Wonderful Views of the Flooded Fen from Bird Hides of Manea

Carole and me at the bird hides Manea

Carole and I went to the bird hides of Manea again today. We were ambling about the house on my day off and I was about to do some blogging, when I realised the notion of a trip to the bird hides might be a good idea. Carole was in the garden tending her chickens, ducks, guinea pigs and rabbit when I went out and suggested it to her. I know she like the bird hides and I also know she has a great eye to spot things. Better than I can. Sometimes she can tell at distance if a bird is different from more common pigeons or sparrows.

Today was the same. We went up and down the dike overlooking the Fen towards the distant Ely Cathedral. The entire fields, that had cattle grazing upon on it up until a few weeks ago, are now a gigantic marshy lake. The River Delph was gone because it's banks have burst and the natural flood plain of the fen has taken all the water. From the dike and the various bird hides we had a great view.

The entire marsh lake is alive with all sorts of water fowl. Thousands of them Coots, Moorhens, Green Shanks, Grebes and many more. As we were making our way between the various bird hides, we saw a Marsh Harrier drift over the tree line where there were many crow nests. Bad mistake!

I managed a few shots at distance but only a few were any good. Then the crows came out and began to drive the Marsh Harrier away by swooping and harassing the bird of prey in flight.

Carole pointed out, what I thought to be a pigeon, in a tree. She said the perched bird's gait and tail was not a pigeon. I was not convinced, but took some shots anyway. The camera was clicking away like a machine gun when the bird took off from the tree top. I was pleased I did so because it was a kestrel and I got a few splendid shots of the fine bird in flight. 

Obviously once loaded on the computer and enlarged, one can see it is a kestrel. It seemed to sit there for ages. 

I know they have excellent eye-sight and I'm certain this bird of prey is making me out clicking away with the camera.

It was on the other side of the canal. Carole and I were on the dike with the River Delph on one side and the canal water way on the other side.

How I thought it a pigeon, I'll never know. If I was on my own, I would have walked past and not noticed it at all.

I took a multitude of shots and selected just a couple of it perched in the tree top.

Then my luck changed for the better as the kestrel launched itself from the branch to go upon a hunting foray over the dike and the Fenland flooded by the River Delph's burst banks.

I did not realise how kind the shots in flight were until I loaded them onto the computer. I was very taken with the flight shots as one might agree.

I always need to take Carole along because I would miss a great many things.

The kestrel went out over the flooded fen and began to hover. I took more shots but the bird was more distant and they were not really good enough to put in the blog. 

Still these few are good enough and so far, they are my best kestrel shots. I might put one of them on my front twitter page. 

I put the Marsh Harrier encounter with the crows on another blog.