6 June - I was amazed three days ago to see an excellent photo of a female Little Bittern on Twitter.taken at Shorncote! Panic. A mega on my patch, and I hadn't seen it.......furthermore, a very skulking species. Over the weekend, the reports from others were that it hadn't been seen, despite a presence in the hide all day from 5am. However, early the next morning, the bird was seen briefly in flight, and I headed down in the afternoon prepared for a long vigil. The weather was showery, with a period of heavy rain for half an hour or so. The sun then came out....... and Matt Pringle suddenly said "it's sitting in the reeds!" Cue panic. No need, as the bird then sat, drying off and giving good views, for a full 15 minutes. Unbelievable and there was a hide full of happy people. Unfortunately I only had the 400mm lens with me, but I got a reasonable record shot. The first Little Bittern in Glos since 1964 ! A first for CWP. A real purple patch at Shorncote, with a Bittern seen several times in flight, and subsequently heard booming, just shows what is found when a site is well-watched. Thanks to John Fletcher for the find !
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