Glossing it over

Really getting back into the swing of birding now. Although it was tempting to go up to Aberdeenshire for a sooty tern, a 10 hour drive there and then the same back may have to wait for another day! Still, there were a few nice morsels to go for today so back on the road.
Most of the action seems to be north at the moment, so I headed off first to Frampton Marsh in Lincolnshire. This was where I got the red-necked phalarope last week but that has now moved on. The target today was a pectoral sandpiper. These are relatively uncommon migrant waders, occurring every year in low numbers through the autumn migration. They are like a cross between a ruff and a sandpiper, with an upright stance but the sandpiper bobbing walk.
A brisk walk got me to the east hide but the scrape was worryingly quiet. With the tide low a lot of the waders were probably off the reserve. Still, a brace of common sandpipers, a few ruff and a dozen or so godwits and avocets kept me amused. After an hour I finally got onto a group of smaller waders, mainly dunlins, in a ditch on the far side of the scrape. Finally a larger, upright, bobbing bird came into view. It only lasted about a minute, and way too far to get photos, but the pec sand was in the bag. I tried moving round the marsh to get better views but no luck. I did find a trio of curlew sandpipers though to add to the day list. I've seen more of them in the last two weeks than the last few years. Just goes to how the the harder you work the luckier you get!!!!

So, onwards and upwards to the next target. This required a cross-country trip to Rutland Water. Specifically the Egleton bird watching centre. A glossy ibis had been strutting its stuff for a few days and apparently showing quite well. As I got to the car park you could see loads large marquees being put up ready for the bird fair in August. I paid my slightly exorbitant £6 entry fee and headed off. The hide was about 15 minutes walk and had 6 other birders already in there. This was one of the easiest twitches you could want though. The glossy ibis was about 50 yards away feeding vigorously.

Glossy ibis are quite exotic to the country. The are now regular visitors and have bred. I'm not sure if any are breeding this year, as they are rare enough to be suppressed till any young have fledged. This one however is a juvenile bird from last years crop. The head and neck show a distinctive mottled pattern and the body, even though it IS glossy, is mooted compared to the gorgeously coloured adults.

Still, with the right light it glowed with green and purple hues. For 90 minutes it pottered about on the scrape, driving its bill into the mud and pulling up morsels to eat.

I'm no sure what sort of molluscs or worms they were getting but when one was caught it was tossed into the air before eating, as you can see above. It was 15 to 20 probes per success so it had to keep moving to get a good meal.

All that feeding was eventually getting tiring and it started stretching and grooming.

Finally it must have decided enough was enough and it waded across to the island and after a last groom settled down for an early afternoon nap!

The rest of the reserve was quite quiet. A green sandpiper pottered about near the ibis

and a pair of reed warblers were very busy, clearly feeding a brood out of sight in the reeds.

Another good day. Two nice years ticks, taking me to 238 and only 4 behind my best August total. Anglesey should easily take me past that let alone anything else I can get to connect with. Then Autumn starts seriously!!