Winter on the Somerset Levels (contd). 17th -19th Jan 2024.

 

Great Egret

I spent an amazing 3 days last week leading a short tour on the Somerset Levels for Naturetrek tours.

The weather was very cold & frosty with blue skies and bright sunshine although it never reached above 4 deg C.

Water levels have dropped a bit since my last visit before Xmas although some of the hides at RSPB Ham Wall are still unreachable due to flooding and the necessary health & safety checks..

We visited several different reserves and open areas including RSPB Greylake, RSPB Swell Wood, West Sedgemoor, RSPB Ham Wall, Shapwick Heath etc and ticked off 71 different species including many classic Somerset Levels specialities such as Common Crane, Cetti's Warbler, Marsh Harrier etc. There were vast numbers of wildfowl with Teal & Wigeon far outnumbering ducks such as Gadwall, Shoveler, Pochard & Pintail. Sadly we couldn't pin down a Bittern although I did think I caught sight of the rear end of one flying amongst the reeds but not positive enough to record it!

The Starlings flooded into the reserves at sunset and we had great views of their vast numbers. Murmurations were few but the sight of all these birds against a stunning sunset will long remain in my memory.

Here are a few  photos from the trip and for those clients that couldn't update their daily list I include a list of our 3rd day birds for you to add to your Species checklist.

There are several more 3 day tours to come so if you're interested checkout the Naturetrek website at...

https://www.naturetrek.co.uk/tours/the-somerset-levels

All are based at the Swan Hotel in Wells directly opposite the cathedral. 

The extras to add to our list were:- Raven, Greylag, Goldcrest, Little Grebe, Pochard, Songthrush, Pintail, Cattle Egret & Great-crested Grebe.

Here are some miscellaneous images from the tour.......

Mostly Wigeon at RSPB Greylake

Mostly Wigeon at RSPB Greylake

 

 

Teal at RSPB Greylake

Teal at RSPB Greylake

 

Common Snipe at RSPB Greylake

 

Water Rail on the ice at RSPB Greylake

Common Cranes at West Sedgemoor from the RSPB Swell Wood overlook

 

RSPB Swell Wood overlook

Burrow Mump from the King Alfred Inn car park.

 

 

Welcome to RSPB Ham Wall

Robin at RSPB Ham Wall

Goldcrest at RSPB Ham Wall

Goldcrest at RSPB Ham Wall

Greylag Goose on the ice at RSPB Ham Wall

 

Great Egret at RSPB Ham Wall

Great Egret at RSPB Ham Wall

Noah's Lake at Shapwick Heath

Great Egret at Shapwick Heath

 

Glossy Ibis at Westhay Moor Drove

Glossy Ibis at Westhay Moor Drove

 

Unfortunately we couldn't relocate these birds during the tour but I photographed them the day before on my way to the hotel at Wells.

Group photo with the "plastic" Bittern at Avalon Marshes Tea hub.

Backlit reeds at RSPB Ham Wall

Backlit reeds at RSPB Ham Wall

Backlit reeds at RSPB Ham Wall

Sunset at RSPB Ham Wall

Short-eared Owl, Cornwall 11th January 2024.

 An example of the Short-eared Owl's ability to alter the size of its pupils to suit the light. The eye in the sun has the pupil contracted whereas the one on the shadow side is still dilated. Nature has it sorted!