Adders & signs of spring at Minsmere

Headed to minsmere where I was welcomed but a robin on the sign welcomed me to the reserve. Then walked up to the Adder area where I was in for a treat with at least 4 Adders present with 3 Males with top Adder often chasing the other away as the female was almost been guarded where she was resting in an old tree tube the highlight was the sight of two adders doing a snake dance.

Robin on the sign

Adder Snake dancing

Then walked around the rest of the reserve first through the woodland where I had a nice Munjac Deer and quite a few warblers singing mainly Chiff-chaffs and Blackcaps with the odd Whitethroat, a few Coals Tits in the fir tree and a Cuckoo was heard in the distance.

Munjac Deer feeding in the woods

Around on the scrape Avocets, Lapwings and the Black-headed Gulls were starting to show sign of breeding with the birds getting quite aggressive at times. Also around were some nice black-tailed Godwits and Redshanks in good numbers with a few Ringed Plovers, Golden Plovers and Little Egrets mixed in with the last of the winter ducks with a few Wigeon and Teal still hanging on.

Feeding Black-tailed Godwit

Little egret in flight

Walked through the scrub along the beach with quite a few swallows overhead include one almost albino individual. In the scrub quite a lot of Peacocks Butterflies and a single Common lizard and a nice Male Stonechat was seen but fairly distance. Then walked back to the centre along the way Cetti Warblers where heard and Curlew was seen along with Tit flocks feeding in the hawthorns and a Weasel was seen hunting near the visitor centre along with a good number of Sand and House Martins.

Blue Tit feeding in the Hawthorns

Then ended the day at the Island Mere where they where plenty of Booming Bitterns around and quite a few hunting Marsh Harrier over the reeds with Great- Crested Grebes performing their dance in the distance though the highlight from the hide was a nice feeding Snipe in the last of the evening light before the sun was seen setting over the reeds.

Hunting Marsh Harrier

Snipe in the evening light

Reeds in the evening lights