No Muntjac Deer but Great Spotted Woodpeckers a plenty

I decided to head towards the Midlands today, as the morning was clear and the sun was out. The hide I visit is located on the edge of a mixed woodland, and today my main target was Muntjac Deer. There are a small group in the area, so there's a reasonable chance of seeing one or more. It has been a little while since I've seen the adult male so I wanted to give it a go. 

The drive up through Gloucestershire was pleasant and I passed lots of buzzards in the fields feeding. If I could have stopped, I would have taken advantage of a couple of male pheasants fighting close to the edge of the field but no suitable place to pull over, so I pressed onward to the hide. 

When I arrived at about 9.30 am the sun was low and shining straight into the wood. As I approached the location I put up a few Fieldfares and lots of Chaffinches. While I was getting my gear ready there were 4 Great Spotted Woodpeckers and a few Blackbirds. Over the next few hours I took advantage of the Woodpeckers, as the deer were not showing. I did get my hopes up when the buck started to bark nearby but he didn't come into the open. A couple of Grey Squirrels were busy rooting about, along with Red-legged Partridge, Nuthatch, Coal Tits, Great Tits, Blue tits and a  chatty flock of Long-tailed Tits flew by but did not stop. 

Great Spotted Woodpecker - Male

A Gold Crest made a appearance, but did not show in the open too well so missed out on the photos of her. It seems this pair is now showing most days, so I'll keep trying to get them over the coming weeks. 

Great Spotted Woodpecker - Female

I am 99% sure a Willow Tit showed briefly and if it was it would be the first at this location. I will be keeping my eye out in the future as it would be fantastic for Willow Tits to be returning to this wood. Other sightings included, Collard Dove, Stock Dove, Buzzard and the Sparrowhawk flew past. A stunning Song Thrush was preasant for some time, however kept to the shadows so clearly didn't want to give any photo opportunities!


Blackbird - Young Male

Over all a pleasant few hours, even though my main target was missed on this occasion.