Feb 26th Strumpshaw Fen

It has been an eventful start to the morning today. I had to get a bus instead of a train as all the early trains were cancelled due to a tragic incident at the station. You can read all about it here https://www.edp24.co.uk/news/person-dies-at-norwich-railway-station-1-6531959

Percy the Pheasant

When I arrived at Strumpshaw, Percy was there to greet me. I have to be honest to say this, dear readers, I don't like Percy much anymore. He's been more persistent than usual. Recently, I have been avoiding him on purpose by cutting through the fenced off yard where the office is. Today, though, I decided to risk it and allow him to follow me through the woods. Getting my stuff out of my bag at the blind beside the Reception Hide, he leapt up on the fencing behind the blind, sitting there watching me impatiently. Once I was ready, I made my way through the woods. This was when he became a bit aggressive with a few mock charges at me. To him, I was not just a provider of food, I was now treated as a rival male. Thankfully, he wasn't around when I returned to do the feeders, but I did find him fighting another male pheasant. The video below just demonstrates the what these birds tend to do at this time of year as the hormones for breeding kick in.

Barn Owl

It was a bit too cold to hang around inside Fen Hide for too long this morning, not that there were much to see anyway. So, instead of staying any longer and risk freezing to death, I went for a walk towards the pump house via the river trail. I was almost at the pump house, when I noticed movement on the opposite side of the meadows. A barn owl was on the hunt. It was distant at first, but then it started flying towards my direction. And then, to my amazement, it perched on a bit of fencing a short distance from where I was standing! It perched there just long enough for me to capture my best ever shots of a barn owl I have ever taken. What an encounter! After a short while, it caught sight of something in the grass nearby and plunged down to catch it. It was down there longer than expected, so I think it caught whatever it was successfully.

Bullfinch

Walking on, I discovered a couple of mixed flocks of goldfinches and siskins feeding on the alder cones in the woods. Further still, the shy 'pew' calls of bullfinches alerted me to them feeding on a tree covered in blossom. After my walk, I went to flip the opening sign from closed to open, but before I could even do that, I was distracted by a red kite flying over the office area. And, as my shift at the Reception Hide was nearing an end, an otter appeared splashing around the broad busy hunting! That's three weeks in a row for seeing an otter now!