I collected Julie and Andrew and headed down the coast for an afternoon and evening searching for Otters around Druridge Bay and Southeast Northumberland…

A tree filled with roosting Little Egrets, Grey Herons and Cormorants was an odd sight, as more Cormorants did their very best Otter impersonations up and down the river.  Oystercatcher, Redshank and Curlew probed the muddy margins as Sand Martins, House Martins and Swallows filled the air overhead.  As we approach dusk it’s always an exciting time on our tours; things start stirring, birds arrive to roost and you never know just what’s going to appear out of the gloom.  Thick cloud cover and mist reduced the scene to monochrome as Starlings murmurated nearby, Common Gulls flew through in tight flocks on their way to roost and Great Crested Grebe chicks hitched a ride on their parent’s backs as the rain started to fall.  Canada and Greylag Geese erupted from the water’s surface with a cacophony of noise and a female Marsh Harrier drifted over the reeds in near darkness.  Fade to black…