Monday 18th November  8.45 – 9.30 a.m.

A cold morning's bird watching whilst sitting on the bench on The Layers meadow..  

A cold but reasonably bright Monday morning and a chance to sit on the bench halfway up The Layers and see what appears.  The Layers is meadow up a steep stepped path to the left of the Cabin.  Previous readers will know that this bench is one of my favourite spots for bird watching.  There is both an abundance of interesting birds and a wonderful view to admire.  And today was no exception.

As I approached and tackled the windy steep steps up to The Layers bench, two Crows raucously announced my arrival.  Whether because of them or by chance, there were no other bird sounds for quite a while, so I settled myself down comfortably and waited.  Slowly calls, twitters and songs started up.  First the Robin, singing high and loud in the scrub to my left, then a Robin alarm call off to my right.  Next a pair of Blue Tits chuntering merrily not to be confused with a pair of Great Tits which arrive in an adjacent tree and sound very similar.  Whilst the Blue Tits flit around the trees the Great Tits are more intent on scrapping the branches for bugs whilst communicating intently.  All of a sudden a Song Thrush flaps angrily out of a nearby bush and flies off in a huff.  Song Thrushes are notoriously shy and retiring so it was either disturbed or it was fed up with me not moving on.  Next a Goldfinch passes high overhead twittering lightly and Jackdaws call out on their way past, heading in the opposite direction.

A Blackbird alarm call sounds off to the left and then a male Blackbird flies hastily out of the bushes.  Blackbirds have steadily increased in numbers in the woods over the last few weeks.  Regular alarm calls, tussles between male Blackbirds, or 3 or 4 male Blackbirds tagging a female Blackbird are all signs that the residents have some newly arrived competition.  Blackbirds are partially migratory within the UK but there is also a good chance they have arrived from Scandinavia and the Baltics or other parts of Europe.  It is almost impossible to tell a resident from an arrival – although there is some talk of a darker bill.

Blackbirds are considered one of the most common birds in the UK and, as such, we possibly take them for granted.  However they have always been one of my favourite birds and long before I became a birder the early evening song of a Blackbird as I walked home from work was always a pleasure.  I would often stop and listen as the bird peddled his up and down melodic chatty song from the top of a TV aerial (I’ve never seen a Sky dish used as an alternative) whilst I waited and wondered from which direction the sound of a reply would come.  It often made me think of detailed messages sent from village to village by drums in forested areas.   

The males, forceful in personality and quite single minded, are dark black with bright yellow beaks and a yellow ring around the eye.  The males are a real contrast to the timid, retiring nature of the largely dark brown female. 

It is not commonly known that Blackbirds are part of the Thrush family and as such their behaviour is similar to that of other Thrushes.  They like stomping the ground and listening out for worms but they are also partial to fruit and insects.  Although they are not traditionally attracted to bird feeders they can be spotted hanging out under a feeder to see what drops.

And so, as I start to feel the chill of the autumn morning, it’s time to head back down to the Cabin.