Welney: Barn Owls

We spent the afternoon at Welney with the Barn Owl(s) - there are several pairs roosting around Lady fen so a good chance of seeing them out hunting in the daylight. Not technically good images as at a distance for my lens but hopefully gives the feel of these wonderful birds on a sunlit afternoon. The last two were taken into the low sun and show a successful catch which the owl managed to get back to its barn despite three 'pirating' kestrels.

Welney Morning Birds

We spent the rest of Sunday morning (after a breakfast in the cafe!!), general bird watching and 'snapping' on the main reserve so here a flavour of the session and including Cattle Egret and ?Chiffchaff (a pair were flitting in the bushes - presumably overwintered in UK).

Welney - Moon Set, Sun Rise

Members of the RPS Nature Group attended the Swans Awake event at Welney WWT yesterday and witnessed the setting of the full moon as the sun rose to give us a bright clear day for the rest of our time at the reserve. Here a few images to give the atmosphere; unfortunately the wind direction meant the swans departed away from us except for a few groups. The Barn owl over the bank was a great addition and later would become the focus of our photography. 

Short-Eared Owls in the Frost

There were three Short-eared Owls at Welney on Wednesday - we saw them briefly in the morning quite close as they exited from their roost area. Later we enjoyed watching them quartering Lady Fen at a distance. but still unmistakable

Welney Swans on Ice

We visited Welney on Wednesday in subzero temperature and misty conditions which made great backdrops for the Whooper Swans, Greylags and ducks. There is very little unfrozen water  for the swans so numbers for the roost were much lower than usual.