Cold northerly wind and low night time temperatures are testing the newly hatched ducklings to the limit.
Any brief moment when the sun breaks through the cloud is a warming tonic for the ducklings to chill out.
We now have two cute broods hatched, and more on the way.
Yesterday evening the first ducklings appeared on the river. I was unable to tell how many because they were under their Mum. The bitterly cold wind and overnight frost most unwelcome, their Mum managed to keep them alive - at least until today. I don't know how many she started with but currently has six. I would ask all who see them NOT TO THROW BREAD AT THEM - this will only attract crows and gulls to their location, and they will be taken.
Nature can be pretty cruel, especially on a grand scale with a big change in weather conditions. Some ducklings are just about due to hatch, and the last thing they need is a return to the current winter weather !
Even 5 weeks ago the weather was warmer.
Having to contend with predators is bad enough, but cold and lack of insect life guarantees little chance of survival. I can only hope that hatching is delayed and the weather changes for the better.
By chance I got the opportunity to catch the Red Breasted Merganser in flight this evening. It was swimming down the moat and took off virtually in front of me.
They have very short rapid wing beats, so difficult to shoot with camera on auto !
With the nesting season well under way a little bit of warmth is needed to help with any newly hatched ducklings.
Although the weather has been
reasonable, locally we could do with a rise in temperature to help with insects hatching and other food sources for the expected ducklings. There have been a few butterflies around which gives the appearance of summer, and the Merganser has been doing a spot of fishing as well - Short video below.
Another glorious summer day, and one of the most amazing happenings with Popeye and Penny since they came here.
Popeye escorted one of their female offspring back to the nesting site while Penny was sitting on the new clutch ! I can only surmise what was going on, but it looked like he was flirting with his offspring.
Penny was having none of it and was off the nest in a flash and into attack mode, chasing the cygnet away.
Perhaps the young cygnet was an earlier version of Penny, and Popeye could not resist the attraction !
Anyway this evening all was restored, and Popeye was dutifully sitting beside his partner and their future offspring to be.
PIGEON UPDATE! The ID number on the pigeon is NE3856SU14.
In the space of 18 hours I was contacted by two Nairn residents reporting 2 injured birds. One of these was a Herring gull found in Gordon street, and the other was a homing Pigeon found in Douglas street. Both had been shot ! The Police have been informed as well as the Scottish SPCA who took the gull away.
The pigeon I took to the Vet to see if it could be saved, unfortunately the injuries were too severe and it had to be put to sleep. Perhaps the owner might recognise the rings on the pigeon, a green one on the right leg and a yellow one on the left.
It seems we have a shooter in the town, now hunted by both the Police and the SPCA.
These birds are innocent creatures and have as much right to be on the Planet as the rest of us, the River Nairn Swans and Waterfowl Trust will not tolerate the senseless killing of birds and will assist the Police and SPCA whenever we can.YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED !
Trust Member and keen naturalist George Berryman has once again seen the Little Egret near the Culbin.
Standing on one leg it was still some distance away, but George got a couple of pics just the same.
Hopefully it will become a "local" bird and also have a mate too.
As I have remarked in the past, being in the right place with a camera at the right time sometimes results in getting unusual shots.
Today was one such occasion when a Sparrowhawk downed and drowned a pigeon only yards away from me.
The pigeon frantically tried to escape and eventually broke free, it only travelled a matter of 30 feet before the hawk hit it again and both fell into the river.
The hawk was determined to keep it's kill and held the pigeon under the water, it was pitiful to watch because the pigeon was being drowned and the hawk could not lift it out of the water. It was a waste of a pigeons life as it floated away, and the hawk took off. Sequence of shots tells the story.
A HUGE THANK YOU to all the customers, management and staff of the King street Co-op in Nairn for donating £333- 94 to the River Nairn Swans and Waterfowl Trust.
The Trust is extremely grateful for the generous spirit of the local population, and the interest and care they show for our local water birds.
All of the donations will be used exclusively for the welfare and benefit of the birds and their environment.
We wish everyone a Happy Easter !
