Local patch

Barton Clough 

It was one of those days when the sun pokes out for five minutes every so often but is otherwise dreich. The back garden was treated to cameo appearances by the usual suspects while yesterday's counts of 107 black-headed gulls and ten herring gulls on the school playing field was almost met by 98 black-headed gulls and six herring gulls today. After the heavy rains of the night I was expecting a higher number but gulls are nothing if not awkward buggers.

It being a Sunday but still my wanting to stretch my legs I decided on a wander round my local patch which turned out to be fairly quiet save for singing robins and a song thrush.

• Black-headed gull 5
• Blackbird 4
• Blue tit 5
• Carrion crow 1
• Coal tit 2
• Dunnock 1
• Feral pigeon 2
• Goldfinch 5
• Great spotted woodpecker 1
• Great tit 1
• Magpie 19
• Redwing 3
• Robin 8
• Song thrush 1
• Starling 5
• Woodpigeon 6

It was nice to see the first rabbit of the year, too.