I had a couple of hours free time today so headed down the A127 to Wallasea Island arriving just as the rain stopped. The first bird I saw on arrival from the car was a ring-tailed Hen Harrier hunting low over the marsh. As I scanned a large flock of waders out on the fields which contained Lapwings, Golden Plover and Black-tailed Godwits I saw a flash of white and to my surprise it was a beautiful male Hen Harrier. I grabbed a few distant record shots of both before heading down to the car park. I walked out onto the reserve in a bitter northerly wind and scoped the large good flock where the reported Red-breasted Goose was easily picked out in a small flock of Brents surrounded by Canada, Greylag and Egyptian Geese. Two Great Egrets were the only other highlights before I returned to the comfort and warmth of the car to enjoy more views of the Hen Harriers and a pair of Marsh Harriers.
year list now 242
The birds were all distant and the weather was really grey reflected in the noisy images above.
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