Yesterday was a good day to be working on the reserve. A pre-work amble along the river wall gave me
some more splendid (but camera avoiding) views of one of the male Ring Ouzels
while 11 Common Terns fed above the drifting line of big Gulls on the river and
a pair of Med Gulls overhead brought an immediate smile.
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| Med Gulls |
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Ring Ouzel - Pete Woods
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Ring Ouzel - Tom Bell - as you can see it showed quite well after I left!
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I did not have long and soon headed back with a message from
Jamie about a Spoonbill causing me to keep my eyes up. I picked it up just a
few minutes later being harassed by a Herring Gull. In fact it followed all the
way from Wennington to the Purfleet Scrape where it touched down for a well
earned bit of R&R in true Spoonbill fashion.
It was a little warmer but the Warblers were a little
quieter and there appeared to be nothing new in. Back at the Centre the
Spoonbill was obviously a lot closer and revealed itself to be a full breeding plumaged
adult with a vibrant bare yellow throat, yellow tip to the bill and hint of a
breast band. The crest was astonishing
and reached half way down its neck.
After a few shuffles and stretches it soon settled in for a kip while
the 11 pairs of Avocets on the nearby island probably were not helping it nod
off.
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| Spoonbill |
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Russ Sherriff wins the Spoonbill photo comp
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The rest of the day was spent out front but a phone call
from John Humble at 1.40 sent me scurrying for a sky view as a White Stork was
drifting our way. I soon picked it up but it swung back west and spent the next
half hour circling Wennington and the landfill with gulls, a flock of Shelduck
and even a Red Kite giving it grief before heading across the river and over
Dartford Marsh. It seemingly returned
ten minutes later and re-crossed Wennington before being picked up ten minutes
later over Romford!
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White Stork with Great Black Backed Gull in tow
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and being heckled by the angry flock of Shelduck
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And finally by a Red Kite which is still a good bird for the reserve! This was about 2 miles away over the landfill from the Visitor Centre
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However, when it flew over Steve Cullum it was a little lower AND had a blue patch of sky!
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As to the origins, I am honestly not fussed. It seems to
bare a small metal ring on the right leg below the joint which seems at odds
with the Knepp project but any day with a Stork overhead is a good day.
Wow
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