A Night Heron, in fact 2 had been present on the River Calder at Ossett in West Yorkshire. They had been present for some days. It's not often 2 are seen together let alone stay in an area. I had a training session not that far away so I mentioned it to a friend who was ready. I arrived at the location early only to be told it was the wrong one. The trainer was going to be late so I let him know the real location. Already running half an hour late, when the training started 2 early arrivals were a bit stroppy and started distracting the trainer. I was supposed to be out at 1p but it was 2.30pm by the time I was out. I flew out like a bird released. One of my colleagues who also needed training had been volunteered to carry the boxes back with me. Once near the car I spoke loudly to alert my friend to stay hidden, like I had requested. But the door opened and my colleague's jaw dropped and said "someone is in your car!" He popped out jolly and I mentioned we were going to go for a walk around here, make the most of the day. I wasn't sure how to explain the concept of twitching to him because it would raise unending questions.
Once away from the training centre the subject of the door opening suddenly came up and we laughed hard about it. We arrived at the site and walked to the spot. It was muddy because of the rain but easy to get to. An obstruction was placed on the path which was designed to stop cyclists. One of the Night Herons sat on some branches over the water and then climbed down to the edge and attempted a bit of fishing. The other was in a bush just about visible. They were quite striking birds with their black green crown and back, red eyes, grey wings and white underbody. I had seen them abroad but this was a British first for me. Thankfully the one showed very well.
Once away from the training centre the subject of the door opening suddenly came up and we laughed hard about it. We arrived at the site and walked to the spot. It was muddy because of the rain but easy to get to. An obstruction was placed on the path which was designed to stop cyclists. One of the Night Herons sat on some branches over the water and then climbed down to the edge and attempted a bit of fishing. The other was in a bush just about visible. They were quite striking birds with their black green crown and back, red eyes, grey wings and white underbody. I had seen them abroad but this was a British first for me. Thankfully the one showed very well.
