Showing posts with label bittern. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bittern. Show all posts

Sunday, March 3, 2024

Far Ings Reserve Humberside - Bittern and Friends

It is not often you go to a reserve hoping to see a target species but, yesterday, we were lucky and within a short while of arriving at Far Ings everyone in the Nature Group party had photographed a Bittern as it walked across the reed bed. Otherwise the reserve was fairly quiet but there was enough around to keep my camera happy. 



Wednesday, September 27, 2023

RSPB Otmoor (1)

 My first visit to Otmoor (Oxfordshire) and was rewarded with some great sightings - Common Crane, Bittern, Heron, Red Kite with Prey in Talons, Heron and Spiked Shieldbug with its impaled caterpillar prey.   There were also some better photographic opportunities of small birds -  next Blog. The Grass Snake was nearer Aylesbury on a stopover.

Saturday, August 12, 2017

What a Privilege - Close Up with a Bittern at Lakenheath RSPB

Yesterday was one of those moments - a Bittern came out of the reeds close to us at Lakenheath and proceeded to catch tiny fish for almost half an hour. There were close reeds that blocked the view but these parted in the wind and gave lots of opportunities for close-up views as it fished to right and left. Even caught a fish going down the enormous gape and the unexpectedly mobile tongue

Saturday, April 15, 2017

Lakenheath RSPB Reserve - Confiding Wren plus Distant Views of Great Species

Wrens were shouting their territories all over the reserve but otherwise the birds were all pretty distant including a Glossy Ibis and Great White Egret. Good to see a Bittern flying and also a daytime Barn Owl. Greylags with six young.



Saturday, December 10, 2016

The Great Fen Project and Clever Gadwalls

The Great Fen is a habitat restoration project in Cambridgeshire. It is one of the largest restoration projects in the country, and aims to create a 3,700 hectare wetland connecting Woodwalton Fen National Nature Reserve (NNR), Holme Fen NNR and other nature reserves to create a very large conservation site. We had intended visiting last year but somehow the months went by so we were determined to make it in 2016. Woodwalton Fen has a sixeable population of Bittern and also Harriers and Red Kites. We only saw Buzzards in the air but were fortunate to glimpse 2 Bitterns. A return visit definitely on the books.
While waiting for bittern action, I spent time observing the Gadwall ducks - an unusually large number present on a deep Mere (they are dabbling ducks). They were pursuing Coots especially when they dived for food. I researched this on the internet and found a large amount of literature on Kleptoparasitism in Gadwalls. This learned behaviour of pirating food off Coots is thought to be responsible for the large increase in Gadwall numbers in the UK.



Ann Miles Photography - My Favourite Images of the Past10 years or so