With only a small number of purple herons visiting the UK each year, I thought I'd revisit Whelford pools to see the juvenile bird once more and hopefully see it for longer than the five minutes last Monday! On Saturday a lot of birders were disappointed that the heron didn't turn up at all, but I found out that it had been showing earlier this morning. Having completed my mornings jobs at home, I arrived at 11.20 to find the car park full but managed to squeeze between two cars further along the road meaning a short walk back to the reserve.
As expected the benches were full, but there was standing room at the back of the hide and I found a good spot and waited. The heron had apparently flown off and no one was sure if it would return. Thankfully a seat became vacant so I sat down and began to wait. Someone had put out seeds in a couple of feeders in front of the hide so there was a constant stream of blue and great tits with the occasional robin or dunnock. After about three quarters of an hour, just as a couple had given up and left the hide, the purple heron flew in! And this time it looked like it was there for the rest of the day! To start with it walked along carefully in front of the reeds and back, before stopping to catch a fish. It disappeared for a bit, though could be seen by people at the far end of the hide who said it was fishing regularly. Eventually it made its way back and then settled down just behind a pile of dead reads and stayed more or less motionless, occasionally lifting up his head, or darting at a fish that had strayed into its territory. Meanwhile, an observant watcher had noticed an osprey pass overhead with a fish, which was an added bonus to my visit.
Having sat for a couple of hours and with the heron still present but not moving much, I decided to give up my seat to someone else and headed home.
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