November 2020
Amphibians and Reptiles
No sightings reported during November.
Birds
Fieldfare – 1-2 flying
over Cambridge Road, and several reports of small numbers along ORC and Roman
Road. Redwing – five reports of
1-3 birds on LSA and ORC.
Blackcap – male seen
feeding on fruit along ORC.
Lapwing – single bird
over Roman Road on 6th.
Kingfisher – along the
river in Sluice Wood on 10th – the first for some time.
Stonechat – pair seen
along Roman Road near Hildersham, perching on high vegetation early one morning
(14th)
Cormorant – single bird
seen flying over LSA on 2nd.
Garden birds: larger
numbers of birds seen on garden feeders this month:
Goldfinch – regular flocks of 4-8
in several gardens, with smaller numbers (2-4) of Greenfinch and Chaffinch
also reported regularly.
Coal Tit – 1-2 regularly in
Cambridge Road garden, one on LSA, and unusually one in Lewis Crescent garden.
Occasional flocks of Long-tailed Tit, and regular Great Tit and Blue
Tit.
Blackbird – starting to be seen regularly
again in gardens, feeding on berries and windfall fruit, also in larger numbers
in hedgerows along ORC and LSA. Occasional
report of Song Thrush. Robin
and Dunnock also regularly seen in small numbers.
Goldcrest – one
reported being a little dazed after hitting a window on GP, recovering quickly,
and one on LSA.
Bullfinch – pair along
ORC and on Roman Road.
Yellowhammer – flock of
15-20 flitting around hawthorn hedge near AbPkFm. Linnet - similarly flocks of 10-50 near
AbPkFm, and on LSA and Roman Road. Corn
Bunting – several birds on LSA and along Roman Road, one heard briefly
singing on sunny day.
Skylark – several reports
of c20 chasing each other around and singing over fields near AbPkFm. Meadow
Pipit – c10 on LSA on 23rd.
Great Spotted Woodpecker – regularly
recorded in High Street, LA garden and a pair on feeders in Lewis Crescent. Green
Woodpecker – recently returned to Cambridge Road garden.
Tawny Owl – several reports
of calls during the night, and at dawn – including a very nice recording of one
on Bourn Bridge Road.
Buzzard – several reports,
mostly from along ORC and on LSA. Kestrel
- occasional reports from Cambridge Road, ORC and Roman Road. Sparrowhawk
– female seen hunting in 1-2 gardens, and several other reports of males from Cambridge
Road, Lewis Crescent, West Field and ORC.
Jay – regularly
1-2, and occasionally 3 in Lewis Crescent garden, usually recovering acorns but
also under bird feeders. Magpie –
1-2 regularly reported from several gardens.
Mallard – family of
grown young and an adult near Millennium Bridge, as well as a single Moorhen.
Little Egret – one reported
on river in Sluice Wood on 23rd, and again on recreation ground (29th)
Great Black-backed Gull – large flock
of 50-100 feeding in field along Roman Road during potato harvesting.
Black-headed
Gull – unusually large flock 70+ on Perse playing fields (18th and 28th).
Butterflies,
Bees and other insects
November was
a month with few invertebrates, with only 15 reports in total.
The weather
was very variable with a lot of rain and a few sunny, warmer days, very little
frost
Red Admiral - 2; Peacock - 2; Brimstone - 2;
Common Darter – 2
Seen
on sunny warmer days:
Buff-tailed bumblebee- 2; White-tailed
bumblebee – 2; Honey bee – 1
Hibernating
for the winter:
7-spot Ladybird - 1; Harlequin Ladybird - 1
Mammals
Bat – none
reported this month. They have probably
finally hibernated.
Fallow deer – one
spotted on ORC on 1st, and 10 seen on LSA on 23rd.
Fox – dog fox
seen near the Millennium Bridge on 23rd.
Hare – one seen
on ORC on 1st and 2 seen on LSA on 23rd.
Hedgehog – no more
reports this month, probably hibernating.
Muntjac – one seen
on ORC on 1st, a young one seen in a High St garden on 8th and 13th, an again in a garden in Cambridge Rd on 23rd, and one
seen near Pampisford Rd on 25th.
Flora & Fungi
A few fungi reported this month, provisionally identified as Peeling
Oysterling, Sepia Webcap and Fragile Brittlegill.
Rivercare
A certain amount of
debris was brought down by wind and rain early in November, but the heavy river
flow has cleaned out our section making the gravel more visible. There were
small trees fallen from both sides of the river by Lagden's Grove, with some
very large logs also stuck at Bourn Bridge. I advised the EA and the latter
have gone. Granta Park promised to remove the fallen tree on their side.
Weather
The total rainfall for
the month was 29.5 mm and the lowest temperature was minus 2.2 degrees C on the
23rd of the month and the highest 18.3 degrees on the 1st of November. We had a
couple of frosty spells but nothing significant and apart from a windy spell early
in the month it was remarkably calm.
Many thanks to all those who contributed
reports of their sightings for November 2020:
Peter
Brunning, Anne Dunbar-Nobes, David Farrant, Gaynor Farrant, Robin Harman, Jennifer
Hirsh, E Jones, D Kumararatne, Len Mead, Andy Merryweather, E Miller, Gill
Smith, John Turner, Derek Turnidge
Please email your sightings, within the
Abington parishes, to the relevant ANW Recorder:
Amphibians
and Reptiles: Anne Dunbar Nobes ac.dunbar.nobes@gmail.com
Birds: Derek
Turnidge derek@turnidges.com
Butterflies, Bees etc: Jennifer
Hirsh jennifer@hirsh.com
Mammals: Gill
Smith richardandgill.smith@live.co.uk
Flora: Currently vacant - if
interested, please contact David Farrant for more details.
Abbreviations:
GA – Great Abington, LA – Little Abington, LSA – Land Settlement Association,
GP – Granta Park, ORC – Old Railway Cutting. AbPkFm – Abington Park Farm
and the river was just about topping its banks by the village bridge [photo PB], 
