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I did some bird surveying in the good weather last week. It involved me standing at certain points, and noting what birds and how many I could hear. All to assess our woodland for birds. It's one of the nicest things I get to do, though it's not easy! At last, there are some migrants! I heard...

Photograher Alan Reynolds has just kindly sent me this splendid picture of a nuthatch, taken at the hide.The nuthatch wa s collecting moss and mud to line the nest it is building nearby.

Hurray- at last- a chiffchaff has arrived and it greeted me with its welcome and constant 'chiffchaff' call from the New Heath when I arrived at The Lodge this morning.This is the first confirmed report as far as I'm aware and its at least three weeks later than the usual arrival dates! It's...

After a weekend of sun and with even a little warmth in the air , a few things 'spring like' finally appeared in the area. On a walk around the Cambridgeshire countryside yesterday, I heard 5 chiffchaffs proclaiming their late arrival and a sulphur yellow brimstone butterfly flitted across the...

It may be a cold and dull Easter break, but here on the reserve we have been really busy. Plenty of families have come along to take part in the Easter trail and we've been dashing out searching the shops for the last few creme eggs in the county to give as rewards! We'll have had around 300...

It may be a cold and dull Easter break, but here on the the reserve we have been really busy. Plenty of families have come along to take part in the Easter trail and we've been dashing out searching the shops for the last few creme eggs in the county to give as rewards! We;ll have had around 300...

It may be a cold and dull Easter break, but here on the the reserve we have been really busy. Plenty of families have come along to take part in the Easter trail and we've been dashing out searching the shops for the last few creme eggs in the county to give as rewards! We;ll have had around 300...

Having just returned from a week in the West Country, where torrential rain and gale force winds battered the area, I returned on the train on Sunday and watched as the fields turned from miles of flooded land to a landscape of frozen winter white countryside. The first sight I had at The Lodge this...

Great to see at least five bramblings, with the siskins and redpolls around the gatehouse feeders this morning. Yesterday we didn't see one at all, so it seems that the flock is fairly transient with new birds joining all the time and others leaving. I'm away next week, so it's unlikely they'll...

With winter still in the air the mixed flock of finches is still keeping us and our visitors and photographers well entertained. The cacophany of finch song greeted me this morning and good numbers of siskins and redpolls were still around and feeding on and under the feeders. The weather looks pretty...

With winter still in the air the mixed flock of finches is still keeping us and our visitors and photographers well entertained. The cacophany of finch song greeted me this morning and good numbers of siskins and redpolls were still around and feeding on and under the feeders. The weather looks pretty...

On my walk to the bus this morning I realised just how many birds were singing .Song thrush, dunnocks, great tits, blackbirds,robins and the loud and constant 'chip chipping' of house sparrows were all heard within a few minutes of home. I think yesterday's sunny weather has really made spring...

We get lots of fantastic bird images taken on the reserve, but It's always nice to get a picture of something we don't see so often. This picture of a cute bank vole, craftily taking advantage of the extra food we have been suppling the finch flock at the Gatehouse feeders ,was photographed by...

I've just been out on the Gatehouse lawn and the trees are still full of the weezy calls of siskins and other finches. This large finch flock has been here for well over two weeks now, and we have been putting supplementary food down to keep them all fed and happy! We estimate that over 120 siskins...

The Lodge has been the place to come to if you want to see good, close up views of siskins and lesser redpolls. They are coming to the feeders near the shop in really good numbers at the moment. As you'd expect with these flocks, scarcer mealy redpolls are also being seen, as well as the occasional...

The Gatehouse feeders near the shop are full of action again today; at least 4 bramblings with 2 splendid males have been around, with lots of siskins and redpolls.Joining them on the feeders have been nuthatch, great spotted woodpecker, long tailed tits and large numbers of chaffinches.I wonder if some...

I just had a quick scan around the shop feeders and a male brambling flew down amongst the chaffinches. I only saw it for a few moments and we haven't seen it again as yet. Numbers of siskin and redpoll around the feeding station have noticeably built up in numbers on this very cold day today.

A female brambling has been very confiding at the feeding station near The Lodge shop this morning.Around 20 siskin and several redpoll have been at the feeders as well, so a lot of activity in the area today.James Clark took this great image of a redpoll here.

It's hard to believe we are already in February, but its great to know the days are getting a little longer and the birds are starting to sing again.It's a nice, bright calm day here today-even the wind seems to have dropped. The bird feeders near the shop are attracting siskins and redpolls...

Some good sightings at The Lodge today in the sunshine; 15 crossbills around the Gatehouse car-park,a report of a waxwing along the drive past the hide, red kite over the old heath and several siskin and lesser redpoll on the feeders. If you can't get along yourself, check http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature...

Some good sightings at The Lodge today in the sunshine; 15 crossbills around the Gatehouse car-park,a report of a waxwing along the drive past the hide, red kite over the old heath and several siskin and lesser redpoll on the feeders. If you can't get along yourself, check http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature...

Some good sightings at The Lodge today in the sunshine; 15 crossbills around the Gatehouse car-park,a report of a waxwing along the drive past the hide, red kite over the old heath and several siskin and lesser redpoll on the feeders. If you can't get along yourself, check http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature...

A happy, healthy and peaceful New Year to you all. After a few days off over the Christmas break , I returned today, and shortly after, our regular Wednesday volunteer, David Hinton arrived. He headed off to clean the hide and check the trails and was rewarded with views of a firecrest,amongst a small...

I've just returned home from a holiday in Gambia and back to The Lodge for the first day back today. These cold conditions take some getting used to! Luckily, I missed all of the bad rain and road closures due to floods in Little Paxton, where I live.While I've been away,a few good birds have...

I was very lucky this week; on Thursday I went over to the work compound here at The Gatehouse and a flock birds were in the bare sycamore tree in the work compound.I scanned through them, and to my great suprise, my binoculars locked onto a cracking hawfinch near the top of the tree! A very scarce bird...