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Wednesday 4 July 2012

Gripped!!!!

Yesterday I was shown around some private farm building and stables, to look at a pleasingly decent number of Swallow nests. I was really enjoying myself, well until the land owner and I got to a large pond... (I am in italics)

"oh yes - we had a baby Heron here this year, we often get adults, but this was the first baby one we've had"

"really - oh that's good"

"yes - it was about two months ago"

"two months ago? that's very early!"

"yes - we knew it was a baby because like a Heron, the same colour, just much much smaller"

"really!!!??"

"yes - it spent most the time sat in that willow tree there, but I also saw it climbing on some fallen trees over the stream that runs out from the corner of the pond"

"that would have been a Night Heron then. I hate you".

The most gripping thing is that during the Night Heron influx of this spring, I checked out Lower Bruckland Ponds almost daily. And the pond this bird was on is literally on the other side of a line of trees from the lowest pond at Lower Bruckland. I could well have been maybe 50m away from the very bird I was hoping for! Arse!!

Well enough of that. It's in the past now...

Last night I spent a good few hours out, showing rare bird finder extraordinaire M Knott around the patch. We didn't see much - a summer plumaged Dunlin, the Blackwit still, two juv Black-headed Gulls and a Willow Warbler (which must have been a migrant as they don't breed here) being as exciting as it got!

Bring on August....

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