December's Birds in Ashtead

The wet and stormy weather we’re ‘enjoying’ this month affords the possibility of seeing that most spectacular of birds, the kingfisher. When heavy rains cause levels to rise in the River Mole, kingfishers look for food in shallower waters, like the Rye Brook which runs through Ashtead Common, and are seen occasionally on the stretch between the Cottages and the |Three Bridges at the far end of the Woodfield. Keep an eye out for them, too, on the ponds in Ashtead Park or the one in Barnett Wood Lane; they’ve even been know to visit garden ponds hereabouts. But you’ll have to be quick. Often, all you’ll see is a flash of electric blue as the bird streaks across the water, inches from the surface – a sight for sore eyes, particularly at this gloomy time of year.