Wild at Hull: January 2012

Monday, 23 January 2012

East Park in January

I've been to East Park a couple of times this month, the second time was today, and I was intent on seeing the pair of Ring-Necked Parakeets which are now roaming wild in the park. We heard their calls but couldn't locate them. Still, it was a great day out as the wind had eased and it was sunny. Several flocks of Greylag were grazing as we arrived, keeping an eye for loose dogs (above). An early Treecreeper near the playground was a bonus, and the Goosander flock did not disappoint, mixed with many Pochards and Tufted Ducks near the island by the bridge.
We became acquainted with a hybrid goose I spotted last time. It does not seem to have a partner and the other Canada Geese are hostile towards him/her. It is quite small and delicate, I wonder if it is a young of last year. There are Greylags in the park with obvious domestic ancestry (white patches). In the past (late 1990s) there were Chinese Swan Geese in the park and hybrids with Greylags but there are no traces of them now.
Photos from today unless stated.

Herring gull pair

Hybrid goose

Have you got any peanuts?

Bathing swan (photo 8/01/12)

Male pochard (24/02/11)

Male Goosander (14/02/10)

Female Goosander (photo 14/2/10)

East Park

Species (number of visits)	8 Jan, 2012	23 Jan, 2012
Black-headed Gull (2)	present	present
Blackbird (2)	present	present
Blue Tit (2)	present	present
Canada Goose (2)	present	present
Carrion Crow (2)	present	present
Chaffinch (1)	-	present
Collared Dove (1)	present	-
Common Gull (2)	present	present
Coot (2)	present	present
Dunnock (1)	-	present
Feral Pigeon (2)	present	present
Goldcrest (1)	-	present
Goldfinch (1)	-	present
Goosander (1)	-	present
Great Spotted Woodpecker (1)	-	present
Great Tit (2)	present	present
Greylag Goose (2)	100	present
Herring Gull (2)	2	2
House Sparrow (2)	present	present
Long-tailed Tit (2)	present	present
Magpie (1)	-	present
Mallard (2)	present	present
Moorhen (2)	present	present
Mute Swan (2)	1	1
Pochard (2)	1	present
Redwing (1)	-	present
Ring-necked Parakeet (1)	-	present
Robin (2)	present	present
Starling (1)	-	present
Treecreeper (1)	-	1
Tufted Duck (2)	1	present
Woodpigeon (2)	present	present
Total species: 32	21	31

Saturday, 14 January 2012

Frosty walk around Oak Road Playing Fields

After weeks of mild weather we woke up to a sharp frost and headed to Oak Road Playing Fields for a winter walk. The frost had dusted the fields and ice had formed on the shady side of the fishing lake, where Black-headed and common gulls didn't mind the low water temperature. Coots, mallards, tufted ducks and three Gadwalls completed the lake birds.

Gorse flowering

Gadwalls

Frosty grass

Tufted duck pair

View of the fishing lake

Bird list

Black-headed Gull
Blackbird
Blue Tit
Carrion Crow
Common Gull
Coot
Cormorant
Gadwall
Goldfinch
Great Spotted Woodpecker
Great Tit
Greenfinch
Herring Gull
Lesser Black-backed Gull
Long-tailed Tit
Magpie
Mallard
Robin
Tufted Duck
Woodpigeon
Wren

Monday, 9 January 2012

The woodland cemetery

My local cemetery is now disused. The trees are well over 100 years old and there is a lot of old wood around. The neglect this cemetery suffered for a while meant that birds that like old woodland thrive here. Today we saw a Great Spotted Woodpecker flying away as we approached it, and then another one teased us later, flying from one tree to the next, but not allowing close views. It was while following the woodpecker that we came across this Treecreeper, a bird that I don't come across often, that feeds on the cracks and notches of trunks and branches. This one allowed us to get quite close, but it is such a cryptic bird that I was unable to take good shots. The one above is the only decent one I managed.
Wrens, great tits, robins and song thrushes sung this mild January morning. Two robins went about their business close to each other, possibly already pairing.