With the thaw comes the fog.Fly Flatts then Leeshaw Reservoir

                 Cormorants with Trout
 Left hand bird in breeding plumage

        all distant shots in the mist

          Distant shot of a first returning wader, Oystercatcher

                                             Herring gull  1 of 5

Much milder this afternoon but mild damp conditions on the uplands usually mean fog and today was no exception with Fly Flatts completely blanked out.
                                                                 Down the other side of the Nab Leeshaw reservoir was just on the cloud base with a SW>4 blowing horizontal drizzle over the area but enough visibility to see beyond the water with some half decent sky to the east,.
                                                                  Five Herring gull were present along with around 100 small gulls , mainly sticking to the water whilst 5 Mallard and 3 Goosander ,2f, 1 m , were also present.
                                                                  Nice to get my first local wader back with a distant Oystercatcher feeding in a field near Windle House farm across the north bank, hopefully the start of a move with Curlews to follow.
Three Cormorants, one in near full breeding plumage wearing the headband, were squabbling over a large Trout whilst Black Headed gulls were picking  up the pieces. Eventually the other 2 Cormorant continued diving to leave the third bird to devour its prize in peace.
BS