The Reeds Come Alive!

After watching Tawny Owls and Bearded Tits last night on Autumnwatch I thought it was about time I went and heard a few for myself so this morning at 5.30am I left home and drove over to the Stour Valley. The plan was to have my usual drive around and see what could be seen and heard. There was virtually no wind which was perfect and throughout driving around I managed to her 6 Tawny and 2 Little Owls, a fantastic sound to hear in the darkness. I then drove over to Grove Ferry where I spent a few hours walking around this end of the reserve. A few Redwing could be heard as I walked down the enrance track to the ramp. The morning was quite bright with the sun trying to come through but when I needed it, it never seemed to be there. Birds noted this morning walking down to Harrisons included 7 Cetti's Warbler, 2 Water Rail, c30 Cormorant, 1 ring tail Hen Harrier was seen coming out of roost and flying towards Stodmarsh, 9 Greylag Geese, 1 Kingfisher was seen on a few occasions, 2 Pintail, 1 Redpoll over and c20 Bearded Tit were seen in small groups with the odd flock showing nicely for some photo opportunities, they really are stunners close up and would have been even better in the sunshine if it was out. There were 2 Grey Heron, 1 Green Woodpecker, 7 Marsh Harrier, 1 Little Grebe, c40 Lapwing, c150 Teal, 1 Tufted Duck, 2 Little Egret, 1 Great spotted Woodpecker, 4 Reed Bunting and 4 Skylark flew over.

Bearded Tit