On this day (April 23rd)... 2017 Dingle Night Heron

The Shrewsbury Dingle Night Heron - early days!! You can sense the excitement?!!

Setting the scene, this is the only Heron normally seen in this idyllic Shrewsbury garden known as The Dingle!

No superlatives in part one? Bloody hell, absolutely amazing, the Night Heron has not only flown towards us... but landed in a bank side bush in full view! It doesn't look close, does it but it's less than 10m from the bank!

The only questions being asked were, how quickly can I get the converter off and why hadn't I got a shorter focal length lens with me (again)

OK, Converter is now removed but it's still frame filling!!

And walking closer... OMG!

Now there's no alternative, a close up fest beckons...

I'm staying calm!

I was almost relieved when it flew back over to the other side of the pool? Noooo, it''s still too close! (Only kidding) :-)

And if you've never seen a Night Heron's tongue?

I walked around to the far bank - the shot I'd been hankering for - Shrewsbury Night Heron - in habitat!!

Just another ordinary day turned rather extraordinary!!! You couldn't have scripted this?

On this day (April 7th)... 2018, 2017 and 2014

A look back to April 7th, starting with a smart male Black Redstart at Adderley in 2018! (Doesn't seem five minutes ago!)

An afternoon roaming flooded wader scrapes with Dave Chapman didn't turn up  anything of note unless you can count Common Sandpiper (Venus Pool) or LRP (Wood Lane) And with news of a (male) Black Redstart near Adderley, Whixall Floods never got a look in!

Here's a few record shots of this cracking bird at Bank House Farm, taken during a 15 min 'in' - many thanks Huw Lloyd! If only we could have had blue sky!

Treating us to an all angle display!

Just look at those wing panels!!

Certainly putting the 1st winters to shame - what a little beauty...


And in 2017, the long running saga of a certain American Night Heron was about to start.... At Venus Pool!!

Incredible, unbelievable, etc etc were just two of the adjectives used by many locals to describe the latest bird to slip through the normally effective 'Shropshire rare bird' deflector shields! A big thank-you too, for Bernard Roberts getting news out - I could so nearly have missed it by heading to the north of the county with an evening talk in Wrexham looming... A Night Heron no less, the first twitchable one in Shropshire  and we will have to wait for the Shropshire Avifauna to find out more regarding one other accepted bird from the 1970's?

It was skulking in the twiggy shrubs to the left of the pool by Lena's hide, when I arrived late afternoon. Not viewable from the hide but decent enough from the ramp leading up to the hide or through the path hedge, I chose the former to take a few shots...

Not easy to get anything worthwhile but at least it was now clearly an adult and with those long dangly bits - a male?

Occasionally, turning its head whilst half asleep!

And then the sun began to fall on where he was perched - wow just look at that red eye!!

And for a minute of two shuffled to give a view almost devoid of obstructions!

 OMG, was this for real? Well I pinched myself really hard and ouch, yes it was!

So here we go again, the 'twitch protocol' was about to be implemented again as Shropshire hosts another great bird. With Iberian Chiffchaff, Yellow-browed Warbler and Wood Sandpiper waiting in the wings, there's a lot going in the Shire right now...


For finale, a showy Redshank at Venus Pool in 2014

Here's the Redshank, pretty close in front of the hide....

Feeding energetically!

Hopefully better things to come??

Shrewsbury Dingle - American Night Heron

I haven't been to see the Shrewsbury American Night Heron since 4th May! I'd kinda lost interest given the location, crowds, etc. but I hadn't forgotten about it! Mainly because it's on 'everyone's? list apart from a few out of county disbelievers and to validate it (if you are of the BOU persuasion) , it needs acceptance by BBRC/BOURC? And of course there is no proven 'finder' apart from mysterious unknown visitors / birders in the 'Woodland' Hide at VP back on 7th April. So, if you were sat in the hide during that afternoon, please come forward... The rarity form will go in, whatever... I've already been in contact with Martyn Owen (County recorder) and we will ensure it moves forward (* see end note). Also, there have been claims the bird is wasting away and I wanted to see for my own two eyes...

Yep, nothing changes?

Apart from the choice of vantage / launch point!

Say ahhhh - I hadn't seen his tongue before? He looks well doesn't he!!

And still actively catching (usually) fish!

I think he missed this time!

And I finally got a decent flight sequence which eluded me in May, so here it is from start to finish...

A bit of a splash in the middle!

Before landing out of view.

* Back to the 'record'... It's morphed from European to American Night Heron and loose feathers which were collected after preening (thanks Simon Slade) during the summer have now been sent for DNA analysis. Whilst on head pattern it's perfect for hoactli, it would be nice to have this backed up! Then the question of origin arises? I'm adopting a 'wild unless proven captive' stance. There is no ring, there is no ring mark. It was incredibly skulking whilst at VP (going missing for days in the twiggery) and now has settled into a location which provides safety, plenty of food and he's learnt to make the most of it all! There's plenty of evidence on the web that US birds do exactly the same thing over there! Night Herons are intelligent birds and seem to 'learn' better than some humans methinks? They become 'Town Birds' in gardens parks etc. Question is, what's his next move...