Your Custom Text Here
Blog posts presented with permission of the author
I had a wonderful weekend birding in Somerset with my husband, visiting 3 new-to-us reserves: RSPB Ham Wall, RSPB Greylake and Shapwick Heath - a national nature reserve.
We had 5 target birds: Bittern, Glossy lbis, Garganey, Ring-necked Duck (which would be a lifer) and Spotted Redshank.
The male Blackbird is well-named, as it is an all-black bird. It has a bright yellow bill, and a thin yellow eye ring. The female Blackbird is a dark brown colour, usually with a slightly paler throat, brown bill and mottling on the breast.
The Little Egret is a small white heron that has become a very familiar sight around the southern coasts of the UK. It is not too long ago that a LIttle Egret was considered a rarity in England. Over the past 40 years, the range has increased northwards from its Mediterranean roots.
The Ruddy Turnstone is considered to be a wader, but unlike most other waders, it uses its shortish, sharp bill to turn over stones, shells and seaweed when searching for food, rather than probing the ground for invertebrates.
The Hawfinch is a large finch, its most striking feature being its powerful, oversized, cone-shaped bill. Its diet includes fruits and insects, but that powerful beak really comes into its own when breaking into the kernels of cherries!