A couple of Ruff appeared last week on the MDZ Pools and with increasing water levels this prime bit of habitat had attracted some more by Sunday! This morning there were eight tottering around the marshy islands along with the pair of Redshank and two pairs of Lapwings. They all appear to be males with leg colour varying from fleshy pink through yellow and orange to red! Some had blotchy white pacthes on the head and neck and this is a quite likely indication of the colour of the Ruff that will later develop as they reach their breeding grounds. Ruff is a rare breeder in the UK now but is still quite common on the Dutch polders.
Now....
...and what it could look like in a few weeks time!
2-4-12
Howard Vaughan, Information Officer