Town Owl

Having done a usual wander around Gayhurst Quarry, where I had been pleased to find my first returning Oystercatcher of the year and three Egyptian Geese that had been absent for the whole shooting season, I decided to cut across the Bury Field on my way back.
 This much dog-walked Common Land usually holds a few Skylarks and Meadow Pipits and when the pools are flooded a few Snipe. Occasionally there will be Stonechats and sometimes a hunting Barn Owl.
 So it was somewhat of a surprise when a large bird flushed out of one of the bushes in the middle of the common .... Short-eared Owl !!

What a marvellous find and only a couple of hundred yards from Newport Pagnell Town Centre.

 

Ravensthorpe Ressie

I finally found a window to visit Ravensthorpe Reservoir yesterday morning.
There were reports that Otters could be seen from the causeway. I'm a bit of a sucker for these animals so I just had to go. Reports suggested that there had been as many as five but unfortunately one had been run over on the causeway a few days back.
 I arrived about 8 o'clock to be told by the two other guys there that there had been 2 on show about an hour before but they hadn't been seen since.
 That meant all I could do was stand and wait.
Not that this was a problem as it was a reasonable day and there were other things to look at, like the pair of Smew that kept drifting in towards the causeway but then got spooked out into the middle of the small side of the reservoir.

There was also a nice Great White Egret that has made the reservoir its home this winter.

One of the other guys decided to call it a day and the other was just leaving when I noticed some movement in the water on the far side as not one but two Otters swam across to some bushes on the other side. I called him back just in time to see them disappear into the branches but then remarkably another two appeared and followed the same course across the water, one of which scent marked each and every metal post sticking out of the water on its way across. Unfortunately no photos as they were quite a way off and my natural reaction is to watch whats happening rather than reach for the camera.

 A great morning and still back in time for breakfast.