The lower than usual numbers of waders passing through the county this late summer/early autumn has been disappointing, probably due to the weather being so kind to them as most simply overflew in the fine high pressure conditions that dominated for long periods.
Good counts of wheatears and redstarts were recorded but generally things have been quiet. A rather exciting exception was the yellow-browed warbler found by Oxford Ornithological Society member Adam Hartley on his local patch at Port Meadow. Adam initially identified this tiny bird from its high-pitched call before eventually spotting it in a hedgerow. Due to the birding skills of Adam, many Oxon birders were able to enjoy the sight of this wren-sized bird more familiarly at home in Siberian-type habitat.
This was the first decent sighting since 2003 for Oxfordshire and across the country reports mirrored our own experience.
Distinguished by its broad yellow supercilium above a dark eye stripe it often keeps company with blue, great and long-tailed tits another super little bird it can sometimes be found in the company of is the goldcrest.
You can keep in touch with the birdlife on Port Meadow through Adam’s blog Port Meadow Birding.
Birds that are currently either just moving through the county from their Scandinavian summer home, or most likely staying longer to feast themselves on the bounteous berry harvest that our hedgerows have this year produced, are fieldfare and redwing, these are often referred to as the winter thrushes as they are indeed close relatives of the more familiar blackbird, song and mistle thrush that we often encounter.
Another thrush-like bird the county always records at this time of year is the ‘blackbird wearing a necklace’, the ring ouzel.
With luck, the strikingly spectacular waxwing will again honour and excite us with its presence in the county, this is a bird that relies heavily for its food source on the many rowan trees that the gardens and public places of Oxfordshire have planted over the years.