Good morning, if you are wondering what the title of this blog post is all about, both of these species could have been seen on the reserve yesterday evening.
The little bittern was barking away in its usual spot in the triangle just east of Joist Fen viewpoint and showing itself occasionally both in the reedbeds and in flight. Earlier on in the week, the bird was photographed by Ian Goodall and here are his pictures:
Image credits: Ian Goodall
Thank you very much to Ian for sharing these great pictures with us.
As for the collared pratincole, which is the fifth record of this species in Suffolk and another first record for the reserve, it was first seen distantly from Joist Fen viewpoint just before 6pm. After disappearing for a while, it was seen again in flight between Joist Fen viewpoint and the far end of the reserve.
Sadly, as yet, it hasn't been relocated this morning and the little bittern also hasn't been heard or seen unfortunately.
If the collared pratincole does reappear, we will let you know. Please note that if it does reappear, one of our pairs of cranes are visible with their youngster from the riverbank just west of Joist Fen viewpoint. Therefore, if you are watching from that section of the riverbank and see the cranes, we request that you DO NOT spend too much time looking at them, in order to limit disturbance to the adults whilst they are looking after their youngster.
As well as these two rare birds, there are plenty of other things to see here at the moment. I will leave you with some pictures that were taken on the reserve on Saturday by Matt Walton:
An otter:
A barn owl hunting:
Sunrise over the washland:
Image credits: Matt Walton
Thank you very much to Matt for sharing these great pictures with us.
We hope to see you on the reserve soon!