Mary Celeste

A strange quiet hung over Inner Marsh Farm this morning: something was amiss. Not being the most perceptive of individuals, I struggled to put my finger on it. Then it dawned on me, which is actually an achievement of sorts given that it usually takes me until dusk.

No nesting Black-headed Gulls, not one, the entire colony had vanished. A couple of weeks previous there must have been in excess of two hundred pairs on the various islands producing a right old cacophony. The Avocets had disappeared too - from a peak of just over twenty birds to zero. They must have also given up attempting to breed.

The only birds remaining that looked like they may be trying to reproduce were two Oystercatchers that had moved to one of the now deserted islands. They were busy building a nest by scavenging the remains of the ones that had been abandoned.

What could have happened? The mystery was partially solved when later I bumped in to the warden. Late one evening he had been down to the hide armed with a flashlight. Much to his surprise he had seen a badger swimming across the one of the islands!

However, this does not explain the mysterious disappearance of three Avocet eggs several weeks previously. This occurred during the night too, when the nest was completely emptied of its contents, whereas nearby Gull nests remained totally undisturbed. Perhaps this raid had a much more sinister explanation? I sincerely hope not.

Birds that were present included c180 Black-tailed Godwits, 2 Knot, 3 Gadwall and 2 Common Tern.

Until later.