The Peregrines put on a lovely display the moment I set foot in the meadows this morning. The male flew after the female from one pylon to the next, as she carried a still fluttering prey. She landed right at the top and set about eating her catch.
Two folks walked towards me, birders I had met many times before and I asked if they had noticed them. Of course they had, but breathlessly they told me they’d seen something even more special. A while earlier a Glossy Ibis had flown into the marsh. Yesterday I had spent a few hours quietly searching the marsh in the bitter wind, hoping I might see one. I’ve been certain one would turn up one day. It’s just the perfect place for them, and something missing from the list.
I spent the next three hours there, absolutely convinced I’d spot it emerge from the vegetation but it didn’t. Three Jack snipe and a green sandpiper were the reward for my efforts, so I was pleased but ultimately I went home disappointed.
I’m still not sure it wasn’t there, I know a little egret was, bigger and much more conspicuous but that vanished into the undergrowth without too much trouble. I only saw it twice, so a smaller darker bird could easily remain unseen. I’ll head back tomorrow and spend some more time there.
Here’s the what I was looking for, note the beautiful sheen in the plumage.
(photo taken by Peter Orr at Hungerford in 2011, the last (and only) time I’ve seen one in the UK. )
Rural Reading 