Beeston Weir en route to Attenborough
Today though i returned, and it was an excellent day. The sun was shining brightly and it actually felt quite warm when in the direct light, although there was a ground frost which stuck round most of the day in shady areas. It was nice to bike down the trent, especially in the scrub by clifton bridge, where loads of birds were singing loudly, making it seem like a spring day , most notable were Chaffinch, Greenfinch and Song Thrush. Song thrushes were singing loudly and clearly down the whole river actually, sounding especially nice echoing around the trees in clifton grove. Spring is round the corner!
A Magpie near Clifton Bridge, look at that blue sky!
The reserve itself was a bustle of activity too. I stopped off in the delta hide first, hoping to see a Bittern, and after half an hour i managed to glimpse one, albeit for only a few seconds. In the meantime it was lovely to sit watching the wildfowl feeding in the sunshine, with the resplendent plumage of Wigeon Gadwall and Tufted duck looking all the better in the morning light. I could sit and watch wildfowl for ages, they are so entertaining in their social and feeding habits, as well as the noises they make. Lots of reed buntings were in the reeds opposite the hide too and most of the males were back in breeding plumage and were very active and starting to sing.
A sunny reflection at Attenborough
I left the hide happily at around 11 o clock and made my way around the reserve, taking the route round the tween pond towards the visitor centre. There were Grey herons nesting in abundance, and i counted 21 across the reserve today. I also stopped off on the path to take pictures of the main pond, and later again to photograph birds feeding on seeds placed on an old coppice stool - however there were lots of people about so it was difficult, i might go back on an early morning later in the year.
Over near the main entrance bridge were plenty of singing dunnocks, making it truly feel like spring. I went to look at the scrapes on the tween pond and found there to be a lot of black headed gulls there, along with 4 Teal and a Shelduck. Work has pretty much finished on the new wheatear field wet meadow/reedbeds, and now its just bare, but it will be interesting to see what happens over the course of the year here.
I went to the kingfisher hide, not really expecting much, but as soon as i went in, someone shouted 'Bittern!' and i rushed to the window to see my second of the day, landing in the reedbed closest to the hide. Despite sticking around for a while, it didnt reappear, but it was nice looking at the usual residents of the seed feeders, the tree sparrows and great tits being the star attractions.
Over at the tower hide, 4 Buzzards were the highlight, riding high on the thermals, as well as around 100 Lapwing wheeling over the reserve in a tight flock. It was very peaceful and it was nice to sit and count the wildfowl, although they were in lower numbers than usual. Another Shelduck was seen feeding near the island, as well as a few Goldeneye scattered about. The bittern didnt show itself again, and there was no sign of any snipe, but it was nice anyway. A herring gull provided a laugh or two, as it dived in to catch as crayfish, and while flying away its victim locked its claws on the gull's breast feathers. It refused to let go, despite multiple dives by the gull into the lake. Eventually it dropped off and was despatched of quickly, before being devoured - what a fighter though!
Eventually a group of canada and greylag geese flew into the pond, destroying what peace there was. I had a scan through to see if there were any wild geese there, but to no avail. Satisified i packed up, and walked back to my bike, getting some good views of a few more Goosander and Pochard along the way.
Good day!!!
I went to the kingfisher hide, not really expecting much, but as soon as i went in, someone shouted 'Bittern!' and i rushed to the window to see my second of the day, landing in the reedbed closest to the hide. Despite sticking around for a while, it didnt reappear, but it was nice looking at the usual residents of the seed feeders, the tree sparrows and great tits being the star attractions.
Over at the tower hide, 4 Buzzards were the highlight, riding high on the thermals, as well as around 100 Lapwing wheeling over the reserve in a tight flock. It was very peaceful and it was nice to sit and count the wildfowl, although they were in lower numbers than usual. Another Shelduck was seen feeding near the island, as well as a few Goldeneye scattered about. The bittern didnt show itself again, and there was no sign of any snipe, but it was nice anyway. A herring gull provided a laugh or two, as it dived in to catch as crayfish, and while flying away its victim locked its claws on the gull's breast feathers. It refused to let go, despite multiple dives by the gull into the lake. Eventually it dropped off and was despatched of quickly, before being devoured - what a fighter though!
Eventually a group of canada and greylag geese flew into the pond, destroying what peace there was. I had a scan through to see if there were any wild geese there, but to no avail. Satisified i packed up, and walked back to my bike, getting some good views of a few more Goosander and Pochard along the way.
Good day!!!
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