Belated New Year's birding on the 4th!

With January 1st starting as the year had finished with strong winds and prolonged heavy rains, new year birding was indefinately postponed until the first reasonable day off from working. As it was I only had 2 days off at Christmas. So it wasn't until Saturday 4th January that I was able finally get out birding in 2025. I started by driving to Henham Quarry entrance, in the field opposite, I located a very distant Cattle Egret working along the edge of a field at the back, it then flew right and then perched on top a post. Meanwhile 3 'chackling' Fieldfare flew over joined belatedly by the football rattling Mistle Thrush that settled in the middle of the field. I then drove to Sotterley. As I parked up I heard a Nuthatch, chunterring but sadly I couldn't spot oit. I then walked over to the Church, as I did so, a small group of Wood Pigeons flew and they were joined by a single male Hawfinch that perched up in a tree along the east side of the pond. I walked around the Church where scaffolding had been erected and as I walked, I spotted the male Hawfinch spotted in tall trees just west of the Church perimeter just beyond the evergreen trees. It spent some time here and it looked at me and then to the left. As I walked back to the copse, I saw a Sparrowhawk by the side of a tree and it hopped around the back and out of sight but this put paid to any potential Nuthatch or Treecreeper sightings, sadly. As I walked to the car, a message bleeped stating there were 7 Grey P's at sandpit Lane, Ellough, I immediately drove there but couldn't see any! All I saw were 3 Red- legged Partridges. I remembered to check College Lane, so I checked from there too and immediately spotted the excellent group of 7 Grey Partridges. All hunkered down together and they were mostly asleep, save for 1 that was preening.