THE NORTH WIND DOTH BLOW AT SLIMBRIDGE WWT

 

After a couple of days  without having had a decent walk, I was ready for my  visit to Slimbridge Wetland Centre today. Although a dry and mainly sunny morning at the Centre, there was quite an unseasonal moderate north wind blowing, so I added an extra layer or two. of  clothing. 

I arrived ten minutes before the visitor centre opened and joined the queue at admissions. For once I was glad of a mask, it kept the wind chill from my face!! SInce my last visit, masks have become mandatory in all indoor areas, including hides but it was surprising how quickly you get used to it.

 I decided to head straight for the Holden Walkway to see if the Great White Egret was still present on the Pill Box Pool which it has visited over the past couple of days. Entering the hide, one other lady was already there and she quickly pointed out a kingfisher perched on the reeds on the opposite side of the water. It stayed long enough for a couple of pictures before flying off. I scanned the area and  soon spotted a white head poking above the grass. An egret?  Yes, but the black colour of the bill  told me that it was not a great white but a little egret - an great white has a yellow bill. It was nice to watch it attempting to fish after which it flew off, but no larger egret appeared. Perhaps it had just stopped over during the rain storms.

Over the morning I called in at most of the hides, a variety of species were present  but  the water levels quite high so fewer waders than normal. As I sat in the Zeiss hide, half a dozen cranes flew in and landed over the sea wall. I later observed them from the Estuary hide. 

As I headed towards the kingfisher hide, I noticed, a new reedbed walkway - I learned that it had been open since lockdown, but on my previous visits I can't have noticed it! . With the sun out and vegetation high on both sides of the path it felt quite sheltered; it would be handy if they'd put a bench to sit and enjoy it!  Within the reedbed I spotted a few small white butterflies and saw a couple of dragonflies fly past but not close enough to identify, but then suddenly another  landed on the vegetation right next to where I was standing on the path- a migrant hawker, a new species for my recently started  list.  It stayed motionless and allowed some close shots of it, and was still there when I left, hanging onto the stalk as it swayed in the wind. 

Returning to the Rushy Hide  I spotted two green sandpipers and a possible snipe.  

cranes

kingfisher

little egret

migrant hawker

migrant hawker

reedbed walkway

still the occasional moorhen chick around

Today's species included:

gadwall, mallard, little grebe and juvenile, moorhen, coot, herring gull, great black backed gull, cormorant, grey heron, little egret, greylag, green sandpiper, snipe, lapwing, crane, blue tit, great tit, long tailed tit, chiffchaff, kingfisher, avocet,  little egret, shoveler, black tailed godwit.