you could get in December, being both warm and sunny after the overnight frost and even the Red Admirals were on the wing.
I took a bike ride that took me along along the Son-sonnette and was very surprised to catch a glimpse of an egret flying behind the trees, seemingly disturbed by a buzzard. I was even more surprised when I went to investigate further and found not one egret but two feeding in a field close to the river. Nor were they the more common little egret but the much rarer great whites, both with the bright yellow bills which this species sports in winter. A few weeks ago I reported my brother's sighting of great white egrets near Roumazieres but this is the first time I can remember seeing them in this part of Charente.
In the long distant past of my early bird watching, great white egrets were unlikely to be found away from Eastern Mediterranean lagoons and Les Oiseaux Des Charente gives just one sighting in 1979. Things have changed remarkably since then and records at all times of the year now come from all over Western Europe. One has been present on the Isle of Wight throughout the summer for instance.
The sunny day's birding didn't end with the egrets as a skein of about 30 cranes flew over my house just after I arrived back there.
There were a few good birds in between as well, over thirty species in fact. These included a small flock of woodlarks near St Front and a group of at least half a dozen chiffchaffs feeding together on the insects that were swarming in today's warmth. This is another interesting species as regards changing distribution.
The numbers of this summer migrant which decide to winter in Europe have seemingly been increasing over recent years. The number of them which I saw or heard today was into double figures and there have been plenty of them about, including in my garden over the last few weeks.
As always, in just few hours spent birding, some common birds eluded me and there was no sight or sound of goldfinch, greenfinch or magpie today.
And speaking of missing species, I'm still looking for the first bullfinch of 2013 and there are only three weeks left!
Lots of Little Egrets on the coast of the Isle d'Oleron last weekend and one Great White feeding on a dung heap a little way inland. We may have found your missing Green and Gold finches; they are all on or around our bird table or a least that's how it seems!
ReplyDeleteI keep meaning to take a trip to the coast again if only to see a few waders and wildfowl
DeleteI did see some goldfinches yesterday-----and I wasn't looking into our garden! But let me know if a bullfinch turns up.