Forest mini-trip
No sooner had we started walking into the woods on a beautiful Sunday morning than a Goshawk appeared low over the canopy before disappearing. It was a large bird, making it a female. Another sighting soon followed — this time a male!
We heard Siskins singing and a Great Spotted Woodpecker drumming, and soon came across Marsh Tits feeding in pairs as we walked the trails. We managed to hear the distant songs of Woodlark and Mistle Thrush, while getting decent views of some of the calling Goldcrests.
One thing in our favour was the beaming sunshine now hitting the branches and tempting Treecreepers, Nuthatches and Siskins into view as we retraced our steps.
Raising the binoculars at a familiar shape high in the trees revealed that it was indeed a Lesser Spotted Woodpecker! We had a couple of minutes of viewing as the female bird picked over a few different trees and delivered its piercing 'kee-kee-kee' call.