Haute Couture

A trickle of southern migrants was the highlight of Saturday’s trip to Inner Marsh Farm. The brooding heat inflicted a sort of lethargy on the birds with most of them snoozing or feeding half-heartedly around the pool edges.

A superb male Ruff displaying a nice grey and black ensemble was the highlight, although the presence of the two Spoonbills on the hide pool made a welcome change from their normal intransigent behaviour of roosting well hidden on No 1 pool.

Also of note in front of the hide were three Common Terns lazing with sizeable flocks of Lapwing and Black-headed Gulls, peppered with a handful of Black-tailed Godwits.

After failing to locate a male Redstart that had been seen around the boardwalk area I plonked myself down on the bench at the top of the hill and scanned the back pool.

Three Avocets and a Little Ringed Plover were picked-up after my first sortie and after a little more effort I found a Green Sandpiper skulking around the reeds and also another brace of LRPs.

Until later.