It was a glorious morning on the reserve yesterday. The lagoon was still with reflections - a huge change from the wind driven waves of the last few weeks. I was just aware of the birdsong and the warmth of the sun as I walked along towards the stone lighthouse. Red Pond was still very flooded, but the birds were flitting about and a thrush was searching for food. There was a bit of activity in the pond and a closer look revealed a massive patch of frog spawn with a few small newts swimming around it. The frogs were a bit shy and I had to wait ages before at least three sets of eyes appeared again and then disappeared just as quickly at a distant shout. There was no sign of the Slavonian grebe in the White Rock corner of the lagoon today, but there were two pairs of merganser and a pair of great crested grebes were doing their 'courtship' dance
There were a few flies about too. After last year's dragonfly success it's exciting to look forward to the insect life after the winter break. There were fourteen species of dragonfly seen and photographed on the reserve last year, and though numbers were down, particularly the larger species, they were all active on and around the ponds. Let's hope the weather's on our side!
Lovely shot of the Mergansers Chris.