I decided to go the long way round - the endless blockage to the Sustrans 64 is really annoying everyone - and ride to Cotham rubbish tip. What I was after were some shots of the huge numbers of gulls that are often found there, gulls that experienced birdwatchers of my acquaintance are able to identify at a range of 200 metres, when there are thousands of them.
A juvenile glaucous gull, seemingly the size of a turkey, has had a lot of attention there lately.
Sadly, there weren't many gulls on view today, as it turned out they were all hiding on the other side of the ridge. But I could still see a few greater black backed gulls mooching around, and there were plenty of rooks looking on, perched on the fences and the edge of the tip "crater".
But not, on the whole, a pretty place.
So I carried on cycling, on my Cotham - Thorpe - Home route, and was just crossing over one of the numerous small rivers you find around here - this one was the oddly named Car Dyke, which flows into the Devon - when a beautiful white bird caught my attention and made me stand on my brakes.
It was a gorgeous egret, barely 15 metres away, standing on the edge of the water.
I approached oh so slowly, oh so stealthily, with my camera, but the bird still sensed my approach and took off with its mate. Pah, an egret at that range would have made for a stunning photograph!
Still a gorgeous bird though. But a pesky one!
Si
All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 11.02.16
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| Kestrel bird scarer |
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| Crows on a wire |
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| Crows on a mountain |
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| Crows on a crater |
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| Digger |
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| Two diggers |
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| Greater black backed gull |
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| More gulls |
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| Echelon gulls |
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| Egrets in flight |
Amazing how many birds can be seen making the most of our rubbish.
ReplyDeleteEgret are such elegant birds.
Close encounters with Little Egrets are definitely memorable - sounds fun, Si!
ReplyDeleteThat was the closest meeting with an egret I've ever had. Pity it was so fleeting. Thank you as ever for dropping by!
ReplyDeleteIt is amazing how Little Egrets have spread north in recent years isn't it and they are always good to see, picture or no picture. Gulls are one of those strange specialist areas amongst birders and I have to admit I find it hard to tell some of the rarer types apart from the more common ones!
ReplyDeleteHope you have a great weekend :-)
So glad you saw the Egret, even if it didn't pose on this occasion. I recall the magic moment on the Gower peninsula when I saw my first one some 24 years ago! I think they were a real novelty back then.
ReplyDeleteI'd never seen anything whiter when I saw my first one
DeleteYou really wonder where the seagulls come from. The farmer can start ploughing and not a seagull in sight. By the time he gets once down the field there are hundreds behind him. Their eyesight must be amazing.
ReplyDeleteDo hope the egrets return and you get a shot for us.
I will try, but I'll be lucky to get as close to one again. They are quite plentiful around here! Thank you.
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