Little things...

Sunday 1st April

I hadn't planned to do any birding today, but a very good friend of mine text about meeting up and so we headed out to the piers and chatted a while and then went our separate ways and I decided to check Lapwing Lake. Mully had text in the morning to say there was LITTLE Egret roosting there and although it was now late afternoon I figured it was worth a check. Lucky I did coz there in a willow was indeed a Little Egret. Cool beans :) Well that was going to be that, but for some reason I thought may as well go see if the Tawny Owl is there (knowing that it wouldn't be...it wasn't!) and give Birchwood Pool a quick shufty as I'd left it out of the loop yesterday. Glad I did...

There was already a bloke at the west hide when I arrived and we chatted briefly until... hang on... what's that... bloody hell LITTLE Gull. A gorgeous adult not yet with its summer black hood was hawking for insects in the sunlight with elegant dips and flutters above the pool.  Smokey underwing, delicately rounded wingtips, lightest most bouyant flight... beautiful. Quickly gave Mully a ring who was down in about 5 minutes flat and who then began the round of calls and texts to other patchers. This was apparently the first Little Gull for the reserve itself, the only other records coming from Halfway House. Mike manage to get hold of Gary who was going to head down so we kept and eye on the bird and began scanning the margins... There's a shingle spit to the left of the hide and I was casually taking a glance when Mike perks up rhetorically..." Is that  a LITTLE Ringed Plover?". Well bugger me. Yes it was. Good stuff. Things are definitely on the move through the patch it seems...

Wasn't long before Gary and his lad showed up and promptly got two for the price of one lol... All good! Although it seems this year there is some real competition listwise going on. Gary's on 80 something already, Mike's on 98 and Den it seems is also on a mission for 2012. I have some catching up to do it seems coz my year list is now just...

71 species :/