Saturday 3rd January

A lovely crisp morning...at last. No sign of the Hawfinch again this morning, but a fly over male Bullfinch made a welcome new addition to my garden list. Redwings were conspicuous, a flock of 21 birds outnumbering 3 Fieldfare in the tree at the back of my garden at first light. A walk along the River Medway from Barming Bridge nearly to Teston Bridge was rather disappointing, but with both children demanding my attention I'm sure a few things were missed.
Mike Easterbrook popped by this afternoon - 3 days late for the Hawfinch unfortunately, but he managed to attract a lone Lapwing low east over the garden as we stepped out into the late afternoon sunshine - another new garden tick (although they are often found in the field by St Margaret's Church in the winter). He'd had more luck down the river, a showy Kingfisher between East Farleigh and Barming Bridges. Feeling the need to compensate for the Hawfinch no-show I took Mike on late visit to nearby Wierton Hill to marvel at the increasing flock of Waxwings. The setting couldn't have been more perfect with the late winter sun sinking beyond the Weald bathing the whole scene in a wonderful light. A pair of Bullfinches and a Green Woodpecker added splashes of colour, and the 6x Waxwings looked resplendant, their warm cinnamon feathers picked out perfectly by the dying sun.