Around the Somerset Levels

With the absence of good weather here at the moment, I'm posting my wanderings around various parts of the Somerset Levels a few weeks ago. No wonderful shots particularly, but it was a lovely blue sky day which is what I've been missing!

Catcott Lows is a Somerset Wildlife Trust Reserve (I think) which boasts a reasonable hide overlooking wet meadowland. This dries out in the summer but is at its best right now. 

The ducks weren't playing ball on that day, they stayed pretty distant. Ok for using a scope, but not for my camera! There were Wigeon, Teal, Shoveler and the odd Pintail.

 There's a nice view over to Glastonbury Tor from the hide.

Enough of distant Ducks. Onward to Tealham an Tadham moors. This is another area of wet meadowland which hosts a few breeding Lapwing and Redshank, though they're both decreasing fast! In the distance are the start of the Mendip Hills.

I did come across some Lapwings that weren't 1/2 a mile away, though they always seemed to be slightly behind a tuft of grass! (-:

It was lovely to stand and watch them do their crazy dancing flights with their wonderful pew-it calls.

After leaving the moors, I went on to Ham Wall RSPB reserve. Here I twitched the Pied-billed Grebe that had been reported there a few days previously. 

While there I managed a dodgy shot of a lovely male Marsh Harrier hunting over the reeds. (the Grebe was way too distant to try for a shot of that).

 My final stop of the day was at Westhay National Nature Reserve where the reserve is gradually being enlarged from old peat diggings.

I'll finish this post with two dodgy photos I'm afraid. One of a female Kestrel searching for food from a handy phone wire and a Redwing flitting along the hedgerow in front my of my car.

 I'll be off to Cornwall at the weekend for a few days birdingwith friends, so hopefully I'll be able to post about that when I get back later next week.