There is currently a very popular trend with birders to set the alarm, get up very early, head to a suitable prominent high spot and watch the skies above for birds flying over on what is called ‘visible migration’ , known as ‘vis-migging’.
For experienced birders who know their calls, this can lead to a long list of birds passing over that wouldn’t be seen by just taking a regular bird walk.Here at The Lodge, a veritable feast of goodies such as waxwings, lesser redpolls, bramblings and even a rock pipit have been seen(or heard!) in the last week or two, all heading into the country and looking for areas to spend the winter. Large numbers of the commoner migrants, such as fieldfares and redwings pass over in the right conditions and sometimes there are big movements of birds like woodpigeons and starlings, passing over in their thousands!
With big numbers of waxwings coming into the country right now, we are hoping that we will find a nice flock here on the reserve.I remember a couple of years ago watching a group of seven birds that spent a whole week feeding around trees in the car park and giving fantastic views- exciting for even the most experienced of birders!