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Crossbill - Mayday Farm - November 2020
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After yesterday's walk in the forest you'd be forgiven for thinking Mal and me simply relaxed and enjoyed a leisurely Sunday ahead of the impending lockdown. This would make you fool hardy and ill-informed. You should probably go and have a chat with yourself and question your own life choices and maybe use lockdown for some self reflection and improvement.
We actually mercilessly smashed it again, walking the Goshawk Trail at Mayday Farm. It's easy to think of this trail as a throw-back to a simpler, better time. Mountain bikers, dog walkers and runners far outnumber bird watchers now. There was just the two of us birders. The signage is hideously out of date and even slightly burnt, indeed the referenced hide was completely burnt down, years ago. Faded glory...
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Throwback sign - Mayday Farm - November 2020
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Our walk was as expected, with just a few forest species and the odd flyover Crossbill, until we hit a clearing - just south west of the telephone mast - where we hit the Crossbill motherlode:
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| Crossbills - Mayday Farm - November 2020 |
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| Crossbills - Mayday Farm - November 2020 |
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Crossbills - Mayday Farm - November 2020
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Crossbill - Mayday Farm - November 2020
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Whilst we didn't pick out any Parrot Crossbill candidates, there was a real variation in calls, sizes and bill-size in the group. These two males were in the 'larger billed' Crossbill camp:
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Crossbills - Mayday Farm - November 2020
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I love this variation when you encounter a large flock. I recall this from previous invasion years, such as 2013, when Lee and my found Parrot Crossbills at Mayday.
Lightening didn't strike twice today, but the potential is there, if we are able to get out under lockdown restrictions!
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