Saturday 29th March 2014

   Return to Forest of Dean after a late start, due to rain. after a few bits & bobs, and normal Forest birds, we went to Brierley, to look for Willow Tit. Found a pair of Long-tailed Tits building a nest in some Gorse, then the call i had been listening for...Willow Tit. A couple of calls more, drew me to a Hawthorn, only to see the bird fly out and into the Pines. It sat out in the open, but no camera! Went back for it, only for the bird to disappear.

   Got back to the car, and looked at the pager. Two Taiga Bean Geese in Worcestershire, but where was this place. A look at the map, and it was maybe an hour away, so time to move. An hour later, almost exactly, we had found the lake area. Now to walk the footpath to the lake, where the birds had been seen last. After talking to some birders, when i had got near to the lake, they said the birds had flown back to the field back along the track. So, back i go along the track. There were no geese there when i walked down, but now there were about 20.....Greylag, Greylag, Greylag, Greylag, etc. Then there they were, one would probably have given most people the slip, nearly a fully Orange bill, unusual, but the other was a typical looking bird. Very nice, shame they were straight into the sun....but i did manage a few shots, not too brilliant, but first ones i have of this species.

Taiga Bean Geese (Pair)

   Might go back tomorrow after work, maybe.......