Wednesday 31st December 2025: Crossbills at Sherwood Rough

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 It was a cold and frosty morning as we set out today, with thick mist shrouding the river. This lingered for most of our journey, and we began to doubt the prospects of seeing anything on our planned walk from Fairmile Bottom. However, just a few minutes from our destination, we left the fog behind, arriving in beautiful sunshine, with blue skies overhead. The ground was crisp underfoot, as we crunched across leaves edged in silvery frost. 

The birding was slow, and the woods seemed quiet, but we gradually notched up a few species, including Goldcrest and several Nuthatches, the main birds singing today. As we reached the top of the ridge, we scanned the tops of the conifers for Hawfinch or Crossbill. Approaching the pool, I saw movement in the treetops, and we were thrilled to discover at least three Crossbills feeding on the pine cones, including two glorious, red males and a green female. This was a new annual tick for us, so it was fantastic to have such brilliant views. We watched them for several minutes, feeding acrobatically, before continuing on our way.

  The walk was very enjoyable, despite the cold and limited bird activity, but several Marsh Tits showed well and a female Kestrel perched in a tree. It was a great way to end our birding year!

My final tally for UK birds was 223, the third time I've achieved this total, but never managing to beat it! Highlights for the year included a local Bluethroat at Brooklands in Lancing, the Alpine Accentor in Cornwall in April, and Black Grouse in Wales in May. But best of all, was the new interest in birding from my daughter and granddaughter, and some great shared experiences, visiting nature reserves in Wales, walking on their local heath and showing them our local birds on riverside walks. I'm looking forward to next year!

Crossbill (not taken today)


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