Next time Dave wants a change of scenery I am going to buy him some floral wallpaper which will be more pleasant to the eye than the thick drifting fog that greeted us at Nene Washes, Cambridgeshire this morning.
Just east of Peterborough this area is well worth a visit especially in winter with the possibilities of owls, harriers, waders, swans and duck and has a special place in my head but today we struggled though we did meet one of the locals who was extremely helpful and informative. Eventually the fog lifted and we managed a male Marsh Harrier, Kingfisher, 5 Stonechat, 4 Redwing and Fieldfare before moving on to nearby Sutton Gault for the Glossy Ibis.
Unfortunately luck was not on our side as it had flown over the waiting crowds just seconds before we arrived so we moved on to the Wildfowl Wetlands Trust reserve at Welney for dinner. The temperature was in the 20s by early afternoon and Dave spotted the 2 Common Cranes on the east side of the reserve and at least 2 Marsh Harriers hunting nearby. Though wintering numbers have still some way to climb we did have very good counts of Golden Plover, Lapwing and duck and as the reserve is well known for its wintering wild swans and we were treated to at least 350 Whooper Swan either on the reserve or in nearby fields which have only just started to arrive in the last few days to spend the winter here. Little Egret also seen.
Patch News: Steve Valentine had a female /immature Merlin near Grandborough Fields Farm and a Little Owl calling this morning.
Dave has just e-mailed me – he had 2 Merveille du Jour in his trap last night.
Richard
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