....Between Leaves & Birch

Another day at Gibside, working as a voluntary conservation ranger, dawned!

A chance for me to do my part for the National Trust, as well as gaining experience and getting outdoors after a week at work in a fume filled garage. 

In a nice turn of fate the sun was shining! 

Today's tasks were kept pretty simple, first order of the day was to remove heavy leaf fall from a drainage ditch. A job not made too comfortable by wearing a split wellie! Canny! 

Second order of the day after dinner was to thin out a plantation of Birch, deep in the grounds of Gibside. A rewarding job and more importantly.....a dry one! 

As always, whilst doing my voluntary work I did some casual birding when I could. 

So here's my list for Gibside Forest 16/2/2014

2 Buzzard

2 Tufted Duck 

2 Coot 

3 Red Kite

Multiple:

Nuthatch 

Wood pigeon 

Carrion crow 

Robin 

Blackbird 

Blue tit

Coal tit

Great tit

I also believe I heard a Green Woodpecker calling when I first arrived and got parked. But i can't confirm this.

And mammal wise...

3 Roe deer

(Young buck, young doe, mother doe)

Not many bird pics today, apart from a few feeder shots.