As it seemed that today might be the only half decent day of the Jubilee weekend, we took ourselves off to Stodmarsh, parking at Grove Ferry.
It started off blustery. The light was poor from the view point. Although I could see a lot of ducks on the lake, I could only pick out Tufted Ducks. Cetti's Warblers and Whitethroats were very active and the Reed Warblers were chuntering away out of sight. A male Reed Warbler sang beautifully in view.
Hirundines were also very active, including many Swifts.
We made our way down to the Feast, Harrison and Marsh hides. Two Marsh Harriers were soon in view. From the Marsh Hide, we could see Greenshank and Ringed Plovers.
Making our way back towards the river and hoping to see a Kingfisher, the going became quite heavy underfoot and there was a short shower.
No Kingfisher, but if I had made a list of birds I hoped to see, I wouldn't even have put Barn Owl on the list. We watched it for about a quarter of an hour, hunting in the middle of the afternoon, at fairly close quarters. I can honestly say that I've never had a better view. Eventually it caught a vole and flew off. Presumably it has a nest nearby
Definitely one of those moments you would like to wrap up and take home. More than made up for a disappointing pub lunch.
It started off blustery. The light was poor from the view point. Although I could see a lot of ducks on the lake, I could only pick out Tufted Ducks. Cetti's Warblers and Whitethroats were very active and the Reed Warblers were chuntering away out of sight. A male Reed Warbler sang beautifully in view.
Hirundines were also very active, including many Swifts.
We made our way down to the Feast, Harrison and Marsh hides. Two Marsh Harriers were soon in view. From the Marsh Hide, we could see Greenshank and Ringed Plovers.
Making our way back towards the river and hoping to see a Kingfisher, the going became quite heavy underfoot and there was a short shower.
No Kingfisher, but if I had made a list of birds I hoped to see, I wouldn't even have put Barn Owl on the list. We watched it for about a quarter of an hour, hunting in the middle of the afternoon, at fairly close quarters. I can honestly say that I've never had a better view. Eventually it caught a vole and flew off. Presumably it has a nest nearby
Definitely one of those moments you would like to wrap up and take home. More than made up for a disappointing pub lunch.
