Sailing Lake: Marsh Tit, 2+ Siskins, 2+ Bullfinches.

A1 South Pit: drake leucistic Gadwall.

A pair of house sparrows at the VC garden, + reed buntings, dunnocks, lt tits etc. Male sparrowhawk.

Sailing Lake: 70 bh gulls, 14 mute swans, 20 coots, 2 pochards, 1 goldeneye, 1 rc pochard drake, 5 gc grebes.

Heronry North/Heron Trail: redhead Smew; Marsh Tit at Snake Pit feeding station.

Weedy Pit: 40 Wigeon, 20 Gadwall, 12 Tufted Ducks, 6 coots & Kingfisher.

Diddington Pit: 8 Barnacle Geese, Bar-headed Goose, drake Pintail.

Other sightings: 3 Shelduck, c.700 Golden Plover, 4 Redshank, 2 adult Yellow-legged Gulls.

Heronry North: redhead Smew, Kingfisher.

Washout Pit: drake Goosander, Snipe, 2 Treecreepers.

Island Pit: redhead Smew, Gadwall x Mallard hybrid(?), Sparrowhawk.

Boughton Lodge Farm: 8 Barnacle Geese, Bar-headed Goose.

Other sightings: Little Egret, 4 Shelduck, 7 Red-legged Partridge, Jack Snipe, 2 Redshank

Drake and redhead Smew on Heronry South.

3 Smew (inc. 1 drake) on Heronry North.

36+ Yellowhammers around arable fields today.

3 red-crested pochards, peregrine, 8 barnacle geese, water rail near KF hide (GR)
Main lakes (not Diddington or Pumphouse); 187 tufted ducks, 206 wigeon, 3 GS woodpeckers, 3 lesser BB gulls, 4 common gulls, 60 goldeneyes, 10 shovelers, 2 reed buntings, 7 bullfinches, 121 pochards, 3 fieldfares, 92 lapwings, 1 siskin. (Terry Brown)

Treecreepers, little egret, fm stonechat, (Chris + Maria)

Kestrel (Great Meadow and Arable), Little egret in the Great Meadow. (Peter W)

Peregrine, Redshank, 2 Shelduck, pos. Lesser spotted woodpecker (heard only) across the river from Island Pit. (MD, JW and NP)

12 yellowhammers on arable, long tailed tits (6), buzzard, teal (12)

Weedy Pit: Red-crested pochard (pair) and about 30 widgeon + gopldeneye, pochard tufted duck and GC grebe.
Heronry: Little Egret in cormorant roost.
Arable: c30 yellowhammers.

Sailing Lake: Male & female Red-crested Pochard.

Diddington Pit: Female Pintail, 1+ (possibly 6) Grey Partridge, Snipe.

Other sightings: Shelduck, Redshank, Yellow-legged Gull.

Heron Trail: Bullfinches, marsh tit, fieldfare, reed bunting, long-tailed tit, goldeneyes, pochards, tufted ducks etc. Singing great tits and dunnocks. Herons and cormorants on nests.

Heronry North: Female Smew, Goldeneye, Shoveler, Pochard, Teal, Wigeon.
Meadow trail: Buzzard, kestrel (2), bullfinches, goldcrest.

Shovelers flying about in pairs (eg Cloudy Pit)
Male smew on Heronry South + little egret, reed bunting and GS woodpecker.

Female smew (redhead) and 8 goldeneye on heronry north. 6 teal, two moorhens and two herons on Heronry South. 12 yellowhammers on the arable and two marsh tits at the snakepits feeder. 6 fieldfares and two redwings, sparrowhawk, kestrel and several bullfinches near the centre.

Milder, brighter conditions today with brisk South-westerly winds, however most pits remain largely frozen.

Diddington Pit: 4 Little Grebes, 3 Dark-bellied Brent Geese in field SW of the Pit, 400 Greylag Geese, Bar-headed Goose, 1000+ Wigeon, 500 Teal, redhead Smew, c.300 Coots, Buzzard, Peregrine, Dunlin, 15 Snipe.

A1 North Pit: 2 Red-crested Pochards (1 drake), 3 Snipe.

Sailing Lake: c.20 Siskins feeding in Alders.

Heronry North: Water Rail in ditch opposite Peter's Field.

Today we are frozen up again with just a few holes in the ice. (Highest day time temperature minus 2deg C) Goldeneye and a little grebe on river. Other birds included treecreeper, 2 red-crested pochards on Island Pit which also held wigeon, teal and pochard in good numbers. Fieldfares presently outnumber redwings on the site. Great tits singing in several places.

On the 8th the list for the Diddington Pit included 500 wigeon, 300 teal, 100 coots, 6 dunlin, gadwalls, pochards, mallards, tufted ducks, Great-crested Grebe (2), 3 dark-bellied brent geese, 1 bar-headed goose, 2 barnacle geese, 300+greylags. There was a flock of linnets on the finger island and about 12 pied wagtails.The Sailing Lake has been very rewarding this week with 6 Bewick's swans until Wednesday night and good numbers of wigeon (60+), shoveller (40+) and diving ducks.

On the 7th a woodcock flew past the VC at dusk, there was a pair of stonechats behind Lafarge and there was a water rail in the Hayling Ditch.

On the 6th 6 Bewick's Swans, 60 wigeon, 40 shovellers, 2 snipe, 8 moorhens and gadwall, tufted ducks and coots.

On the 5th a flock of siskins flew over the sailing lake.

On the 4th woodcock, male smew, 3 dunlin, 41 snipe, water rail, bullfinches, little grebe, treecreepers, song thrush, goldeneyes, teal, pochards, coots, cormorants breeding, yellowhammers, little grebe on river, fieldfares, redwings and herons. Goldcrest and kingfisher at the moorings.

Heronry Pits: Little Egret, 3 Smew (including a drake), Kingfisher

Island Pit: 3 Red-crested Pochards (1 drake), 3 flyover Goosanders (inc. 2 drakes), Buzzard and a roosting Barn Owl

Washout Pit: Water Rail calling

other sightings: 3 Dark-bellied Brent Geese, Shelduck, Sparrowhawk, 2 Buzzards, Peregrine (flew north), 2 Dunlin, Jack Snipe, Woodcock, Green Sandpiper, 1st winter Yellow-legged Gull, Kingfisher, Chiffchaff

At least 43 species seen on the reserve by lunchtime. The smew were the highlights, but we also saw two stonechats on the set-aside and a marsh tit at Wray House Farm.

Heronry Pits: 3 Smew (1 drake), Marsh Tit

Great Meadow: 2 Stonechats

Island Pit: 3 Red-crested Pochards (1 drake)

other sightings: 3 Dark-bellied Brent Geese, 4 Snipe, Jack Snipe, 3 Dunlin, 2 Chiffchaffs.