January 2021

I went out on 1st January for a few hours in the middle of the day for a typical New Year’s runaround and managed to get a decent 60-odd species. The better birds recorded were Black Redstart at Rousse, Firecrest at Le Guet, Pink-footed Goose still at Barras Lane, 6 Cattle Egret at Les Grantez (albeit giving distant views), Great Northern Diver at Vazon and a Barn Owl peeking out of the nest box at Rue des Bergers. A pretty good haul for just a few hours out in the field.

I was back to work really quickly and so just had scraps to feed on. On 6th January there were two adult Common Gulls resting on the beach at Vazon early morning and on 9th the 3 Canada Geese had returned to the Barras Lane fields to re-join the Pink-foot. On 17th I drove past a single Cattle Egret feeding with cows by the roadside near St. Saviours church and it was there again eight days later.

And that was about it from a quiet month. The only other notable wildlife seen was a Winter Moth on the school window one morning. Of course, late in the month things got even more quieter since “Lockdown 2” was suddenly sprung on us and I barely left home for the last week or so. During the last lockdown the weather was much better and it was springtime, so walks from home were a regular thing. This time it has been cold, dark and wet and so hunkering down was much the favourable option. Something I did do whilst hunkering was some close-up photography of a few of my insect specimens (see below).

Cattle Egret - Les Buttes, 17 Jan 21

Cattle Egret - Les Buttes, 17 Jan 21

Escaped male Pintail - Marais Nord, 9 Jan 21