There’s little that gets my heart racing as much as that moment when panic spreads through the wildlife that we’re watching…
I collected Anne and Keith from Newbiggin and we headed along the coast for an afternoon and evening around Druridge Bay and southeast Northumberland searching for Otters. First stop was lunch, overlooking the North Sea, with Eiders rafting just offshore and distant Gannets diving into the waves. Small groups of Starling were scattered throughout the afternoon and Wigeon, Teal, Mallard, Gadwall, Shoveler, Tufted Duck and Little Grebe were around the water’s edge as we concentrated the search for our favourite sinuous, stealthy predator. One stretch of reeds suddenly had fewer ducks that it had a few minutes earlier. No great panic, no obvious departure, but definitely not as many birds. Scanning along the edge I caught a glimpse of a dark shape on the periphery of my vision. A couple of minutes concentrating on that spot produced nothing more tangible so I returned to scanning the entire pool. Ten minutes later and there was a definite departure of Mallard and Wigeon from that same reedbed. I suggested that this could well be due to an Otter…and Keith lifted his binoculars and spotted one 🙂 We watched it feeding for fifteen minutes before it slipped mysteriously beneath the surface and didn’t reappear. Mass panic among the ducks on the opposite edge of the pool wasn’t down to the Otter, but instead caused by a female Marsh Harrier drifting slowly north.
As dusk approached, Grey Herons were stalking through the shallows, Common Snipe emerged from long vegetation to probe for worms along the water’s edge, a Water Rail was squealing from the depths of a reedbed and Lapwing took flight in a tight, twisting, turning panic as darkness closed in around us and raindrops peppered the surface of the pool.