Wednesday 27 April 2011

Dippers by The River


Is it really nearly a month since my last posting?!  There has been so much to look at in April that I have not had time to sit in front of the laptop; so over the next week or so I will post some of the pictures and stories of the month.

I spent a few hours in the glorious sunshine on Tuesday down at the riverside, taking in the beauty and wonder of the River Nairn Dippers.  I have friends that would travel hundreds of miles to see what we have on our doorstep; and Dippers would be very near the top of their lists!  We have had them around our river for years. 

The pictures above shows a parent looking for its young to feed.  Below is a picture of the juvenile.  Look at the markings: much paler on the juv.


Notice in the other pics how the parent flies in, food in mouth, and how the young one hunkers down when it feels under pressure: the last few pictures tells you why!











The Heron that seems to spend the whole day on the River Nairn approaches, and the parents dash off to distract it.  The penultimate photo shows the juvenile hunkered down and motionless, and the final photo shows just how close the Heron was, but it did not see the snack on the bank.


As ever, a great day birdwatching, and listening to Willow Warblers (more about them in the next post) and Blackcaps singing their hearts out all around me.  And, as I've always said, keep your eyes open for little treats: see the Tree Creeper on the branch next to me!



3 comments:

  1. Great pics. Nice to see the young dippers out. For a year or two dippers disappeared from the lower river. It was great to see them make a comeback last year.
    Heard a tale yesterday of a Heron snacking on a Blackbird. Wouldn't be surprised.

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  2. nice shots good too see the wildlife out and a about, and the weather is being very good to us hope it keeps up, thanks for sharing your photos look forward too seeing some more.
    all the best

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