Thursday, October 29, 2020

Responsible Birding Diary: Thursday 29.10.20

 


It is my birthday, today, and I never work on my birthday! The only problem today was how rainy it is (which is rare for my birthday!). So, I did a bit of birdwatching in the morning in the Deepings area. The highlights included a family or two of Whooper Swans, and the now resident Black-necked Grebe at Baston and Langtoft pits (present since August). While I was there, I witnessed the horrific spectacle of a Great Black-backed Gull killing and eating an adult Moorhen. Then it rained hard, so I went home.

In the afternoon, the rain stopped and my dear wife Jo and I went down to Eldernell (part of the Nene Washes) to watch the raptors, egrets and Cranes. The highlights were a very late juvenile Swallow, a beautiful adult or near adult male Hen Harrier (which at one stage had an aerial battle with a Short-eared Owl). Six Great White Egrets came into the roost and I watched a distant feeding flock of 35 Cranes (plus another 3 closer to the car park).

The sun even came out for a short while (as it always does on my birthday!)



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