Three members had arrived in the Old Moor car park by the appointed time of 9:30am and, under the direction of Jeff Davies, duly set off with a target of finding sixty species. The sun shone warmly all day, but with a cold edge to a freshening wind we were glad of the promise of many hides to visit. Alas, these turned out to be colder than being out in the open!
Blackbird, Black-headed Gull, Black-tailed Godwit, Blue Tit, Bullfinch, Canada Goose, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Chiffchaff, Collared Dove, Common Buzzard, Common Kestrel, Common Snipe, Coot, Cormorant, Dunnock, Gadwall, Goldfinch, Great Crested Grebe, Great Tit, Greenfinch, Grey Heron, Greylag Goose, Herring Gull, Jackdaw, Lapwing, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Linnet, Little Grebe, Long-tailed Tit, Magpie, Mallard, Moorhen, Mute Swan, Oystercatcher, Pheasant, Pied Wagtail, Pochard, Reed Bunting, Robin, Sand Martin, Shelduck, Shoveller, Starling, Stock Dove, Teal, Tree Sparrow, Tufted Duck, Wigeon, Willow Warbler, Woodpigeon, Wren, and Yellowhammer came to 53 species.
The target was therefore easily surpassed by the addition of Speckled Wood, Orange-tip and Peacock butterflies, a large maurauding Carp, a docile Terrapin and several species of plant in bloom (Cowslip, Coltsfoot, Gorse, Broom…)