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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Emma" data-source="post: 1836488" data-attributes="member: 20257">Had my first visit to Rutland water yesterday and it was a visit that I will never forget!! I have read a lot about the reserve and the birds that they get there so it was really nice to get there and have a look around!EgletonOur first port of call was to the Egleton side of the reserve, it is a massive area with plenty of hides overlooking the 4 lagoons so you are guaranteed good views of the area from any hide. The weather was very windy so there were few small birds flying about, in the sheltered areas of the woodland we managed to see good numbers of Blue and Red Damselflies flitting about in the sunshine! From the Redshank & Grebe hides we managed to see Gadwall, Coot, Shelduck, Tufted Duck, GC Grebe but the main highlight was seeing the Sand Martins milling around the colony and watching them gather mud from in front of the Grebe hide!We then headed to the Dunlin hide overlooking lagoon 4 where a Black Tern had been reported there earlier in the morning, we didnt see it but did manage some super views of 7 Dunlin in their summer plumage together with Little Ringed Plover, Common Tern, Oystercatcher and BH Gulls. There is an Osprey nest in the lagoon which hasn't been inhabited this year, we were told that a male Osprey occasionally flies over the lagoon so it is pot luck if you manage to see him here!Before heading over to the Lyndon part of the reserve we decided to have a quick look in the Shoveler hide which overlooks lagoon 3...this was to be the best decion of the day!!! After about 10 mins of being in the hide we suddenly saw a BOP flying towards the lagoon from the trees at the back of the lagoon, as it got closer we could clearly see that it was an Osprey!!! This was a lifer for us and it looked even more spectacular in real life than in photographs!! The Osprey circled over the lagoon and and one point it looked like it was ready to dive for a fish, instead it decided to fly right over the hide giving us some super views as it went over and also the opportunity to get some photographs of it for prosperity!! This was the highlight of my day!!</blockquote>

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