Waders On Ice

 Yesterday morning was a bit icy underfoot but there was plenty of snow about so I walked on that where I could. I walked to the hide after Jon had put me onto the two Bewick's Swans he'd found over on the north side of the Mere. We tried to get photos with the cameras but they were too distant so I put the phone onto Jon's scope in the hope I could get some shots that way. No chance unfortunately, the only images I got were unrecognisable.

Two Bewick's Swans on the Mere - honest 🤣

Another shot of the Bewick's, no better!

At the hide there were more birds present than I'd seen in months, with the ice providing loafing opportunities that are not usually available. Great Black-backed Gulls, Black-headed Gulls, Mallards, Goldeneye, Wigeon, Gadwall, Teal, a few Coot and I heard Redshank calling.

On scanning the ice I found 3 Redshank on the north side with another calling from further west.

Redshank

Two Redshank

A third Redshank but didn't get a pic of the fourth

I also spotted a Dunlin on the edge of the ice...

Dunlin

 

Goldeneye, Teal and Wigeon

104(ish) Great Black-backed Gulls

A drake Goosander flew past the hide going west then turned and circled before disappearing west again.

Drake Goosander

The day before I was walking along Southorpe Road and checking the large puddles in the fields for any sign of life. Most of the time there is nothing, but every now and then you get something, like two Snipe and a Dunlin.

View from the road with a 600mm lens

For long enough I thought the Snipe on the right could be a Jack Snipe as it was smaller then the other bird which was definitely a Common Snipe. I couldn't get the central stripe through the crown nor the beak length with the bins, and the photos weren't clear enough until I got home. They were both Common Snipe of course but a bit of excitement is good for you 😀

The following pics are all cropped from images originally like the one above.

Common Snipe

Common Snipe and Dunlin

Common Snipe and Dunlin