Army Birding

I took a week off work to go and watch the only England team that seems to be able to win. I flew out to Berlin on Mon 17 Nov arriving in the evening. I booked into the Radisson SAS which has a large aquarium in the atrium. Thats enough about fish! According to the weather forecast Tuesday would be a reasonable day with rain expected for the rest of the week. So on Tuesday I caught the S-Bahn to Spandau, jumped on a bus which took me to Spandau forest. At the end of the route cross over the road and over the old level crossing and enter the wood to the left. There are pens with boar, deer and sheep. There is a small stream which you can follow which meanders through the trees. It was overcast and bitterly cold but the birds were calling. The first sight was a large flock of Siskin. Then a few tits put in appearance and then I saw a Nuthatch which flew to the tree next to me. It is not often I see Nuthatches so I was very excited to get one so close - I could practically touch it. A bit further more tits and another Nuthatch and then another. I gave up counting after a score. To brighten up my day I could hear woodpeckers and every time I found one it turned out to be a Great Spotted. Well to my surprise after another huge flock of Siskin the woodpecker at 20 yds was black with a red crown. It then put on a display for me flying around from tree to tree tapping here and there. That was my day made but there was more to come. Marsh Tits and Goldcrests came so close it was like a scene from Snow White. Even a Kingfisher put in an appearance. Of course there more Nuthatches! Turning left on a track there was some major tapping above my head. A Black Woodpecker then spent ages above my head demolishing a branch quite oblivious to its audience. I then spent time heading into other parts of the forest hoping to see Goshawk but I had my share of excitement for the day with two Black Woodpeckers so I headed back to Unter Den Linden and the hotel (not before following the path of the Wall in the forest for a while).
As expected the rest of the week was punctuated by rain and biting cold winds. Snow put in an appearance on Friday. Wherever I went I always saw Nuthatches, some foraging on the open ground. So if you want to see a Nuthatch close up just head to any park in Berlin - there are loads (that is parks and Nuthatches). Other parks I visited with my binoculars include Tiergarten and Treptower. My final list was:
Cormorant
Grey Heron
Mute Swan
Mallard
Tufted Duck
Mandarin Duck
Buzzard
Coot
Black-headed Gull
Kingfisher
Black Woodpecker
Great Spotted Woodpecker
Wren
Robin
Fieldfare
Blackbird
Great Tit
Blue Tit
Marsh Tit
Long Tailed Tit
Nuthatch
Treecreeper
Short Toed Treecreeper
Magpie
Jay
Hooded Crow
Raven
House Sparrow
Tree Sparrow
Chaffinch
Goldfinch
Greenfinch
Siskin

Andrew,

Sounds like a good trip out, with S-T Treecreeper too. Did you hear the Black Woods calling? If I was doing any runs these days i would miss the calls of them on my woodland runs. I used to hear them in the woods around Rheindahlen and the odd Middle Spot.

All the best,

Tim