Glossy Leaves It Late

As you may have noticed today's weather was on the wrong side of dreadful with way too much rain for my liking. For that reason Alan Shorrock and I chose not to visit the Pitsford diver as originally planned and instead opted for Summer Leys where the hides offered some protection from the elements.  The birding was steady rather than spectacular but it's always nicer to be out rather than stay at home watching Saturday Kitchen on the Ned Kelly.

Green Woodpecker and Oystercatcher

We began at Rotary Hide where a small number of ducks were noted but not much else. Pioneer didn't offer much more though I did get my first Oystercatcher of the year, better views were achieved from Paul Britten Hide. A Green Woodpecker gave some excellent views as it fed busily  on the grass between the hide and the main lake, I saw it or another from the Screen. Plenty of Great White Egrets were moving around the reserve but I didn't see any Littles. Perhaps as many as a hundred Golden Plovers were seen from Paul Britten Hide, the flock seemed to swell in numbers as the morning progressed. When the birds were spooked by a passing raptor a flock of at least thirty Snipe took flight before settling out of sight in vegetation next to the main lake. On the walk between the double decker and the screen we picked out a first winter Yellow-legged Gull near Gull Island though it didn't hang around for too long.

Shoveller and GWE

As dank morning slipped into dull afternoon we popped into the Screen Hide but failed to see any sign of the long staying Glossy Ibis. Some compensation for this was provided by a small flock of Shovellers which gave excellent views. Our search for the Glossy then took us as far as the old railway track  but our luck did not improve and we decided to retrace our steps. Shozzer opted to head back to the car for a bite to eat while I returned to the screen. I don't know how good Al's grub was but my views of the Glossy Ibis were not bad at all though the bird did the dirty on Alan as it flew off before he could get to the hide. We loitered for a while hoping that it might return but eventually had to give up, a pint in the Coach and Horses helped to ease any lingering sense of disappointment.

Glossy Ibis