A Quiet Eynsham Wood Walk and a Garden First

I began the day by making the most of the good light and having another go with my new 90D + 400mm f/5.6 lens photographing birds in the back garden. The starlings Sturnus vulgaris have been particularly willing to help me test my new kit, showing off their irridescent plumage in the early morning sunshine. 

I was surprised when a female blackbird Turdus merula arrived to have a wash in the bird bath.

Eventually a goldfinch Carduelis carduelis joined the party too, although it was less inclined to use a natural perch and instead dropped straight onto the feeder which was still in the shade. 

After a while I got a bit cold (since it was a breezy morning and I was positioned in the shade), so Lucy and I decided to have a stroll over to Eynsham Wood to make the most of the sunshine which was only forecasted for the morning. In general it was a relatively quiet session with only 16 species in total. It was nice to hear two at least two singing male chiffchaffs Phylloscopus collybita; one in Eynsham Wood and one in the central bridleway hedgerow. Sadly neither of them offered a good photo opportunity (the one below was drifting about in the wind at the top of some scrub in the northern area of Eynsham Wood). 

 
This smart male chaffinch was slightly more obliging however.

The eastern fields were also fairly quiet, with just a small group of rooks Corvus frugilegus and jackdaws Corvus monedula foraging on the newly ploughed fields, and a spirited male skylark Alauda arvensis singing high above Field 4 as always. For the first time in a few visits, no yellowhammer Emberiza citrinella were seen. 

We headed back home and were treated to a little surprise, with a lone female siskin Spinus spinus on the bird feeder in the back garden; a first for our garden. I managed the record shot below through the back door glass. 

This siskin sighting made me think how easily certain garden birds can go under the radar. It was only after 20 seconds or so of watching the feeder that I realised we had an unusual visitor. On first impression the female siskin can appear quite nondescript, but the notched tail, small size and streaked plumage are more obvious with a good view. I'll certainly be keeping my eyes peeled for her in the coming days.