We entered the reserve and did some birdwatching at all the hides. There weren't many birds around, just the regular stuff. We saw plenty of Avocets, a Green Sandpiper, Little Ringed Plovers, Marsh Harriers, lots of Tree Sparrows and a lot of ducks. After the 'wild' birdwatching we went to see all the captive ducks that are being held here at Martin Mere. Within a few seconds I already had two UK ticks: Marbled Duck and White-headed Duck, great! We went through all the different parts of the 'duck zoo'. Eventhough I'm not a fan at all of captive ducks it was fun to see all the different species from up close. A funny observation was a displaying Common Crane there, it was full of testosteron as it tried to impress us!
Marbled Duck (Marmaronetta angustirostris)
White-headed Duck (Oxyura leucocephala)
Lesser White-fronted Goose (Anser erythropus)
And a dumb juvenile Moorhen (Gallinula chloropus), yet to find out you can also fly over a fence..
On our way to Martin Mere we also passed some nice fields that held some singing Corn Buntings. One was singing from really close by so I recorded the song and photographed it.
Corn Bunting (Miliaria calandra)
There was also a family of Mistle Thrushes foraging in the field:
Mistle Thrush (Turdus viscivorus)
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