A blustery 16°C start today, with 20 mph winds making it feel closer to 14°C. Headed down Foxy Lane, passing a yellow Labrador under the pines before skirting the recreation ground, where a massive flock of about 50 rooks were busy feeding.

Reached the cemetery road to the usual soundtrack of a Pitbull Terrier barking in its garden, then slipped through the cemetery gates. My arrival sent a magpie and a nearby blackbird packing, leaving the grass verges to a mix of corvids and wood pigeons. Up at the top field, another flock of pigeons and corvids scattered instantly. Turning back, I watched a lone herring gull put on a masterclass in gliding overhead, while a tiny dunnock darted into the safety of a hedge.

Walked past the leisure centre—where six feral pigeons were billing and cooing on the roof—and noticed a lone foxglove along the road had finally gone to seed. Over at the town football ground, I paused to photograph a great mixed avian flock of ten rooks, three gulls, and a couple of wood pigeons. Near the playground, sparrows were diving in and out of the hawthorn and elderberry shrubs.

Exchanged greetings with a lady walking a black Labrador just as the walk wrapped up. The absolute highlight, though, was waiting for me right at home: a beautiful red-legged partridge pecking around our own garden borders!

The Stats
Distance: 1.94 miles
Time: 42 minutes
Google Fit: 24 heart points
Sighting of the Day: The garden-visiting red-legged partridge

Copyright ©️ Text, photographs and videos Written by John Yeo – All rights reserved.