away from the top of Whitegate.
A real horror day up on the tops if you wanted to sit in the garden but great for reservoir watching.
The birds enjoyed it and I enjoyed watching them so everyone was happy.
A howling SW>4 increasing SW>5 by late afternoon with horizontal heavy drizzle and driving rain throughout both watchers . The cloud base was low with patches of fog and mist passing through.
A real lively morning and afternoon watch with the waders very lively and frantically feeding throughout.
A record count of 12 Tufted duck were on the water as well as 324 Canadas inc goslings, most of which are hard to tell from the adults now.
The juv Common Sandpiper very nearly met its maker this morning when a female Merlin came hurtling in over the ponds and landed a few feet away from it. It was only thanks to 2 Lapwing distracting it and seeing it off that it survived. By the time I,d got the camera on it , facing into the wind and rain, I had a lens full of water which scrambled the auto focus otherwise it would have been a cracking shot of it on a stone near to me in the pond area.
The juv Ringed Plovers are flying freely now travelling the length of the reservoir and using the ponds to feed, maybe they will all move on in the near future unless they stay the summer here.
With Ringed Plovers, Dunlins, and Common Sands darting around everywhere I,d plenty to keep me occupied and keep my mind off the drenching. Feels odd wearing full winter waterproofs and the dogs it winter coats in early July.
The plug went back in the reservoir today and the inlet diversion was removed so the water will be rising slowly now, or quickly if the rain carries on like today but I,m sure they,ll be enough banking over the next 2 months to invite the returning waders down.
Fly Flatts
1 pr Ringed Plover + 2 juvs at 34 days old + another male.
6 Dunlin
8 Common Sandpiper + sev juvs
1 f Merlin
2 Curlew
12 Tufted duck
Mixenden Reservoir
4 Shelduck
BS