Dotterel on Time

With the wind turning to SW it was time to check the top of Pendle Hill for Dotterel. Unfortunately someone beat me to it and announced on Birdline that there were two present. When we arrived on top of the hill at 8.30am three bird watchers were already there and had already flushed them. Normally they move on but eventually I found them again and took some video from a distance. I would have got some more but a photographer arrived with an enormous white Canon lens, no tripod and no idea how to photograph birds without disturbing them. He insisted on going closer, stood up, fired a machine gun volley of shots and off they went!

The rest of the week has been equally as frustrating with no Kingfishers present on my regular site and the eggs of a Golden Plover being predated by Crows. The continuing search for Woodcock produced the usual NIL Result.

On the plus side I managed to get some better video of a roosting Long Eared Owl which was one of my top priorities this Spring.

On walking around the edge of a moorland reservoir with a friend we spotted a Canada Goose on its nest in some billberries. My friend commented that if it was the last bird left in the world he would not photograph a Canada Goose. As we left the area we walked past the brooding Canada Goose and to our amazement there were five gosling all sat around her. So what did we do? We spent more than an hour filming the family party waiting for her to take them down to the water – which of course she never did!!