AND WE'RE OFF

 AND WE'RE OFF

So my 2023 challenge began today! The first day of a whole year of looking for wildlife on my combined workplaces. I love nothing better than exploring (except Maria of course, incase she reads this!) so I've been really excited about this since I came up with the idea a few months back. Obviously I had a couple of options on where to start the quest on day one, but realistically there was only really one place I was going to start. Much like so many people this winter, I've been struck down by the horrible nasty flu for the past few weeks and it hit me hard! So much so I've barely left the comfort of the couch for three weeks, so I was in no fit state to go on an epic all day adventure. So I decided to head to Moorhouse Wood and have a gentle stroll and take things easy. I love this site, its so incredibly quiet and peaceful and most of my visits are done without seeing a single person. It's actually two woods split by the A1, but for ease I always combine the two under a single name. So Moorhouse Wood was where the challenge began.

Species wise it was a very quiet start. In total I saw 25 different things, 24 of them were birds and 1 was a mammal. I didn't even attempt to look for any insects, there's plenty of time for that! I saw most of what I would expect to find in the woods bar a couple of glaring misses (eg Great Tit!) but I really struggled along the River Wear. To be honest the water was incredibly high and very fast flowing so hardly anything was on it. Again, there's plenty of time to catch up with those species throughout the year.

SPECIES LIST 

001. Robin - Erithacus rubecula

002. Woodpigeon - Columba palumbus

003. Wren - Troglodytes troglodytes

004. Blue Tit - Cyanistes caeruleus

005. Carrion Crow - Corvus corone

006. Long Tailed Tit - Aegithalos caudatus

007. Coal Tit - Periparus ater

008. Great Spotted Woodpecker - Dendrocopos major

009. Treecreeper - Certhia familiaris

010. Nuthatch - Sitta europaea

011. Jay - Garrulus glandarius

012. Herring Gull - Larus argentatus

013. Grey Heron - Ardea cinerea

014. Moorhen - Gallinula chloropus

015. Goosander - Mergus merganser

016. Buzzard - Buteo buteo

017. Jackdaw - Corvus monedula

018. Pink Footed Goose - Anser brachyrhynchus

019. Fieldfare - Turdus pilaris

020. Mistle Thrush - Turdus viscivorus

021. Blackbird - Turdus merula

022. Pheasant - Phasianus colchicus

023. Pied Wagtail - Motacilla alba

024. Magpie - Pica pica

025. Grey Squirrel - Sciurus carolinensis