28 APRIL 2025 – SOUTHERN COUNTRY PARK (SCP)

I hadn’t been to SCP for a while, so I thought I’d try and see if any migrant birds had come in. Due to mobility issues, it took me just shy of an hour to walk there from my house in Bishop’s Stortford, arriving at 010.00 hours, with the sound of Reed Warbler echoing over the reedbeds, though surprisingly no Sedge Warbler, which I expected to hear first (as they usually arrive earlier). But it took me a while to locate the Reed Warbler to reeds along the boardwalk at the northern end of the lake.

One had to be very patient of course, so once the bird was located, I was ready with my camera, But the Reed Warbler remained stubbornly hidden as its song reverberated loudly over the reeds. Then, suddenly, at the rear of the reedbed, a movement; and then the bird moved to a small willow, where it continued to sing, without revealing itself fully. This went on for around 20 minutes, until the bird moved to the reeds again, but this time much higher up, so I could see the bird properly, and could try and get some decent images through my lens. Eventually, with around 40 images I managed to get some decent results, as the following shots hopefully convey.

Away from the boardwalk (where it didn’t seem likely that Sedge Warblers were in fact present) reedbeds along the eastern edge of the lake revealed another Reed Warbler, with a rather shy Sedge Warbler singing nearby, which eventually showed itself. A male Cetti’s Warbler sang nearby too, though of course, photography just wasn’t on the cards.

Strangely, I didn’t catch the song of any Blackcaps (though surely, they were in), with only the occasional scratching song of Common Whitethroats in places. A single Chiffchaff was heard, but nothing other than a single Robin; Blue Tits; Great Tits, and a single Long-tailed Tit was seen. Rooks and Jackdaws were feeding amongst the Daisies and Cowslips in the wildflower meadow. As the morning progressed and the warm spring sunshine beat down, many Small Whites; Orange Tips and a couple of Large White; a Peacock Butterfly and a single Red Admiral were seen; then later Brimstones became more profuse, which included my very first Brimstone Moth.

I wanted to try for Yellowhammers, which had sadly declined in numbers in recent years; so I made for farm fields towards Mathams Pit (a small private fishing lake) where I’d seen a pair in the past two years, and eventually, was lucky to see a male and a female (though they weren’t paired up) in different locations - although photography was extremely difficult. Up towards St, James’s Church, I was hoping to see Yellow Wagtails and/or Northern Wheatears but was disappointed in that regard. There were no hirundines either, or no obvious movement of Sand Martins observed here in 2024 (though, maybe it was a tad too early in the season). At the Church - where I took a welcome rest on a seat in the graveyard (which was full of delightful spring flowers) I saw an adult Mistle Thrush - the first ‘local’ one I’d seen this year; and nearby my first view this year of a male Blackcap singing vociferously from a hawthorn bush.

So, nothing exceptional in the five hours I was out, but I was really pleased with some of the shots of the Reed Warbler in particular.

REED WARBLER