CROYDON RSPB MEMBERS' GROUP - TRIP REPORT

Conditions looked desperate when we arrived at Staines Reservoir to begin our last outing of the year - rain was lashing down and angry grey clouds completely filled the sky. Undaunted, and confident of the protective properties of Gore-tex, Ventile and Bri-nylon, we ignored the weather and immediately made our way up onto the causeway between the two reservoir basins, just about the most exposed location for miles around. Fortunately, the weather did improve fairly quickly and we were able to concentrate on identifying the waterfowl scattered across the vast expanses of water.

It was pleasing to find so many goldeneyes present (perhaps as many as 50, quite a high proportion of them males). Also numerous were tufted ducks, gadwall, wigeon and ruddy ducks, although it took us a while to spot the sizeable flock of ruddys way out to the south. Staines Reservoir is often a haunt of rarer grebes but today only great cresteds were in evidence. To compensate, a great northern diver was found, although very distant - close to the northern edge of the North Basin - and difficult to locate (spending at least 30 seconds underwater for each 5 to 10 seconds on the surface). As we searched, several pied wagtails flew overhead and two grey wagtails gave fleeting views as they chased one another back and forth along the waterline below us. However, the most unexpected bird of the morning, both for location and timing, was a ring ouzel, seen well several times as it flew from one patch of cover to another along the face of the causeway, already atracting a small pursuing band of twitchers (perhaps in search of a first December record for Surrey?). With its well-defined white gorget and pale fringes to other breast feathers, this bird appeared to be an adult male.

After several more heavy showers interspersed with brief sunny intervals, sunshine and rainfall arrived together as we returned to the cars, producing an incredibly vivid double rainbow. We next drove on to Wraysbury station car park before taking lunch and by the time we were ready to continue, the weather seemed more settled. Once again the River Colne was running extremely high and our choice of routes around the adjacent gravel pits was very restricted. Unfortunately, those without wellingtons soon had to give up, leaving the rest of us to wade warily on along submerged footpaths. Pochards were the most numerous ducks out on the pits (although they had been totally lacking at Staines) and there were also more tufteds, gadwall and a few goldeneye in evidence. Neither smew nor goosander could be located - probably the winter,s weather thus far had been too mild (witness field scabious, white deadnettle and bramble seen in bloom during the day). Passerines were few, several parties of long-tailed tits drawing perhaps the most attention. Winter thrushes were lacking, apart from a single fieldfare which perched obligingly close at hand in a dead tree. Again there was one rather unexpected sighting - this time it was of a pair of peregrines, soaring and circling above our heads for several minutes, the smaller male up high with the more bulky female lower down. We were pleased to hear a song thrush singing strongly as we retraced our route back to the station. In our absence, a pair of rose-ringed parakeets had flown over.