Last Efforts

Yesterday afternoon found me over at my favourite Flood Meadow for my last session before my Trip. I arrived via Beverley (for reasons already stated) around 2 pm and had a good 4 hour watch from the Geoff Smith Hide. A nice chap called Colin (who I'd met before) was already in the Hide and we had a long chat about this and that. It was cold with broken cloud but the light improved as the afternoon went on. There were some amazing Cumulonimbus clouds around and we had a couple of hail showers.

Unsurprisingly due to the sharp drop in temperature, activity was subdued and the majority of the Birds were at the Western end of the reserve using the trees as shelter. However one noticeable change was the increase in that wonderful Duck...the Pintail. The water level had subsided still further allowing perfect depth for the Ducks to upend. I made a conservative count of 250!!!

The Pink-footed Goose flock (c150) was still present,...

Always a fine spectacle

Around 5.30 the familiar sound of Whooper Swans was heard and slowly but surely they started to arrive from the South. These magnificent creatures never disappoint...

Unfortunately they settled at the Western end but they still looked great in the last of the sunshine.

I had a Village addition recently in the form of a cc Marsh Harrier (47) N on Snakey? This morning I was really pleased to see the return of Tree Sparrows (3) to Cliff Cottage...

So that's it on the home front. We leave tomorrow for Lancashire and after an overnight stop and my Mother's, we'll be departing from Manchester at 9am for Cyprus. I'll be doing my usual riveting diary. You may (or may not) want to follow...?