Lodmoor - Short-billed Dowitcher :-)

Having been grounded for the past couple of months, I finally had the chance and felt fit enough to cross the County border (boy oh boy was I glad about that!) with a lifer in my sights down in Dorset - the long staying Short-billed Dowitcher. It was a nervy (PTT set in) drive down, mainly as there was a total news black out on the bird!!  I arrived late morning to be told "been showing well all morning" ...... And it still was - 'well' in the sense that it was constantly out in the open - some 80m or so distant on the West scrape. Without any more ado, I put the news out  :-)

Not exactly 'well enough' for photography but lifers are lifers and the fact it was still there was the main thing! Record shots were the name of the game and as usual I overdid it! Given the distance, it was still possible to pick out the key identification criteria!

Here's one in the gorgeous light....

Similar view with the dark cap and prominent arched supercilium

The sun didn't always shine but I think that helped in getting a little more detail of striping in the tertials ....

The tail barring showing more white than black

The chestnut crown and supercilium once more.

A post preening wingflap!

A bit of company from (surely not!) a confusion species :-)

A few other birds on the scrape included: Dunlin, Ringed Plover, Black-tailed Godwit and a juvenile Sandwich Tern flew in, noisily begging as one parent kept a supply of fish coming..

Speaking of fish, I know everyone is dying to see more Heron images :-) Well, there was one on the scrape and yes - it did catch a fish!

I'll be getting out and about for hopefully one or two more UK ticks during the Autumn and who knows-  more Heron pics to come :-)