7 members attended the Rutland Field Trip on Friday 15th May.
We were met with a bright and dry day but there was a cold nothernly wind blowing most of the day. Looking at the conditions, we decided to visit the hides on the northern side of the reserve first, starting at Sandpiper.
This lagoon was open to the elements with very few birds holding there. So we moved onto Bittern and Plover which were just the same. As the party walked back through the wood, to the visiter centre, it gave us a few shots of the insects and damsels sheltering from the wind
It was at the Radshank hide we first spotted a group of 3 Hobby’s and one was initially very close to the hide giving the opportunity to grab some shots.
In the afternoon we concentrated on the southern hides where we had seen the Hobby move to. From the Mallard, Snipe and Harrier hides we saw them hunting over the marshes before resting up. This pattern repeated for most of the afternoon which kept us on our toes.
Photos by Peter Ward, Steve Lindsell, John Kirkelionis, Ann Miles