Another sunny morning saw me following up a tip about a Short-eared Owl at Figham Common, Beverley. Unfortunately I didn’t see any owls and apart from large numbers of Redwings, Fieldfares and Blackbirds, birds were a bit thin on the ground.

A few Moorhens were on the river and a single Teal and a Snipe flushed out of the vegetation as I walked along the River Hull flood wall. As I approached a small copse a Grey Heron flew out and a group of Long-tailed Tits began making a noise. The reason for this was an incoming Sparrowhawk which swerved away when it spotted me. Under the shade of the trees the morning frost persisted and set up a nice photo opportunity.

As I wandered over to a swampy corner of the common, 3 Mute Swans noisily flew over head, flying north east and a group of 5 Reed Buntings began squabbling in a small bush. I stood still for a few minutes but very little other than Redwings was to be seen although a couple of Wrens were busy in the undergrowth. Starngely enough the common was very dry and many of the birds which are attracted to the marshy patches were not present today. At a reedy patch which usually hosts dozens of Snipe and Teal, just one Snipe flew out.

I took the time to take a few photos of Figham Common; they aren’t particularly inspiring but it gives those who have never been there an idea of the type of habitat that exists there.

In a hedgerow I watched a Song Thrush preening and tried to photograph it. My efforts, however, were so feeble that I deleted them all but a little further along I did get a reasonable shot of a Cormorant sitting on a telegraph post.

Back on the main part of the common a couple of pairs of Stonechats were arguing over winter territories – this species always spends the winter here in small numbers. I also found a Mistle Thrush feeding on a patch of grass that had been cropped short by the cattle that graze on Figham. Apart from a couple of Black-headed Gulls and two flushed Pheasants I didn’t see much else before getting back to the car.