Oct 4th Strumpshaw Fen

Mute Swan

The sun had just recently risen when I arrived to Strumpshaw this morning. However, the light remained rather dim throughout the day. It was gloomy, dull, overcast and a bit on the blustery side. The brighter colours mainly came from some of the birds. Not many were as bright as the white feathers covering the mute swans, though it might not be as colourful as the kingfisher that made a couple of low flybys at Fen Hide with the electric blues and burning orange of it's plumage reflecting in the water beneath it, whizzing past like a flash of lightning. I also saw a Chinese water deer, a couple of marsh harriers, a heron, Cobber the black swan, gadwall and the odd snipe that was flying over the reserve during my visit to Fen Hide today.

Cobber the Black Swan

Chinese Water Deer

Grey Heron

Gadwall

Coot

Marsh Harrier

Male Bearded Tit

I had enough time before starting my shift to look for bearded tits in the reed beds along the Sandy Wall near the river. I was in luck. They were not only pinging lively, they were also coming right up to the path where me and one of my regulars were standing. At least 4-5 of them were showing themselves to us, but there could easily have been more hiding in the cover of the reeds. At first they played hard to get, flying off as soon as I had managed to locate them, but eventually they got used to us and settled on the reed stems for us to get a few shots in with our cameras. This is a great time to see these birds, so if they are on your wish list, come to this spot at Strumpshaw in the morning and you should hopefully see them.



Female Bearded Tit

Great Tit

Marsh Tit

Kingfisher

At Reception Hide, it was another quiet, dull scene. House martins were flashing their white rumps as they skimmed the surface of the broad. With the temperatures dropping and starting to feel wintery, it is baffling why they are still here and not enjoying the African sunshine and insects yet. I also saw another kingfisher, which made a couple of visits to the measuring post, a water rail that would not come out of the reeds close to the left side of the hide long enough for a photo opportunity, marsh harriers, gadwalls, mallards, cormorants, coots and a couple of teals. The quantity of birds from the hide was on the low side, but there were still a few quality birds to keep me from nodding off while staring at the sleepy scene in front of me.

Cormorant