Not cross at all....

After quite a hectic weekend, including seeing Gorillaz in Birmingham, open art studios on Sunday and dropping Judith off at the station before 6 this morning, I rewarded myself with a lie-in rather than rushing around the country after rare birds (not that there's much to go for). So, after a bit of breakfast and nipping out to get my haircut, which was definitely needed, I headed out at lunchtime to try and catch up with some parrot crossbills. As well as the large flock at Santon Downham there is another group of 16 or so on the Surrey/ Berkshire border at Wishmoor Bottom. They have occasionally been showing quite well so I hoped to get some photos.
I got there about 11.30, parked up in the close and set off to walk the half-mile or so to where they are  most often seen. Within about 50 yards though two birders were heading towards me. On the upside they confirmed the direction I should be heading in and that there were about 20 others on site. On the downside though the birds had not been seen all morning. Still, the weather wasn't too cold and it wasn't raining so I carried on. About 20 minutes later I got to an area in the middle of the heath surrounded by low pine trees. Birders were gathered in about 4 flocks (?) looking disconsolately at the surrounding trees. No sign still. I got my gear set up and stood around with the rest of them. Apart from a couple of stonechats and a distant Dartford warbler there was nothing much to keep our interest up.  By 12.50 the two birders I was standing nearest to had done the "give it till 1 then we're off" conversation. I was tempted to join them. Then at the far end of the loose line a shout went up and we all gathered round to see two crossbills feeing in a distant pine tree. It was immediately obvious though they were common crossbills not parrots. The bill was small and delicate, removing the pine seeds with a surgeons grace, and there was only two, not the large flock. As we watched though from behind us came a characteristic chipping sound of a flock of crossbills flying over. Too far away to make out what "type" but a rough count of 15-20 suggested that was the parrot flock. We watched them come down in a stand of trees some distance away. Cue a gathering up of gear and the whole crowd yomped off over the heath in that direction. We got to roughly where the flock was and had one of those comedy moments as one person got onto them and tried to describe exactly which tree in the wood they were in. "Its the tall one to the left of the short one" type instructions prompted some (unnecessary) rude replies about being more specific and the fact there were a lot of trees!! We finally worked it out and headed off to try and get even closer. As the horde rounded a last corner of the forest track we saw 5 or 6 others already staring up a single tall tree and signalling us to walk further away from it. Finally we all gathered together and the flock of parrot crossbills could be seen feeding up in the tree.

They were still quit a way away and up in the top of the tree, but you could see the way they use their crossed bill to prise apart the pine cones to get the seeds within. Of course, with their thick powerful bill it is less subtle than with the common crossbills ,more bludgeon than rapier so to speak. Sometimes they even ripped off the whole cone and took it to eat elsewhere in the tree.

When they turned sideways you got a good look at that powerful bill. This red coloured male, as opposed to the greener females/ juveniles, was particularly powerful looking.

After I suppose 20 minutes the flock suddenly started vocalising and lifted off all as one to fly over a distant ridge to fresh feeding grounds.

That was also the signal for the hordes to depart. Some had been there since dawn, so my wait was relatively a short one. A generally happy thong made their way back to the road to head off home. Its not impossible that these birds may hang around overwinter. If they do I'm sure I'll be back as I'd love to get a shot of them on the ground drinking from puddles!!