Near the fancy birdhide at Thrupp Lake there is a board for people to write down wildlife they have seen. I did not see the ducklings somebody had spotted on 6th April.

I saw most of the usual birds: swans, geese, ducks,

and a solitary grebe. Grebe disappear underwater and reappear – often some way from where they went under. This particular grebe went under and seemed to be gone for ages.

When the grebe reappeared he had a whopper and did not let it go.

Thanks to Steve for this one. He says “My wife Daphne took this last week at Thrupp Lake (Radley Lakes). The local fishermen blame the absence of fish there on the abundance of Cormorants, but having seen this monster I think he’s to blame. It’s a Red Eared terrapin from North America. Apparently they were all the rage a few years ago during The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle craze. But when people realised how big they got they disposed of them by chucking them in rivers, lakes and ponds. They have a diet of frogs and their spawn, eels, fish, ducklings and eggs.”

Swans Making Love on the River Thames in Abingdon to the sound of St Helen’s Church Bells calling people to church.

(If the video does not play for you then click the youtube icon near the bottom right and it will play on youtube instead)

This weekend the RSPB are asking people to count birds in their gardens as part of a national survey. The winter has been mild so far.  I have read newspaper reports suggesting that as a result birds have not needed to come to gardens for emergency food and that could skew the RSPB survey results.  There are lots of  birds about in Abingdon, but not many come to our garden, but then we have a cat, and so don’t feed them.

None of these birds were seen in our garden. The chaffinch was near the River Ock.

A blackbird was nearby.

Two magpies in the Abbey Gardens.

Robins are to be heard at regular intervals along the Ock Valley Walk and the Abbey Mill Stream.

This Kingfisher did not stop long enough for me to get a clear shot but it did rest for a moment by the River Ock before speeding low along the river.