An early morning start led me to Minsmere just as dawn was breaking and the still conditions caused me to stop at the entrance of the reserve, get out of the car and just listen to the spectacular dawn chorus. At this time of the year I'm not talking about the birds but instead the incredible bellowing of the Red deer stags who are beginning their rut in earnest. Although I couldn't see any of the larger stags their calls reverberated around the trees in amazing numbers, some of which were incredibly deep and resonant which I guess must have belonged to the largest animals. This really is an experience not to be missed and I recommend that everyone should try to hear it at least once.
On to the actual reserve itself I walked down to Island mere hide in the hope of seeing some Bearded tits now that the wind had disappeared after the last week. An early morning appearance by an Otter kept me entertained for a while but the animal never came close enough to photograph and anyway the light was not good. After a while a flock of Bearded tits did show up next to the hide but the majority of them were keeping down in the reeds feeding on insects which must still be abundant in the warm conditions. As the weather cools the insect life becomes more scarce and the birds spend more of their time feeding on the seed heads of the reeds allowing for easier photography. As it was a few birds did rise up to the top of the reeds but they all seemed to be males so consequently all the pictures in this entry are of them which are much more distinctive than the browner females. Because I'm on holiday this week if the weather remains calm I will return and try to get some more pictures, hopefully including some females this time.
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