On Monday last week it was bitterly cold - we'd had snow overnight and the weather forecast threatened more to come. After a very careful drive to Minsmere I wrapped myself up in about fifty layers of clothing, added my extreme cold weather shoes and headed out onto the reserve. It was very quiet on the path to Bittern Hide until this little beauty appeared:
I abruptly found myself surrounded by a flock of about 15 of them - awwwww!
Hard on the heels of the long-tailed tits came this beautiful goldcrest!
To my pleasant surprise the lovely family of whooper swans which arrived on the previous Friday were relaxing in front of Bittern Hide.
They'll be heading north in the not too distant future so it's great to have the chance to admire them while they're here.
For once I managed to snap the green woodpecker as I walked to Island Mere Hide. It kindly appeared at the bottom of Whin Hill.
At Island Mere the marsh harriers were doing their usual thing. This one, happily, came particularly close!
What a beauty.
A cormorant heads for its favourite perch.
It shows off its beautiful sheen as it comes in!
It's quite weird seeing it with the white head - for some reason I've never managed to capture it in breeding plumage before.
Hello, handsome!
Got to have an incoming swan.
Those huge feet make the best non-mechanical brakes at Minsmere!
On my way back to the Visitor Centre I was treated to a lovely song from Bluey.
Finishing with this dunnock peering at me from the foliage.
Enjoy!
Our herring gulls are red listed birds. Think about that the next time you hear some flaming idiot calling for a cull of them.