Yep 
But according to your picture, larger the bird, larger the journey, larger the cost !
But yes, I mustn’t try to over-stretch the limits of my modest lens ! Santa has promised me a new lens, so I must be patient !
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Here’s a larger one my lens was happy with…
But it’s not black and white…
Grey Heron, Ireland, this year.
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… but one cannot be expected to sleep sitting upright and madam must have champange & silver service.
As it happens I’m off again for 5 weeks in Oct/Nov … looking for more black & white stuff.
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Not too many years ago and the twitchers would be flocking there.
Assuming you talking about scarcity? Yes around the Deben and up the peninsular they appear quite common now. This was taken by the River Boyton - a few miles from me - and is fantastic scape of flat marshes and rivers with some pasture land for as far as the eye can see. I love it. I saw no bird watchers on Saturday when I was out and about, other than me, and a few anglers.
Now this is something I haven’t seen too often… an Egyptian Goose - in this case flying over bullock pastures making a heck of a din.
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Unfortunately the Egyptian Goose (actually its a duck, a shell duck) is becoming widespread in southern UK, thanks to misguided introductions. They originate from Sub-Saharan Africa and are officially classified as an ‘invasive species’ in Europe, but hey-ho I guess they’re here to stay.
I’m concerned that without control we will end up with the same problem as we have with “urbanised” Mallards
In South Africa (bearing in mind they are a native species) they are considered a nuisance in urban areas. They are naturally attracted to parks with water & the mess on water side banks & pathways is a cost & health hazard. Golf courses frequently use falconers to discourage them & farmers have ‘ways’ to discourage crop feeding. The only areas that have naturaly balanced populations are undeveloped rural & bushveld both with predatory birds & animals.
The formal definition of the difference between a duck and a goose is on the number of bones it has in its neck. Ducks have 16 or less, swans and geese have between 17 and 24
Shelducks are in the Tadorna genus and Egyptian Geese are in the Alopochen genus within the Tadorninae subfamily of shelducks and shelgeese… it suggests the Egyptian Goose has 16 or less bones in its neck for it to be classed a duck.
It certainly looks quite different to the Common shelducks (Tadorna tadorna) you see around here, but I would say slightly smaller than the common shelduck.
Indeed it appears they have been exported around the world as ornamental water fowl birds including to the UK
This is the first time I have noticed it on this part of the east coast in East Anglia and it looks quite strange and it was very much alone, though there are supposed to be established populations in I assume other parts of East Anglia and the midlands.
A local common shelduck on the Suffolk coast
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This is the UK resident population (green) map according to RSPB plus a few overwinters (blue) along the central south coast & Slimbridge area
I see them frequently on all the lakes & still water places around Oxford
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A bit of a coincidence this recent talk of Egyptian Geese. Lots were wading in the sunlight on riverside in Porto, Portugal last week. Snapped a few of them.
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Intelligent behaviour from this Coot who was diving to fetch tender morsels for the kids.
He/she at one point dragged up this weed and then draped it across their back, thereafter picking off bits to feed their babies. Bit of time saving there!
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Yes……i have been putting out dried mealworms. The young robins sit on the feeder and look at us through the kitchen window to make us feel guilty for not replenishing their food🥺
They try hard not to encourage you to feed birds here. Apparently it’s not helpful.
Apart from our resident Kite (who was coming 3-4 times a day for chicken thighs while his chicks were coming up to fledging) we have a family of Greater Spotted Woodpeckers, Chaffinches, Siskins and Gold Crests and a HUGE population of sparrows.
Which has possibly attracted this fine, regular snacker.
Phone photo from kitchen.
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The great escape
It seems like everyone today came to the river with the sole purpose of scaring and chasing away whatever I was trying to capture. A young heron trying to gain altitude over a bed of water lilies.
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