‘Twas the night before Christmas’ - Well, really the day.
Unlike the house in the poem, the reserve today was full of activity. The ice of two weeks ago has been converted back to liquid form by the recent mild weather and then topped up by the almost non-stop rain, meaning the water level has risen by around a foot (300 mm in metric).
The morning saw a large flock of Whooper Swans move off the Carden Flood; 300+ Greylag Geese and 11 Barnacle Geese were browsing on the grass between the Flood and the loch, with a flock of Pink-footed Geese grazing behind the Flood.
A male Hen Harrier was seen briefly in the morning, and a turquoise-tagged White-tailed Eagle could be observed, perched on one of the trees over on St Serf’s Inch, for most of the day.
On the Flood and in Vane Bay were Mute Swans, with largish numbers of Mallard, Wigeon and Teal ducks. One Shelduck was present on the Flood for a while, and a few Goldeneyes in Vane Bay. Goosanders were also present, and a pair of Pintail Ducks was spotted in the afternoon.
Bullfinches were feeding amongst the weeds (native plants?) near the Visitors Centre, and a Tree Sparrow frequented the feeders.
Other sightings included several of Roe Deer, and a male Fox was spotted trotting along the edge of the Flood before going to ground in the long grass at the back.
All in all, not bad for Christmas Eve.
Wishing all our readers a Merry Christmas.