Been fascinating weekend on the river and several new happenings for me. First of all I saw a Pintail duck for the first time on the river, quite rare going about the business of searching for food.
It was a male but I could not spot any mate. The good weather seems to have got the Herring gulls bonding as well, with two
pairing up and trying to outdo each other in the nest gathering stakes ! Our annual visitor the Moorhen also arrived last week. The next new experience for me was a male Goosander wanting in on the feeding action at the merryton bridge. He was intrigued by the melee of mallards getting their daily wheat ration yesterday, and frustrated by the fact that they
were all getting stuck into something - he just couldn't figure out what ! He was only feet away which was extremely unusual, Goosanders usually keep their distance from humans but I think the fact that the ducks were ignoring me, helped him do the same. Sensing his frustration , I tossed a lump of wholemeal near him and he dived at it immediately
devouring it instantly, I followed this with several more pieces and he treated it as jumping fish. Never have I seen a Goosander behave in such a way before. Today unperturbed by the cygnets, he turned up giving me close looks and waiting for some food again, so much for birds being stupid and bird brained ! Enclosed video of today's close Goosander action.
pairing up and trying to outdo each other in the nest gathering stakes ! Our annual visitor the Moorhen also arrived last week. The next new experience for me was a male Goosander wanting in on the feeding action at the merryton bridge. He was intrigued by the melee of mallards getting their daily wheat ration yesterday, and frustrated by the fact that they
were all getting stuck into something - he just couldn't figure out what ! He was only feet away which was extremely unusual, Goosanders usually keep their distance from humans but I think the fact that the ducks were ignoring me, helped him do the same. Sensing his frustration , I tossed a lump of wholemeal near him and he dived at it immediately
devouring it instantly, I followed this with several more pieces and he treated it as jumping fish. Never have I seen a Goosander behave in such a way before. Today unperturbed by the cygnets, he turned up giving me close looks and waiting for some food again, so much for birds being stupid and bird brained ! Enclosed video of today's close Goosander action.If you missed a chance to View my Nairn Swans Compilation on Youtube here is the link again http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=68MP43fQ2HQ
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