Having finished a peice of coursework, due in later this week, I found some time for a quick walk at Figham Common. What a bright sunny day it was too, but a wintery breeze finally brought some seasonal temperatures. I only had an hour an a half; from 2-3.30pm but there were plenty of birds around. However, the common is very muddy, there aren’t really any proper paths other than along the river, so decent boots are a good idea or you end up with cold, wet feet – like I did.

The first bird I spotted was a Barn Owl, hunting over the rushy part of the common. Figham seems to be a good place for this species, I’ve seen at least one here on all but one visit. As it neared a clump of trees a flock of about 60 Fieldfares flushed out and flew away making a racket. Just a little further along a male Stonechat sat on a fence post and was shortly joined by a female.

Unfortunately, the pasturemasters seem intent on keeping the common drained, I’m not really sure why, there are only a few cattle grazed here in the summer, and where tractors have been used to dig drainage channels it is difficult to pass without ending up to your knees in mud.

I crossed to the western section of Figham where there is very wet pasture, some scrub and a small rushy reedbed (actually it’s greater reedmace). Loads of birds here – hundreds of Redwings and Greenfinches feeding on hawthorn and these were joined by a Goldcrest. Heading towards the wettest area I heard a Treecreeper calling from a lone, and very stunted, hawthorn in the middle of a very boggy area. After some time I finally saw it, having thought that I must be mistaken – surely it could have found some better trees around to creep around on? There are some decent beech trees a few hundred metres away, they would have been much more suitable.

At the reedmace patch 15 Teal and about 35 Snipe were flushed – there always seem to be lots of snipe here – and a large female Sparrowhawk flew overhead. Not much else on the way back, just a Meadow Pipit and a first winter Reed Bunting, although there were more excellent views of the Barn Owl which didn’t seem to mind me being there.

A few Herring Gulls were calling overhead but I was too busy unsticking myself from the mud and trying to untangle myself from thorns and barbed wire to bother to take more than a quick glance.

As usual for my birdwatching walks near Beverley, I was the only person there. I guess the other birders are out somewhere better!