Severn Valley Country Park (SVCP). 4 January 2014

I had a short stroll around Severn Valley Country Park (SVCP) this afternoon.  The weather was a bit gloomy, but at least it was dry for a change.

There is a conservation area with a small reed-fringed (phragmites) pool and a stream running through it.  On the edge of the pool are some alder trees were I was delighted to find a flock of siskins feeding on the catkins in their upside down characteristic manner. At first there was only about ten birds, they were then joined by another flock of thirty or more.  I soon got into them with my binoculars and could see immature, female and male birds.  The males looked stunning in their yellow-green and black plumage.

I moved on to were there are some hides overlooking a marshy area and some bird feeders.  Blue, great and long-tailed tit were feeding on the food that had been put out.

Even in the poor light conditions, the great tits stood out from the crowd.  They are the largest of the British tit family and have a black band running down their yellow bellies, which gives them the quaint look of wearing a waistcoat.  Their glossy blue-black crown and nape contrast well with their white cheeks.  The rest of the plumage is a mixture of yellow and green, making it quite a pleasant little bird to see.

The great tit has the widest repertoire of all the British tits, if not of all the song birds.  The most commonest call to listen out for in winter is the chaffinch like 'chink-chink'; as we progress into early spring listen out for the males diagnostic 'teacher-teacher' song.

I ended the day seeing a sparrow hawk hedge-hopping towards the river - no doubt looking for its supper.