Wednesday, Thursday, 23rd, 24th April

Wednesday: I watched two large birds disappear over towards Burwalls, from their flight I think they were Buzzards; then, much closer above the woodland to the left of the Peregrine Watch another Buzzard was worried by the Raven family. The Ravens drove the Buzzard away down into the trees, certainly away from their valuable nestlings.
Thursday: from Sea Walls it was possible to see one of the Raven nestlings exercising its flight muscles, while at the top of one of the oaks one of the parents watched: the sun made the feathers on this large bird look like silver through my glasses. It was fascinating to watch the wing flapping from the Peregrine Watch, though difficult to see how many youngsters were in the nest - especially when the whole brood was joined by the parent birds. The parents left, and soared up over Leigh Woods, one of birds occasionally folding its wings during flight in that curious gesture that Ravens seem to have when flying with a mate. I wonder whether other watchers have commented on this?
The Kestrel appeared briefly, and flew around the trees to the left of the quarry; I did not see any sign of the Peregrines, but this may have been due to my fascination with the Ravens.

Tuesday April 22nd

The tide was high receding, and the sky grey. Over by Burwalls I had a brief view of a large bird flying away and below the trees - most likely a Buzzard, though I was hoping to see the Red Kite I heard about! A Peregrine swept past the Watch and disappeared under to the cliff; I have not seen a Peregrine over in the oaks for a couple of weeks, and soon the trees will have too much greenery to see any roosting birds. Four Magpies, four Jackdaws and a Crow squabbled behind me on the grass for scraps of bread left by someone.

Sunday 20th April

Whilst it was a very grey and misty morning, the horse chestnuts trees on Saville Road have candle-like blossoms amid their bright new greenery. On the river a high tide with very little mud, just enough under Sea Walls for a solitary Mallard. I stood at the Peregrine Watch for around twenty minutes, there were no Peregrines, but the three young Ravens were clambering and flapping around their nest - fledged and about to fly. Two Swallows sped past me towards Sea Walls, I did not see them again, the red on their chests very obvious and their short tails probably showing that they were young birds.

Thursday, Friday, 17th, 18th April

Friday: As I arrived at the Peregrine Watch and peered over the edge for the foxes, I noticed a Kestrel land in one of the ash trees beside the road, he didn't stop long, but swooped down onto the newly cut grass, there was a flutter of wings as he caught - something - probably a vole or mouse - and was off. Apart from several squadrons of Mallard, a duo of Cormorants, and numerous Seagulls, Crows and Jackdaws, a solitary Redshank, not much! The east wind was very strong and cold, so much so that I walked along part of Circular Road rather than cycle into the wind. Not a day to linger.
Thursday by contrast was sunny and only cold when the clouds passed, a small group of Redshank were feeding on the mud below Sea Walls.

Tuesday, Wednesday, 15th, 16th April

On some mornings a short stop at Sea Walls then at the Peregrine Watch has little to see, on other mornings there is a lot of activity. Tuesday and Wednesday contrasted like this. The Redshank were all lined up at the water edge on Tuesday, today they were all over the mud and I saw several flying, while a group of them bunched up at the water edge. In flight these are very elegant little birds, they fly low over the water, and the white edges to their wings, seen from above on the cliff, are attractive. Likewise the Kestrel. He was flying, rather gliding, around below the Peregrine Watch, obviously hunting. I followed him with glasses for a good five minutes until my arms tired; he skimmed the trees, landed on one, came down into a bush, then rose and hovered. The last I saw of him was high above the river towards the Suspension Bridge.

Three Cormorants flew singly downriver, another up river. Two Great Black Backed Gulls were down on the mud below, very interested in something at the water edge, they kept a Lesser Black Backed Gull and some other Gulls away from whatever interested them. In the Jackdaw Tree one bird had its mate pinned into a crook of the branches and was busy with its beak among the mate's head feathers. I'm not sure that the mate was too keen on this delousing! A flight of small birds passed, very small and with flashes of yellow, their flight was up-and-down, and they disappeared off towards the Gully. The bouncy flight shows they were probably Golfinches.

I did not see the Ravens, but may have had fleeting glimpse of a Peregrine, movement in the oaks opposite turned out to be a Grey Squirrel.

At the beginning of Circular Road, and to the right are some large trees with nests in them (5?), at one point I thought these were Rook nests, but on closer examination they seem to have Crows in them. Crows Nests!

Monday, April 14th

The blue sky of the early morning was replaced by heavy rain by the time I was passing St Ursula's on my way home! I watched it coming from Sea Walls and decided that a hasty retreat was prudent. This was a quiet morning, a dozen or so Redshank were feeding on the mud below Sea Walls, and a smaller number on the opposite bank. The waders always seem to favour the Portway side of the river. Why?

Sunday, 13th July

The Ravens were flying over Leigh Woods just before I left the Peregrine Watch this morning, the heads of their chicks are appearing just above the nest top, whilst below them there are Jackdaws in the cliff crevasses, no doubt with their nests. The Ravens don't seem to worry about the Jackdaws, I think they would if there were Crows in the vicinity, or if a Sparrow Hawk was around! I had a fleeting glimpse of the Kestrel as she came in to the trees to the right of the Peregrine Watch. Earlier, and from Sea Walls, I could see a couple of dozen Redshank lining the mud, and the Ravens sitting over in the oaks frequented by the Peregrines.