Ott Dog

 Alan Shorrock and I braved the wet conditions this morning to visit Eyebrook Reservoir though the rain eased and things began to improve before noon arrived. With the country braced to receive the dubious blessings of the first named autumnal storm it was nice to have some mild conditions and a bit of afternoon sunshine to enjoy before the predicted gales hit. Eyebrook has had a good year so far and I wonder if tomorrow's weather drops something else in, hopefully not as I'm committed to other things!

Pintails, Kestrel and Yellow-legged Gull

We began at Sam's Dyke where there was not too much of note and soon moved on to the island bunker. An adult Yellow-legged Gull was a decent find here but it was overshadowed when Shozzer found a juvenile Scaup which proceeded to swim out of view. Between here and the inflow we didn't find much other than a Great White Egret. Alan added more lustre to the day when he spotted a dog Otter swimming and feeding near Stoke Dry car park. I headed back towards Hollyoaks Lane hoping to get better views but sadly failed to see it again. My walk wasn't in vain however as I did get further views of the Scaup though it was distant. Happily a female Stonechat was much closer though my attempts to get a pic were feeble, I had better results with her partner a little later on. Also showing at the inflow were about thirty five Pintails, other wildfowl seemed down on numbers though there was apparently a big shoot on the neighbouring farmland yesterday which may have cleared the res out a bit.

Stonechat, Scaup (with Tufted Duck) and Redshank

Having persuaded Al to go round to the plantation I was a little disappointed not to get further views of the Scaup and indeed we didn't see much at all. With the sun now beginning to emerge we decided to head to the bridge in search of insects. At least four Willow Emeralds rewarded us for our efforts and there were also a few Common Darters as well as a late Speckled Wood. We had a quick look from the inflow bunker and managed to leave just before a red-tagged Marsh Harrier put in an appearance but did get to see the pair of Stonechats. Another look from Hollyoaks produced further though still distant views of the Scaup and I attempted a few record shots. Final stop was at the island where the Yellow-legged was still present but once again it had to play second fiddle though this time to a Redshank which dropped in while we were there.

Willow Emerald, Speckled Wood and Common Darter