Avocets!

3 May - The new pits at Eysey have been good this spring, with regular LRPs and Ringed Plovers on passage, and have also produced Little Egrets and a Cattle Egret and been worth checking on a regular basis. On 3 May, the morning was overcast and hirundines and Swifts were buzzing around low overhead. A check at Eysey initially revealed nothing new of note, but walking back a check on the loafing Gulls produced 2 other black-and-white birds amongst them - 2 Avocets feeding up and down the bank, that I could easily have overlooked on a quick glace. They gave good but fairly distant views. Avocets are becoming a more regular (but still scarce) migrant through the Water Park, as the UK, and especially local, breeding population increases, with Slimbridge this year for example hosting more than 50 pairs. Very elegant birds, and the 3rd time I have found this species in CWP.