A Pile of Cr**

Sunday mornng and an early morning visit to Prestwick Carrs produced 1, possibly 2 Redstarts and a Tawny Owl.  On arrival I bumped into Nigel and we walked slowly up the path taking in the song of many birds but in particular Whitethroats and a couple of Sedge Warblers.  Not one Wader was seen all the time we were there.  On arrival in the approximate location where the birds normally are a good 15-20 mins scan produced nothing at all then after the arrival of another birder a bit of a chat ensued which admittedly brought a bit of laughter but unfortunately we had obviously missed the Tawny Owl and suspect that when it came flying out of the bushes we were the unintentional culprits that spooked it.  It flew across the field towards the treeline west of us but then we lost track of it as it went into the trees.  Nigel and I then decided to head back as it was now 8.30 but one last look eastwards scanning the fenceline produced a little reddish blob skipping along closely followed by a less indistinguishable blob.  Best pic whilst there was this pathetic effort

On to Big Waters where quite a gang gathered for a walk, the pond was quite quiet apart from 10 Common Terns attempting to occupy the Island.  Only a handful of Mute Swans remain but the furious chasing going on gave hope of another try at nesting.  Only 3 Mallards, a Grey Heron, and quite a few Swallows and a few Sand Martins were the other birds seen.  The walk round produced 4 Whitethroats (I think), another small batch of Lapwing chicks, a Partridge, 3 Buzzards and the usual assortment.  We then went to the first hide where one of the possible reasons for the lack of activity on the pond showed themselves in the form of 2 Otters.  Then came the highlight of the day for me, a Big Waters year tick in the shape of 2 Common Sandpipers.

Finally to the Post Heading

It Certainly Was