A brief high tide visit

Incubating Mallard at Bow Creek, April 18th 2011

I made a brief post-work visit to the patch today in the hope of adding something to the yearlist, a Lesser Whitethroat perhaps which usually turns up about now but the whole site was very quiet. A Mallard with ten ducklings was at Bow Creek and another with four was on the basin, that's at least three broods this year so far, but the nest in the above photo was empty, probably robbed by children rather than gulls or a fox as there were no damaged eggs or indeed empty eggshells to indicate a hatching. Other odds and ends included five Shelduck, the Common Teal pair and a Common Sandpiper at Bow Creek, 52 Tufted Duck, two singing Song Thrushes, four Sand Martins and single singing Reed Warbler, Blackcap and Common Whitethroat.