Is it Christmas yet ?

Wednesday 21st December
Pre Christmas birding has been typically quiet. A bit of birding here and there in between visits to various butchers to buy the traditional festive pork and game pies etc. I'm in charge of cold meats and pickles you see, which I suppose is reasonable as 50% of my family is vegetarian. I'm also in charge of alchohol, enough said. Although I should perhaps mention the brewery challenge. The challenge is to sample a pint of ale from each of the 12 independant breweries in Warwickshire during the month of January when the birding is a bit slow. I've already started my research and come up with a complication straight away. The Tunnel brewery, formally based at the Lord Nelson is moving to a farmhouse a couple of miles away and the Lord Nelson is setting up its own brewery at the pub and hopes to be up and running in January.
Highlights of various local walks in the last couple of days has produced Raven at Bentley woods and Kingfisher on the Coventry canal near Mancetter, like I said, its a bit quiet.
Had a walk round Middleton Lakes yesterday but same story, a single Redshank, Water Rail and 25 or so Golden plover, while at Middleton Hall lake there was another Redshank and 2 Green Sandpipers. The gull roost at Coton was also also disappointing with only one Yellow legged Gull and another Water rail.