Another Visit to Brueton Park and Parkridge NR

I gave my son a lift into Solihull Town Centre at lunchtime today but there was method in my madness as it gave me a good excuse to visit Brueton and Parkridge again!

The birds by the main pool are remarkably tame as they come looking for food. It reminded me of a few years ago when we used to get regular visits from a pair of mallard who took a liking to our garden pond. One year they stayed around for several weeks and used to waddle up to the garage door looking for food. I got that worried about the children feeding them bread that I bought a bag of proper "duck" food from the wild bird food supplier I use. It was interesting that they completely turned their beaks up at this and refused point blank to eat it. Lurking somewhere at the bottom of the dustbin I bought to store bird food is a huge bag of this duck food! Sadly, its probably well out of date otherwise I would take some next time I visit Brueton to see what the ducks there thought of it!

To return to today... Some more photos of

Greylag Goose (and Mallard)

Mallard

Canada Goose

Moorhen

I popped into the Warwickshire Wildlife Trust reserve at Parkridge where there's a surprise round every corner!

A Grey Heron was still standing sentinel by the pool - even further away this time. Too far for the 70-300mm lens so a heavily cropped record shot.

I had a rather nice slice of Ginger cake in the cafe at the Visitor Centre.

Autumn colours are starting to appear

and I saw several jays collecting acorns as I walked round the park.

Ducks and Geese at Brueton

I've wanted to revisit Brueton Park and Parkridge Nature Area since I first visited last winter. Finally, returned one afternoon last week and this time took the camera.

There's a large pool near the car park where the ducks and geese are very tame and its a good place to practise bird photography.

Usually the only editing I do to my photographs is occasional cropping but on the first 3 photos below I have adjusted the brightness and contrast slightly - not sure if its an improvement on the original though!

Canada Geese



Mallard (female)



Drake mallard looking as though its coming out of its eclipse plumage



Moorhen



Juvenile Moorhen



Drake Mallard







Greylag Geese









I then went a walk around Parkridge Nature Area (a small Warwickshire Wildlife Trust Reserve and Visitor Centre) comprising woodland, an arboretum and pool.

There were quite a few Speckled Wood around



and an interesting looking bug house



I saw a few birds - coot, mallard, blackbird, a flock of long-tailed, blue and great tits and the highlight was a treecreeper. A grey heron posed motionlessly on the pool. Too far away for the 70 - 300mm lens so just a couple of record shots.





Malvern Pool




Today we went out blackberrying locally - won't reveal exactly where as we saw what looked like an active badger sett in woodland and no doubt the badger killing could well come to Warwickshire once the badger populations in bTB hotspots have been decimated.

We managed to fill a large icecream container with blackberries - certainly picked far more than last year when we left it rather late. Once washed and frozen they will keep us going through quite a few Apple and Blackberry Crumbles and Pies through the winter :)

There were loads of Red Admirals, Commas and Speckled Woods and the most dragonflies I have seen all summer.

Exploring New Reserves

Due to a combination of lack of time still and the cost of petrol, I've been considering visiting more local reserves especially those that I regularly drive past on my journeys.

Yesterday I had promised to pick up David from Solihull Town Centre at 1.00 p.m. so I left home 90 minutes early and stopped off at Malvern and Brueton Parks. The area of parkland near the town centre is more formal but further away the park is managed more for wildlife. I must admit although I drive past all the time this is the first time I have ever actually visited.

I was dressed in that many layers that I had problems driving the car let alone walk and I fear I may have resembled the Michelin Man as I waddled rather than walked round! Sorry no photos, for various reasons, I just took a pair of binoculars and left the camera and lenses at home.

Leaving the car park there was a lake which was completely frozen over and it was very amusing watching moorhen, mallard, canada geese, coot and black-headed-gulls "skating" around. I really wished I had brought the camera.

I had only planned to visit the Parkridge Centre - a small Warwickshire Wildlife Trust reserve, but I got side-tracked by Brueton Park LNR which is owned and managed by Solihull Council. The conservation area covers around 75 acres and the River Blythe, which is a Site of Special Scientific Interest, passes through. The rest of the habitat comprises a lake, small pools, woodland, old hedgerows, grassland, marsh and a small reedbed. As I walked along a boardwalk on the marshy area I managed on several occasions to get really close to a grey heron (again I wished I had the camera) as it stared at small frozen pools fruitlessly looking for food.

There were plenty of magpies, wood pigeons and carrion crows around and a walk through the woodland produced redwings galore, jays, foraging grey suirrels, flocks of long-tailed and great tits, blackbirds, wren and the highlight of the whole walk a nuthatch foraging along tree trunks and logs.

I just had time left for a very quick visit and walk around the WWLT Parkridge Reserve




Its only small but has a nice mix of habitats - a woodland trail, pool , arboretum and a wildlife garden. I shall definitely return as there was also a geology trail which looks fascinating. Lots of commoner species of birds around again - robin, magpie, jay, blackbird, blue and great tits.

Nuthatch and moorhen were new species for the 2012 list.

Earlier in the morning I had stopped off at Millennium Wood - dozens of redwings were searching through leaf litter under trees right next to the car park. This time I had got the camera but with the wrong lens on! I don't think I have ever seen so many redwings around locally as there are this year.

The reason for taking the camera was a few more pics of the "Fairy Door" as there are several new additions. Sorry to any regular visitors who may by now getting totally bored with any mention of this door!

A rather angry, sinister looking gingerbread man!



and what looks like a crystal (or is it a light??) and a solar-powered squirrel light (I think!)



To be honest I think its all a bit over the top now! I much preferred it when there was just a door handle and letterbox. I wonder if its the same person adding the adornments or if someone else is now involved. The recent additions don't seem in keeping with the original decorations.


The cold weather (-7.9 degrees centigrade recorded overnight) is bringing more birds into the garden, the pair of stock dove returned to feed today and long-tailed tits (which only rarely visit the feeders) were eating fat balls this morning. Another irregular garden visitor - a mistle thrush was bathing in the part of the pond which remains unfrozen. As I type the forecasted snow has just arrived!