Blackthorn

I spotted this flowering Blackthorn on a post-lunch walk round the Etton-Maxey pits complex. It's well ahead of any other locally, but is a reliable early flowerer and a welcome harbinger of spring. Its part of a recently planted  hedge along the edge of a bridleway and may possibly be a non-native strain. Certainly quite a few planted Hawthorn bushes also seem to flower earlier than the native varieties.

It was a good day for a longer walk, with some welcome sunshine, but the breeze felt quite cold. I'd been hoping to see a few wintering birds, but numbers of all birds seemed very low. I had a good view of my first Yellowhammer of the year, surprisingly well-camouflaged in a bramble bush, and  was pleased to see a moderately-sized group of Redwing, again my first for 2023.

Mosses on the old stone bridges are all starting to fruit, and the low winter sunshine highlighted some of the historic carvings on the top of the bridge walls which include people's initials, shoe patterns and a well-marked horseshoe.