Leighton Moss Tufted Ducks

I visited my spiritual home at Leighton Moss RSPB again last week! I headed straight for the Public Hide which is situated halfway down the main causeway. This hide overlooks a large expanse of freshwater and is surrounded by extensive reedbeds. It is one of the best places on the reserve to view fabulous species such as Bittern, Marsh Harrier and Otter.
After a dull start to March we were lucky that the sun was shining on the day of our visit. I quickly found a the mother Otter and her two cubs swimming in the distance, but they soon swam out of view. A female Marsh Harrier flew across the reeds on the far side of the reserve and it too disappeared. And the Bitterns failed to materialise while we were there.
But a very common species gave what twitchers would call "crippling views!" There was a small flock of Tufted Ducks milling around right in front of the hide and they provided superb close photographic opportunities for about twenty minutes. The black heads of the males occasionally flashed with a blue iridescence as they swam in the sunlight. I tried to catch this colouration on my camera with moderate success, but they were a joy to watch nevertheless.
There were also six young Mute Swans still sporting some brown juvenile feathers that were also fun to photograph. Two adult swans, most likely the parents of the cygnets, swam past the hide; they will probably not tolerate the presence of these young birds much longer.



Female Tufted Duck

 

Marsh Tits at Leighton Moss

Last week my friend Jane and I visited Sizergh Castle in Cumbria in the hope of seeing Hawfinches. We pulled into the car park in bright sunshine but it soon started to snow. A thorough search of the area failed to produce our quarry so we went for a short walk in the surrounding countryside; the coldness of the weather did not diminish our appreciation of this beautiful part of the country. After photographing common birds such as Robin, Wren and Blackbird, we returned to the car park but there was still no sign of the target birds. We decided to head south so we could lunch a Leighton Moss RSPB.
Passing through Milnthorpe the clouds unleashed a veritable snow blizzard of Dickensian proportions. It was almost a total whiteout! We drove on to Leighton Moss where we enjoyed a picnic in Lilian's Hide. I prefer to eat outside to maximise the wildlife viewing opportunities.
But to say the weather was changeable was grossly understating the situation. In the film version of H.G. Wells' classic novel The Time Machine, the time traveller views the passing days as a strobe of night and day; similarly the weather that day fluctuated rapidly between bouts of sunshine and mini snowstorms driven in by a bitter Easterly wind.
Undeterred by the elements we enjoyed a great day's birdwatching. One of the highlights for me was the newly built shelter by the bird feeders where we enjoyed great views of common woodland birds and scarcer birds including one of my favourites the subtly beautiful Marsh Tit. We rounded the day off with a very welcome curry in nearby Carnforth.

 

Robins and Wren photographed at Sizergh Castle.

Marsh Tits.

Common Snipe.

Immature Mute Swan in snowstorm.

Male Wigeon.

Female Great Spotted Woodpecker.

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