Still no Nightingales singing at Linford Wood.

Yesterday we spent an hour at Linford Woods in the evening to see if we would have any luck with the Nightingales at a different time of day for the BTO project, there were none singing for sure, but at one corner in the path we heard what we thought to be their grunted alarm call. However we were unable to see the bird nor did we have time to tape the call, so we cannot be sure.

Linford Wood

This morning we returned bright and early, but there was no sign even at the same spot of any Nightingales. Sadly this will be the last visit we'll be able to make to the site for this project as we are off to the USA on Tuesday, I can't help feeling that one will turn up later in the week especially if the weather improves, oh well, we shall never know.

We did however have a close encounter with a territorial Goldcrest, he was singing away and raising his crest for all he was worth.

Goldcrest singing

Goldcrest

We also got some good views of a Nuthatch who was uncharacteristically low down.

Nuthatch

Nuthatch

A Coal Tit in the fir tree section of the wood was less obliging, but we got some record shots of it.

Coal Tit

Here's a couple of attractive corvids, the Jay...

Jay

... and the Magpie, which if it didn't have such a bad press and wasn't so common people would bust a gut to see one, great looking bird.

Magpie

We then went along to Sherington bridge and found that the water had subsided significantly in the ploughed field and that the Bar-tailed Godwit had moved on to pastures (or flooded fields) new.
Here is what it looked like yesterday...

The river Great Ouse burst its banks and flooded adjacent fields

... and today.

The river has returned to its ormal course and the fields have dried out