Montagu's harrier, male briefly on fence post and flying off north.

Good signs of progress with the re-introduction of corncrakes to the Nene Washes with up to 10 returning males now heard singing on site.

Tha business end of spring - chick rearing

Returning male corncrake

Water flooding through the Stanground sluice into Moretons leam. The Nene Washes act as pressure release valve for the lower river Nene as it has done for around 500 years now, its worth remembering that without this function Peterborough would be a little damper!

The fire at Abbey produce, making my contribution to carbon savings a little insignificant

Part of the 5000 or so Icelandic black tailed godwits that provided the Nene Washes with a new spectacle, the previous winter record count was 1746 earlier on in February.
Quite a few of the birds are colour ringed, indicatingthat most birds had recently been on the east coast at sites like breydon water, the wash and the humber estuary, but some had also come from Chichester harbour on the south coast and the Dee estuary.

Wikipedia quote. The stoat's coat is a rich medium brown with an off-white belly. In winter, the coat is thicker and in regions that experience an inch or more of snow for at least forty days of the year (I used to be alot colder here in winter!) the color changes to clean white. This white fur is known as "ermine", a term originating either from the Latin phrase "Armenius mūs" ("Armenian rat") or from a word common to the Germanic and Baltic languages, hence the scientific name. At this stage the stoat itself may be referred to as ermine, or as being "in ermine".

New views on the washes looking west - Mc cains "chip" factory, hanson brickworks and 3 new wind turbines, not forgetting the electricity pylons, and last but not least the setting sun.

American mink -slightly blurred picture, they have poor eyesight, hence this pic taken at 4meters distance and not disturbed by me, though when hunting as this animal was they never seem to stop moving. still a rare photo opportunity

Pics from Fam Holiday to Sicily

Scarlet Darter

Plain Tiger

Queen of spain fritillary - seen 3000mtrs up Mount Etna attracted to bare steaming Lava.
Large Wall Brown
Bath White
Pigmy or Mediteranean Skipper
Plain Tiger

Southern White Admiral
Swallowtail
Two-taile Pasha - amazing

Long tailed blue - abundant around Mt Etna

Record shots of juvenile Purple heron on the Low Wash, taken at c100mtrs in the wind

Todays release of Corncrakes onto the Nene Washes brought this years total to 77, we are well on target to release over 100 this year.

2 juvenile Black Tailed Godwits. note the difference in neck tone (perhaps the male/female characteristics can show through even at this age?)
flock of 26 Little Egrets, the washes record was broken (a weekly occurence lately) on monday when I counted 35 together around one of the last remaining pools.

Wilsons phalarope, female on the Nene Washes, alongside a Dunlin first seen flying overhead at 15:00 then watched settle onto the pool opposite Holly tree farm. Surely the same bird that was present at Grafham Water until yesterday evening. Also present 1 Turnstone, 6 Dunlin and 1 greenshank.

First mute swans hatch out, this pair has 2 polish (white morph) amongst 7 cygnets. The polish bird is the washed out one, as opposed to the normal grey colour of the bird on left.

grey herons, feeding on trapped fish, thers no escaping these formidable predators
A record shot of a male Bar tailed godwit, one of 24 today.

This common crane arrived from the east. fed for 1/2hr on flooded pools and then I'm not sure where it went. my 3rd record in 11 years, always a special sight.

2 little egrets feeding on drying out pools

one of 3 black bellied plover - grey plover is the wrong name when in this amazing plumage

good numbers of Oystercatcher along the washes, enjoying the large flooded pools, today I saw one with a large worm - the first time i've seen one with a prey item.

passage fieldfares stop over to feed on the moist pasture.

male lapwing

from -10 windchill to +16 in one week, confusing for us sapiens, it has'nt slowed down nature. With the floods receeding fast revealing the jewel that is the Nene Washes - all waders are currently displaying vigorously. Migrant marsh harriers have arrived in numbers, first avocets have been seen, mallard are already sitting on eggs where only 2 weeks ago the land was under water.

Flooded washland at Lords Holt

following the rain on Friday and sunday and the full moon (creating high tides) the washlands are now operating in their role as flood release mechanism for the Lower river Nene, this protects areas of peterborough and surrounding farmland.

Mole escaping the flood
Gulls feasting on the mass movement of insects, worms and voles

male Shelduck