Henry's Wildlife and Nature

 Today we went on a new path and saw ducks, geese and cormorants. Common Shelduck These ducks can get up to 65cm, bigger than a Mallard but smaller than a goose. They eat invertebrates, small shellfish and aquatic snails. The have a wingspan of 1.33m and weigh 1.4kg. Their conservation status is amber and there are around 15,000 breeding pairs in the UK although there are 61,000 wintering in the UK. They are recognisable with their red beak, that is how we could tell it wasn't a gull. Canada Geese Canada geese can get up to 110cm in length and have a distinctive black neck. As the name would suggest, they are originally from North America and now you can see them almost everywhere in the UK. There are around 62,000 breeding pairs in the UK which increases to 190,000 birds in the winter. Cormorant When this Cormorant flew over, it reminded me of a Pterodactyl. It's long neck makes it look like it's wings are far back on its body. They are often found near the coast and water

The other day, I saw some small brown birds flying about in a field by the bridge were we see the Heron. I looked closely and saw it had some red on its head. I thought it was either a Linnet or a Lesser Redpoll. I went back the next day with my camera and took a few photos. Once I got home I had a look in my bird books and decided they were Lesser Redpolls! Lesser Redpoll Lesser Redpolls are a member of the finch family, although they are less well known and are a more unusual visitor to your garden. They are 11.5cm in length and are only slightly bigger than a blue tit. They have a streaked brown body, a red forehead and a black bib. You usually see them in flocks and they're often with Siskins. They will visit gardens and hang upside down on your bird feeders. Their conservation status is red and there are 220,000 breeding pairs in the UK. There was a time when there were just know as Redpolls but now they're split into the Common Redpoll, which nest in Europe and visit the

My luck is just getting better! On Monday, we went for a walk just by our house and in the distance I saw what looked like a bird of prey. We waited until it came closer, and it was a Red Kite! I took a lot of photos and I was amazed when it flew a few metres above my head. Red Kite I was just getting over the excitement of the Red Kite when a Buzzard flew just a few metres over my head as well! Buzzard We have seen both these birds locally before but never so close. Fingers crossed we will see more of them as the weather is getting better. We've only ever seen one Red Kite at a time but I have seen as many as three Buzzards flying together.