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| Kingfisher, male, Alcedo atthis |
On Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday I attended a First Aid at
Work course. With a few hours left on Wednesday afternoon I headed to Arundel
WWT with Sue for some outdoor therapy, following up with visits on Thursday and
today. Each day I saw a pair of Kingfishers whizzing around. From my vantage point in the Sand Martin hide I saw them zooming left
to right, right to left and back and forth across the lake.
On Wednesday one
landed on the high post in front of the hide, but I only saw it briefly as it flew
off. On Thursday, between torrential showers, a male Kingfisher landed on the
same post and stayed for a record four seconds, during which time I managed to squeeze
off five shots. Some swallows appeared briefly and dipped their beaks into the water.
This morning Sue joined me and I saw a weasel run across the
path by the garden area near the Sand Martin hide. It then ran around the
garden, reappearing and disappearing very fast. There were many more Kingfisher
sightings from the hide.
Yesterday I received news that the lake at Warnham Nature
Reserve at Horsham had been drained inadvertently on Monday by the
Environment Agency, creating an ecological disaster for that wonderful
reserve. It was only recently that I was watching two Kingfishers battling in
front of the first hide. It will probably take years for the lake to recover,
and the ecosystem to return to its former state. News reports covering this story:
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| Tuesday sunset |
Wednesday:
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| Black-headed Gull, Chroicocephalus ridibundus |
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| Kingfisher, Alcedo atthis |
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| female Mallard, Anas platyrhynchos |
Thursday:
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| Lake Swanbourne millpond |
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| Sand Martin hide |
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| Chaffinch, Fringilla coelebs with legs and feet deformed by cnemidocoptic mites |
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| Coot, Fulica atra |
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| Cormorant, Phalacrocorax carbo |
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| Cormorant, Phalacrocorax carbo |
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| Dunnock, Prunella modularis |
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| Gadwall, Anas strepera |
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| Great Tit, Parus major |
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| Kingfisher, Alcedo atthis |
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| this is the full height version of the photo above |
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| the 5th photo in the series |
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| Moorhen, Gallinula chloropus |
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| Mute Swan, Cygnus olor |
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| Swallow, Hirundo rustica |
Friday:
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| Cormorant, Phalacrocorax carbo |
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| The swan chased the Greylag. Yesterday he chased a coot. |
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| Greylag Goose, Anser anse |
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| Mute Swan and cygnet, Cygnus olo |
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| cygnet |
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| Mute Swan, Cygnus olor |
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| female Tufted Ducks, Aythya fuligula |
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| elusive Weasel, Mustela nivalis |
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