Winter birds on the Ock Valley Walk

A cold Tuesday morning seemed an ideal opportunity to start to burn off the Christmas excess by walking to work along the river. Although it can be dark in the morning, there is usually something of interest to see.
The bright flash of a kingfisher is always guaranteed to lift the spirits and seems somewhat out of place and almost exotic on a cold day in January in England.
Kingfishers migrate within the UK, often heading to warmer temperatures in the south, but either this one has decided to see out the winter on the river, is just passing through, or is not yet ready to move on:
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Buzzards are now quite common in Oxfordshire and are usually associated with the open fields and meadows where they hunt. So it is somewhat of a surprise is to see the dark shape of a buzzard as it flies amongst the trees. 
Perhaps it is trying to find a suitable nest site?  This could be interesting as it is along here that red kites have nested in previous years and they are usually tolerant of each other.
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A more common bird is the robin and they can often be seen, even with it's prominent red breast hidden in the gloom.
Unlike many small birds which from flocks in winter, robins remain territorial and can often be seen chasing each other. 

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And a bird that is always common on the Ock, especially near town, where they are often fed is the mallard.  Population numbers are boosted by migrants from Iceland and Scandinavia, but a decline in the wintering population has, perhaps surprisingly, resulted in the BTO classifying it's sat us as amber (http://www.bto.org/birdtrends2010/wcrmalla.shtml):
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