Early spring promise

A bright sunny morning. It was not to last though, and soon heavy and prolonged showers started arriving, while the temperature remained distinctly chilly.

I began at Netherstead, and couldn't resist taking a shot of a Song Thrush. My previous effort this year was back-on, so at least you can see its spots this time.

The blue sky in the above shot soon gave way to grey as shower after shower swept through with barely a break. Consequently I arrived at the flash having spent most of the last hour rushing from sheltered bush to sheltered bush. Indeed,  after a quick peep to see if the Green-winged Teal was still there, encouragingly it was  now on the nearest flash, I managed two year-ticks whilst not really birding. First a Chiffchaff called and flew over my head and along the hedge, then I heard a Golden Plover calling and looked up to see it circling. The rain was too heavy to get my camera out.

Finally, the rain stopped and the sun came out. Time to take some more Green-winged Teal shots.

I did a quick count, and got 30 Teal, a drake Wigeon, and about six visible Snipe. Then I finally found the Little Ringed Plovers which have been here since midweek.

60. Little Ringed Plover

There appeared to be a pair of them. A Pied Wagtail appeared, and then a White Wagtail, an early one, presumably heading for Iceland. It seemed to be in first-summer plumage. This continental race of Pied Wagtail is a good bird for Morton Bagot. I have seen them here before, but only two or three times and always in April. I tried to take some record shots, but they are pretty awful. After some deliberation I decided this picture  was the best of the dross.

White Wagtail

Shortly afterwards Steve Roberts arrived. The wagtail seemed to have gone and I was starting to suffer mild hypothermia, so I left him watching the Teal and headed along the hedge.

A little later I was back at the flashes, and found a small group of birders twitching the Teal. They had found that there were now three Little Ringed Plovers, and I saw that there were also three Green Sandpipers. As I finally headed away I started seeing more Chiffchaffs, and counted four altogether, including this one for the photo-list.

61. Chiffchaff

The return journey produced no more migrants, and with few insects braving the cold I decided to end with a shot of a Brown Hare.