Grus Grus Grus Grus

I have often said that I would not get down on my hands and knees for anybody – except perhaps for Juliette Binoche in a dominatrix outfit, but that's another story!

Today, however, I found myself crawling through the undergrowth for a hundred yards or so whilst simultaneously swatting horse flies. The reason: two Common Cranes had just flown into Fenn’s Moss and landed on one of the flashes. (SJ494367, roughly).

Keen to avoid detection I hit the deck, and there I remained for an hour and a half no more than twenty yards or so from the birds at my nearest point. It was incredible to see these most stately of birds at such close proximity and I sat transfixed watching them preening, drinking and feeding. They were incredibly wary too, reacting to every noise – particularly to the distant barking of dogs.

When I finally managed to tear myself away, I took some time out to look for a hawking Hobby. There were squadrons of dragonflies but no Hobby, although a Kestrel and a few Buzzards hunted.

Another surprise was two Little Ringed Plover on one of the dried out pools – one juvenile bird and one adult. Maybe they have bred this year?

There were very few other birds around – the breeding Curlews seem to have departed and there was little evidence of much passerine activity aside from the odd Reed Bunting and Meadow Pipit.

But, as on most occasions, it tends to be a matter of quality rather than quantity on the mosses!

Until later.