RAW... probably

A nice icy start, very slippy roads as I drove down to Warkworth to meet Stewart. We started at Warkworth Picnic site and just walked down the hill to the Old Water Pools. Very quiet, no sign of last weeks Kingfisher, the pool had a thin film of ice so no doubt this bird was elsewhere on the estuary where a more brackish pool would be ice free.

So a quiet walk, Stonechat pair, Redwing, Song Thrush, Blackbird, odd finches feeding on Sea Buckthorn and Rose hips, Greenfinch, Chaffinch, Goldfinch.

A few small flocks of Pink Footed Geese flew over heading south. The river and estuary seemed quiet too, Whooper Swans were still in fields at the bottom of Beal Bank.

By the time we got to Amble Harbour the sun was a bit stronger and the light was nice.. we finished the morning with a wander up the River Coquet from the Warkworth Road bridge returning past Warkworth Castle, riverside Ewe trees were full of berries and Redwing, Song Thrush and Mistle Thrush were feeding on them, a single male Black cap was also seen.

Harbour Gulls

Goosander, River Coquet 

Distant but Reflective Grey Heron

Later in the day a Barn Owl was hunting fields at Low Buston and two Redpoll were feeding on roadside seed heads.