A Visit to Frampton Marsh

5th November 2017

Time for our annual pilgrimage to Frampton Marsh on a glorious day in early November. There had  been a considerable amount of management work carried out recently and the site was looking in superb condition. Passerines were represented by a flighty flock of Linnets, Goldfinches and some fly-over Meadow Pipits, but the only individual that landed within range was this Sky Lark.

There were quite a few waders around including Dunlin, Ringed Plover and Black-tailed Godwit, but the only close photogenic individual was this Redshank as well of course the ever-flighty Lapwings.

There were good numbers of wildfowl building up including a sprinkling of Pintail like these two females, and the showy Shelducks during bath-time.

But the duck that out-numbered the others by a mile was the Wigeon which were coming out of eclipse plumage and looking resplendent in the sunshine. They were also starting to pair up which resulted in much chasing around which provided some flight shots.

Geese were represented by Canadas, Greylags and Brent, and it can be seen in this first photo that the Canadas had been infiltrated by a single Greylag and a Canada x Greylag hybrid. I just love the sound of Brent Geese in flight.

But the stars of the show today were the Whooper Swans which were fairly active providing some opportunities for some shots both on the ground and in flight.

The flight shots in particular were great to take, especially those against a dark cloudy sky which highlights the beauty of the birds. I sense that Frampton Marsh may become more than a single annual pilgrimage in the future.