Seldom does a bird look more content than a Snipe when it is happily probing for worms in a nice marshy field. Try to imagine having a mouth so sensitive that you could put it on the ground and feel a worm wiggling beneath you. There is probably a random element too but they only seem to suffer when the ground freezes.
It is still pleasing to find that they like the area infront of the Purfleet Hide. The waters have dropped a little and there are more muddy margins. I reckon that we shall have a LIttle Ringed Plover before the end of next week....
Images by Russ Sherriff
9-3-13