From one spot in the garden (scoping fields and trees) 2017’s December has produced a record 51 species, including two new to the list (now 91), Brambling finally appearing.

Highlights included two observations of pairs of fly-by Goosander before sunrise, on the same south-easterly path as gull flocks, suggesting a daily routine for some that roost at Wimbleball Lake; and distant flocks of Golden Plover on cold, clear mornings, high and fast over fields south-west of Wiveliscombe.

All the best to you all for 2018.