Thursday 19 March 2009

Springy things




A very quick visit after work proved pretty fruitful, despite a couple of teenagers dossing about around the pool edge.

8 gadwall, 4 tufties, 1 goldeneye, 1 shoveler, 3 little grebe and green sandpiper were on Freeman's Pools plus a pair of redshank were 'getting it on' on the gravel island.
I was alerted to the sound of some snipe and as I counted 7 exploding from the pool edge I noticed the reason - a lovely long-eared owl had suddenly appeared and was quartering the rough ground. It soon landed on a post a few metres away and gave superb vies for quiet some time before flying off to hunt over the area behind Keyline.
I was delighted to see it make a reappearance and if I'm honest it was pretty nice to have it all to myself again on such a glorious evening!
Unfortunately I couldn't hang around and I left around 6.30pm.

Big thanks to Brian Tollitt for these cracking shots of the LEO, taken last weekend.


From Guy McClelland this morning:
4 prs of gadwall, 4 tufties, 1 goldeneye, 1 drake shoveller and 4 snipe were the pick of Freeman's pool.
3 goldcrest in Freeman's Wood.
Pair of little grebe on Darter Pond.
2 singing reed buntings in the area.
4 singing chiffchaff around the parish
1 wheatear along the high tide mark

and from Steve Wallis this afternoon:
15.00.
As above, plus Green Sandpiper Freeman's Pool. Little Egret Frog pond. Half a dozen Reed Bunting along the track near Flood. Spotted Redshank usual place, along with two Little Egrets nearby

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