The weather was overcast but due to improve, so I opted to try for a drop in species at Farmoor Reservoir. On the way I had a flyover jay as I passed the turn for Tackley. On arrival the car park was heaving with sailors and their boats - some sort of competition in the offing - Novice/ Casual racing day.
I headed straight for the causeway but before I could get there, I could see a spiralling column of swallows, house and sand martins climbing up into the sky. They rose and rose then headed off west, leaving only 10% of the original population.
Onto the causeway and ahead a female wheatear jumped onto the small wall to the left. It moved on ahead before I could get a photo and then out across the water and behind me. I started back only to find one of the sailors heading my way and driving the wheatear back at me - not for long though and it headed off across the water once more.
On one of the buoys sat a yellow-legged gull and the only thing of interest for the remainder of the crossing. I dropped down onto the river and along to the Shrike Meadow hide. I sat for an hour but had no sighting of the kingfisher - as I left the chap I'd been in residence with spotted a family of reed warbler in the reeds behind. They moved around low in the reeds - frustrating in that the other chap had great line of sight when he first located them.
Heading back up to the reservoir I stopped at the trees on the brow of the hill. They were alive with chiffchaff - dozens of them. I hoped for a spotted flycatcher as they were all feeding on insects around the trees but none showed - a family of 5 had been noted recently. I stopped at the gate and watched as dunnock, tits, wren and robins flitted between the trees. Then a single goldcrest climbed the branches directly in front of me.
More chiffchaff as I walked to the causeway and back across. Off home for lunch.
Sightings (35) included: black-headed gull, blackbird, blue tit, canada goose, carrion crow, chaffinch, chiffchaff, coot, cormorant, dunnock, gadwall, goldcrest, great crested grebe, great tit, grey heron, grey wagtail, greylag goose, house Martin, little grebe, long-tailed tit, magpie, mallard, mute swan, pied wagtail, red kite, reed warbler, robin, sand martin, starling, swallow, tufted duck, wheatear, woodpigeon, wren and yellow-legged gull.
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