Mud Glorious Mud

After I fed the Turnstones I headed to the estuary to have a look on the mud flats and saltmarsh and as I walked down the 'Hawthorn tunnel' towards the estuary I was putting up good numbers of Thrushes. It was hard to count them accurately but there was at least 53 Redwings, 25 Blackbirds, 87 Fieldfares and three Song Thrushes.

 Mud, glorious mud!

As I walked past the pools a Water Rail called and I was then out on the saltmarsh. I walked to the edge of the saltmarsh to a promontory where I could see up and down the river. The numbers of waders and wildfowl had dropped compared to recent weeks, perhaps due to the hard weather, but I still managed to have 31 Wigeon, 204 Teal, 40 Dunlin, 47 Lapwings, 20 Black-tailed Godwits and 600 Pink-footed Geese.

Walking back across the saltmarsh I had six Rock Pipits and heading back down the 'Hawthorn tunnel' I had ten Goldfinch, ten Long-tailed Tits and a male Sparrowhawk.

 The 'hawthorn tunnel'

I headed to the marine lakes to see how many Turnstones were coming and there were about 130, but not of all of them were on our food. Out on the lakes were four Tufted Ducks, a female Scaup, three Goldeneyes and four Red-breasted Mergansers. 

Now you see me..........

 ..........now you don't

Goldeneye

 Turnstones at the feeding station