Afternoon Bird Photography

I had the afternoon free, so went down to Blackpill on Swansea seafront, where I had seen an influx of Redwings in the last few days, plus a couple of Fieldfares last thing yesterday evening, feeding on Hawthorn berries. A couple of days ago, the Redwings were mainly feeding on the copious berries on two or three Holly trees growing around someone's garden. Today, as I arrived, I was surprised to see most of the berries had been eaten, and that large numbers of Redwings were feeding frantically on the many berries that had fallen onto the still snow-covered ground. I sat down nearby to watch, and to try for a few photos:

A Mistle Thrush popped out of the hedge to join the feast:

I then went to top up the Teasel seedheads I have set up nearby with niger seeds. In no time at all, a small charm of Goldfinches arrived:

The birds were happy to drop to the ground and feed on the seeds that had dropped onto the snow:

Whilst I sat shivering waiting for Goldfinches to arrive, I saw flocks of Fieldfares fly over from the direction of Mumbles towards Blackpill, and one or two Lapwings fly overhead, which are only usually seen here when the weather is very harsh. As I walked on the snowy verge, a large, brown, plump, long-billed bird flew out from where it had been feeding on one of the few patches of visible grass under a bush. I'm almost certain it was a Woodcock, a bird whose normal habitat is woodland. Another sign of the harsh weather!

I trudged back across the golf course (which has been closed due to the snow for several days), where I noticed, near the small 'clubhouse', a watery unfrozen pool had attracted a number of birds, including a few bathing Starlings, a couple of Mistle Thrushes, a Meadow Pipit, and half-a-dozen Oystercatchers:

as well as this single Curlew:

There was also a single Snipe feeding right out in the open, but by now it was nearly dark, and the few pictures I took of it are even worse than the ones I've already posted!