Tuesday 30 April 2013

Ring-necked Duck, Chigborough Lakes

Arriving home from work today around 4pm and noting that the Ring-necked Duck at Chigborough Lakes was still being reported, Dad and myself decided to make the forty mile trip.
Taking the M25 and then onto the A12 it was a straight forward and hassle free trip.
Turning off Chigborough Road into the empty car park, Leaving the car we walked West past Gadwall lake and round to Pochard lake.
Initially finding it difficult to scan the lake through the trees, we continued round the lake until coming to a clearing with felled logs stacked up.
The lake held very few birds, single pairs of Mute Swan, Coot, Great Crested Grebe and Greylag Geese along with less than double figures of Tufted Ducks.
The male Tufted Ducks were all quite happily going about their daily routines, the female Tufted Ducks were all asleep with their heads well tucked in.
But one showed a much paler looking face with a darker looking cap, with a noticeable pale line running from the back of the eye.


Sure enough as I looked at it through the scope it awoke and the bill came into view. Unmistakable Pale band around the bill with a black tip.



Too far away to get even a record shot, we decided to continue round the lake and look for any openings in the trees.
Finding an area with slightly less denser tree coverage, I managed a few distant record shots.



The walk back round to the car park produced a second year tick when the familiar song of  a Lesser Whitethroat sounded from deep within the pathway scrub.
A few minutes wait and the bird is located within a hawthorn bush bordering the pathway and the next field.


A relatively short trip, but one well worth it.


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