Crane update-sad news
Crane saga
The South Lake Crane family 'Bart and Ruby' have done very well rearing their chicks until today, a rather sad and brutal event occurred this morning. The older Crane chick actually killed it's sibling, this is normal behaviour and happens frequently in the wild. Since the younger chick hatched it had been ritually bullied by the older bird. When one of the parents left the area it often became aggressive as only one parent was present to feed them.
The whole sorry event was over in minutes, Bart did return to check on the deceased youngster but seemed to know exactly what had happened and gave up. Carrion Crows arrived on the scene soon after Bart and the other chick walked away to take advantage of a meal and the young bird was carried away. A sad and sobering insight into the life of a Crane and of course completely natural. The older chick looks in very good shape and will now be fed by two parents, this raises our hopes of successful fledging in a couple of months.
South Lake
Duck numbers are high, 20 Shelduck, 90 Mallard, 87 Gadwall, 3 Teal, 3 Shoveler and a male Pochard. At least 55 Avocet, 1 Redshank, 2 Lapwing, 2 Oystercatcher and 190 Black-headed Gulls (42 juveniles).
Rushy Pen
100 Black-tailed Godwit, 4 Avocet, 2 Lapwing and 3 Oystercatcher.
Tack Piece
4 Green Sandpiper, 6 Avocet and a Little Egret.
Top New Piece/Zeiss Hide
A few Swifts and Sand Martins feeding over the flood, 35 Gadwall + 10 ducklings, 20 Shoveler, 19 Teal and 20 Shelduck feeding on the duck weed. 20 Lapwing, 34 Avocet, Little Egret and 40 Redshank. A flock of 250 Starling were roaming the area.
