The first highlight of the month came on the 4th when a migrating tree pipit stopped off for a few minutes at the top of a tree along the woodland trail. This species is sometimes picked up by expert birders passing over based on its flight call, but this is the first time for over five years one has been seen perched here.

We usually get one or two records of stonechat here each year, most often in early spring or late autumn. We were lucky enough to get two birds this October, firstly a female (above) on the 10^th and then a male (below) on the 18^th. Typically for the species, the birds were here for most of the day but gone by the following morning.

The 18^th was one of several foggy mornings through the month and the male stonechat wasn’t the only surprise that day. Visibility was very poor early in the morning but once the fog lifted, a pair of mandarin ducks were revealed in the middle of the reservoir. This species is scarce here, with several years usually passing between visits, and they are usually only short-stayers. The pair soon departed once visibility improved.

The 19^th was another fairly murky morning, with another big surprise. A cattle egret (below) was seen flying around over the lagoons and New River, seemingly looking to land, but was soon spotted by the local black-headed gulls. After a bit of chasing, the egret departed to the northeast. This was only the third record of this species here, with all three having been in the last two years. This reflects the national status of the species, which is on a steep upward curve and they have even been breeding in the UK for a few years now.

A lot of gulls arrive in the UK in October and we often get some of the more unusual species here. Great black-backed gulls have been very thin on the ground this year but we had a first-winter bird on the 1^st. An adult yellow-legged gull (below) was seen several times towards the end of the month.

Meadow pipits were seen and heard passing over occasionally through the month, with jackdaws being slightly more numerous with small flocks passing over a handful of times. Redwing passage started on the 12^th and they were then seen and heard most days for the rest of the month, with the biggest flock being around thirty birds.

The total number of bird species seen here in October 2024 was 64, the highest total since the 68 species of October 2020.