Sunday 30 March 2014

Raptors and Waders .... and a hoopoe

The last day of March delivered several interesting birds. The floods around Fougere held eight ruff and six green sandpipers, all giving rather better views than was available in the murk a few days ago. Seven mute swans were still floating around with a single black headed gull., A black kite was hunting over the fields along with a dozen or so swallows and a male garganey looked resplendent on the water.

There were no waders or hirundines showing on the Bandiat floods but a great white egret was stood in the nearby field along with seven grey herons.While I was watching these, my first hoopoe of the year flapped its way by, In another flooded field were a pair of garganey while close to the river itself were a pair of  little grebes, a coot and several male mallards.

I crossed the Lairiere plains on the way home and heard stone curlew calling but could not locate them. A hen harrier demonstrated why the fighter plane was named after him by hanging motionless just above the ground for several minutes. A much less common species, though, was a male marsh harrier hunting low over the rape fields.

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