Smew brightens the day!

The sun rose out of the sea as a huge fiery red ball this morning, 20 minutes later it started to sleet and rain, 8hrs later it was still raining ending another thoroughly dismal day on the peninsular.
A wander around the north end of the trapping area looking for Woodcock was fruitless and wet, finding only a Tit flock in the bushes, on the north pit a Great Crested Grebe, 5 Tufted duck and 5 Coot.
08.30-09.00 near the fishing boats from the relative comfort of the car.
Brent Goose: 9 up
Common Scoter: 1 down
Fulmar: 1 down
Gannet: c40 o/s
Kittiwake: 14 o/s
Guillemot: 6 on sea
On the ARC from the causeway 2 Goosander, 4 Smew, 2 Great White Egret, 2 Kingfishers, a Marsh Harrier and the usual wildfowl.
On the reserve the rain really started in earnest keeping me marooned in the empty hide, ensuring that no one else would be stupid enough to be wandering about in such appalling weather. The compensation for my braving the weather, was having the hide to myself, with no one to tut at my use of a flash gun to photograph the pair of Smew and a Little Grebe that were feeding on small Perch in front the hide. The Kingfisher came onto the post to the side of the hide posing nicely, as I lifted my camera my mobile rang and the Kingfisher was gone! Bloody PPI!

 This afternoon at the ARC from Hanson a re-run of yesterday, Bitterns, Kingfishers, Egrets, Smew, Goosanders, Chiffchaffs.
In the near dark at Lydd the 2 Cattle Egrets in there chosen field were joined by 3 Little Egrets.

This afternoon at the ARC