Sunday 24 January 2016

Suffolk Birding: Cattle Egret at Iken

Our first destination this morning was to be Alton Water, but having made good time we diverted to Christchurch Park, and found two pairs of Goosanders along with several pairs of Mandarin on one of the small pools within the park. 

Goosanader



It was a very grey and overcast start to the day, and it would remain the same throughout the entire day.
A Tawny Owl was found roosting in one of the park Oak trees. 



We moved on to Alton Water and quickly found two Black-necked Grebes at the Eastern end. But failed to find any sign of the Red-necked Grebe, despite driving round most of the water and walking several areas as well. A return to the Eastern end did however produce good views of a Great Northern Diver but  the Red-necked Grebe remained out of sight. 

Time was short so we moved onto Iken hoping to have better luck connecting with the Cattle Egret. Having drove around the  roads surrounding the Sandy Lane/Ferry Road junction, we finally found the Cattle Egret in the field directly in front of the farm itself, unsurprisingly with cattle.


It was then flushed by the farmer as he walked up the slope towards the farm buildings. Fortunately the bird was quickly re-found further along the road in a flooded field.


Before heading for home we stopped off a North Warren and after walking from the roadside to the viewing screen found the four Spoonbills feeding at the back of the fields in one of the pools.

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