The first flowers of 2022 are appearing on the course. The patch of Snowdrops by the 18th tee on the green in bloom as are these Stinking Hellebores on to the left of the 14th on the Red.
Snowdrops Galanthus nivalis [18th Green]
Stinking Hellebore Helleborus foetidus [14th Red]
Collard Doves are one of the birds, like House Sparrows, that are common elsewhere, but not on the Frilford estate. This one was in a tree to the left of the Blue range.
Collard Dove [Tubney range]
Lots of birds singing yesterday, Robins and Dunnocks in particular. Not so many today with the wind, but plenty of Red Kites maneuvering skillfully.
Good to see the reservoir filling up this weekend, hopefully it won't be too long before the geese and ducks return. Haven't seen anything unusual on the course, but it was nice to have a bit of sunshine to photograph the birds.
The weather seems to have thawed out a bit by the end of the week. I had a couple of loops 9 holes now the the course had defrosted. There are a few Roe Deer at various places on the courses. This one was in the woods next to the 13th on the Blue. There were also some Muntjac Deer nearby.
Roe Deer [13th Blue]
Otherwise, mammal-wise there is plenty of evidence of Moles about, particularly on the Doghouse range.
Molehills [Doghouse range]
Another tunneler that I watched with some fascination at the driving range was the machine that is laying the pipes for the new irrigation system. It carves a tunnel with a plough-like appendage, drags the pipe through and leaves almost no trace above ground - very impressive.
The reservoir looks almost ready to fill up - the lining has been put in place:
I am always impressed with the number of birds roosting in the trees on the yellow and green courses around the clubhouse. There are many trees with 6 or 7 Red Kites in the topmost branches. There is also a large and noisy Rook roost, with several trees containing 100+ birds at this time of year.
Very crisp this morning. There was definitely more birdsong since the turn of the year. The Song Thrush to the left of the 3rd Blue seems to be singing from the same tree as last year. Great Tits and Blue Tits are also very audible.
A pair of Kingfishers was around the 1st Blue this morning. There was a Coot on the pond on the 3rd which is quite unusual - perhaps a refugee from the reservoir works.
Coot [3rd Blue]
More usual was a Treecreeper on the 9th Blue. These little birds are quite common on the course flitting up tree trunks searching for insects.
Had a walk around the front nine of the Blue again this morning. The flock of Redpolls and Siskins was feeding on the alder seeds high up in the trees to the left of the 5th. I saw a Nuthatch to the left of the 6th as well as the usual selection of regulars.
Redpolls [5th Blue]
If you are yet to buy your 2022 calendar, I can recommend the (very) limited edition Frilford Nature Diary calendars. I have left a few in the office. These are A3 and have a nature photo from the course for each month - they are £15 each, with all proceeds going to the captain's charity.
Played the back nine of the Blue course this morning and then had a walk around the first three holes. The highlight was a very large mixed flock of Redpolls, Siskins, Chaffinches and Goldfinches that moved between the trees either side of the 9th and around the trees near the 4th tee. I would estimate that there were 100-200 birds, with Siskins being the most common - feeding and nipping down to the ditch to drink and making an impressive noise.
It has been mild but wet over the last week or so. With the front nine of the Blue course closed I took the chance to have a walk around. I heard and briefly saw a Raven in the wood behind the 6th and saw a couple of Kingfishers - one flying across from the 1st on the Red course and this one looking like a jewel in between the reeds on the 6th.
Fairly wintery over the last few days. I had a walk early morning and a couple of rounds in the late afternoon this week. Flocks of seed-eating birds are becoming more common with Siskins and Redpolls both about.
About the only flowers remaining in 2021 belong to the Gorse, which is one of the few plants to flower all year round.
Common Gorse Ulex europaeus [18th Blue]
I came across a couple of bats flying around the 3rd tee on the Red this afternoon. The light and my photography skills prevented me getting any better photos, but from the size I would guess that this is a Common Pipestrelle.
Nothing much of note for the past couple of weeks. There is still a bit of colour around if you look hard enough, such as this Greater Periwinkle on the Doghouse range.
Greater Periwinkle Vinca major [Doghouse range]
The very pale Buzzard is also still around on the Green course - this is the first time that I have seen it for a couple of months.
I had to battle through the detritus of Storm Arwen first thing this morning to reach the Blue course. It was ultimately worthwhile though as I got a good view of the otters that frequent the ponds on the first few holes. Whilst I have picked up occasional footage on my trail camera, I'm not sure how often they come out in the daylight, but this is the first time that I have seen them. There was a family of three relaxing on the edge of the pond to the left of the first fairway.
Otters [1st Blue]
Elsewhere there was a flock of 30-40 Redpolls behind the 3rd Green and I'm pretty sure that I saw a Woodcock take off from the wood to the right of the 13th on the Blue.
Lots of wagtails trotting around the fairways - Pied Wagtails are most common and roost in large numbers (100+) around the clubhouse and car park. Grey Wagtails are also quite frequent - particularly around the greenkeepers' huts.
Looking very autumnal around the estate at the moment. Much of the wood around the reservoir is made up of Larch trees, which are unusual among coniferous trees in that they change colour in autumn before shedding their needles over the winter.
European Larch Larix decidua [16th Blue]
Similarly colourful are the Maple trees to the left of the 3rd tee on the Red.
Maple - Acer sp [3rd Red]
There are numerous fungi about. These Yellow Fieldcaps were growing on some of the compost in the wood behind the 6th Blue.
Yellow Fieldcap Bolbitius titubans [6th Blue]
This cluster of Brick Tufts were growing on some wood on the path beside the 3rd Red.
Brick Tuft Hypholoma lateritium [3rd Red]
I have seen a few finches this winter, in particular Siskins and Redpolls, but no sign of the Crossbills that were here in numbers this time last year. There are plenty of Goldcrests though. This one was in the wood behind the 16th Blue.
This week has been the first proper cold spell of the winter and it has coincided with the arrival of the first winter visitors - I have seen Redwings, Siskins and Redpolls flying over various parts of the courses this week.
The scale of the work on the irrigation system is very impressive. The reservoir is completely drained at the moment as the silt is removed and should create a significantly more efficient watering system once completed, although duck photos may be at a premium this winter.
If you have been perplexed recently after a shot into the 4th green on the Blue has seemed further away than expected or disappeared entirely, I may have the answer. I played the hole this evening and watched a Carrion Crow roll and then fly off with my playing partner's ball, dropping it in the field behind the 5th tee (much to my amusement). I then left a ball on the green and watched as same crow returned to the oak tree behind the 4th green and, once we had left the green, did exactly the same thing with this ball. It is quite a feat to open its beak wide enough to grab the ball.
If this happens and you see a crow or other animal take your ball, then this is covered under rule 18-1 (Outside agency). You are able to replace it at the spot where the ball was originally resting without penalty. I am a country member at Perranporth Golf Club in Cornwall and they have the same problem on the 11th fairway, but with Herring Gulls rather than crows. The birds think that they have found a rather round egg.
A few other, less troublesome birds in the sunshine.
