Sunday 24th Oct 2010 - Shenstone

You know sometimes, a visit to your local patch it can be exciting with a scarce bird or interesting migrant turning up. Other times you go there is nothing unusual but still plenty of birds and bird behaviour to see and then every few visits you turn up and its a dead day. Today was one such day and from now on I am going to use a phrase I coined to describe such a day...Today Shenstone was a 'Ghost Patch'.

The highlight of today's visit was 8 Corn Buntings in the bet field along Stanklyn Lane. Corn Buntings I here you cry , they aren't ten a penny. But they are a breeding bird on my patch and are present all year round. Also present at the beet field were 69 Starlings, 7 Dunnocks, 2 Meadow Pipits, 6 Skylarks, 1 Wren and a ♀ Kestrel.

Stanklyn Lane paddocks contained a Pied Wagtail, a Common Buzzard and a Green Woodpecker. A single Skylark was up singing over the field opposite.

A ♂ Kestrel was on the wires over Heath Lane paddocks and 4 Skylarks flew over heading NW.

Witch Lane was devoid of bird life other than a single Grey Heron sat in one of the fields.