Being the meteorological first day of Winter I thought it would be nice to have a walk around Conningbrook Lakes this morning.
The Weather forecast was for it to cloud over at 10am and as the last two nights have produced below freezing temperatures, I wrapped up with four layers.
Needless to say they got it wrong and clear blue sunny skies prolonged all day – I was boiling !

The Eco Lake was pretty much frozen over with no birds on or around it but the main lake was very busy; Greylags, Shovelers, Tufted Ducks and Pochards were the main stay with a sprinkling of Great Crested Grebes and Gadwalls.

      
Pochard – Male Tufted Ducks – Pied Wagtail

Very noticeable was the lack of small birds about, just Long Tailed Tits, Wrens, Blackbirds and every one’s favourite, the Robin ! I did mis-time a photo of a Pied Wagtail though. As often the case, getting a shot of a bird taking off is quite accidental !

Look out for Hedgehogs

The very mild Autumn has bought about a bit of a nightmare situation for many Hedgehogs. Many have been born quite late and will not have had time to get themselves up to the necessary weight for hibernation, 600 grams.

Should you see any Hedgehog walking about now, please report this to a local RSPCA or The Hedgehog Protection Society. They should be safely tucked away by now and any still out and about have little chance of survival.

More on Hedgehogs here on the main web site