Fieldfare fest

Coolest morning of the year so far...

But a glorious combination of snow and sun:

This, below, is the orchard behind Ripon college. Yesterday evening each tree had about 100 Fieldfares feeding on the windfall apples on the ground, so this morning I huddled next to one of the trees and waited.

It was a lot like watching Waxwings. The birds wait in surrounding trees until one gets hungry enough to come down and feed. Then, in an impressive sweep of several hundred wings, the whole flock piles in:

However, I was not the only one interested in the Fieldfare fest. On two occasions, after lengthy waits for the birds to return, this female Sparrowhawk zipped through and flused the enire flock:

This male Green Woodpecker also came in to feast on the fruit: