A Good Start to the New Year

Firstly best wishes for a happy and peaceful 2016.  Thank you to everyone for all the friendships, laughter, sausage rolls, stickies, species recording, rooting and hardwork that you have given to FGC during 2015, making her a very, very special place.  There is much to look forward to, volunteer days, school groups, guided walks, bird ringing, the nest box season, CES and of course more stickies!

Several visitors, some old friends and some new to the reserve, were treated to a frost, no wind and no rain day! 

Frost always gives opportunities for photography.  Bridge rails out in the open, had a vertical coating on top and slightly wavy lines down the sides.

Phragmites also had a covering of frost.

Ice, coating puddles and ponds often give amazing patterns.  No wind meant reflections too.  It was not until we looked closely at this ice that we realised that it was actually above the water level.  Speculation that the level had dropped since the ice formed.

Sitting in the hide, binoculars scouring the edges, a quiet shout, the Kingfisher was sighted. This is when a huge lens is wished for and of course a pram, cart or wheelbarrow in which to carry it is also wished for!  However as usual, pushing the camera to its limit photographs were taken.  We watched the bird regurgitate at least two pellets. It then went fishing, twice near the edge of the lake and once in the middle.  Three fish were caught.  Surprisingly even after all the rain the lake is quite clear and not muddy.

Our walk continued over the bridge and the Kingfisher flew down the lake.  A strategy was arrived at.  People sit in the hide and one person walks quietly to the bridge and sends the Kingfisher back to the hide, where it will sit very, very close to the open window, so negating the use of a huge lens!