What a beautiful day it was on Saturday. Having seen a news report on whooper swans at Welney recently we decided to make the most of the weather and head for this lovely place. The first birds we saw, though, weren't remotely swan-like:
A tree sparrow!
Welney seemed to have good numbers of both of our native sparrows.
This one seemed unaware that Halloween was over weeks ago.
There were loads of whooper swans about and more kept arriving - there was a scheduled feed due at 3.30.
One or two black-tailed godwits were about!
Splashdown!
It was great to watch this shoveler pair - they just kept going round and round each other (no teddy bear in sight, though).
Pochards have such beautiful colours.
These two have clearly been to the Canada goose school of subtlety and tact.
Far too lovely to be called manky. Definitely a male mallard in part, though, as those curly feathers are a dead giveaway.
Another flock of whoopers comes in - aren't they gorgeous?
A shy coot tries to go unnoticed.
'Stop watching us - we're trying for some romance here.'
'Now, where were we?'
'Oh, yes, I definitely like you.'
'Meet me later and we'll talk about the first thing that comes up.'
Another incoming whooper - I couldn't get enough of them!
Splashdown.
A young pochard?
A flock of godwits on one of their mass spooks.
Calm again.
I hope you all enjoy these. I hope we can get back here soon as it was a joyful experience!
Our herring gulls are red listed birds. Think about that the next time you hear some flaming idiot calling for a cull of them.
Whoopers are such beautiful birds aren't they. They do seem to show genuine affection for one another.
I went there on a very windy day a couple of years ago and it's a great place. Much less manicured compared with Slimbridge.
Did you stay for the feed? Quite a spectacle.
____________________________________________________________________
Tony
My Flickr Photostream
Thoroughly enjoyed them, Clare. I can tell that you both had a good day! Never get tired of swans, but it's nice to see the others, too.
I must have missed this post but glad I finally caught up with it Clare. The Whoopers are magnificent swans, i saw them last at Martin Mere WWT in good numbers too. Also good to see the Godwits, Pochards and not forgetting the little Coot !
_____________________________________
Regards, Hazel
Unknown said:Did you stay for the feed? Quite a spectacle.
Tree Sparrow, now that's a rarity Clare. Love the flight shot of the seven whoopers, really good, and the flock of Godwits. Great post.
Lot to learn
Gorgeous, Clare! Looks like you had a great day out. The Swans are beautiful (and the rest aren't bad either!)
Kind regards, Ann