I've been visiting Castle Howard a bit recently, to try and see the Bittern that Stuart Rapson found a few weeks ago. My optimism had waned though, with no recent sightings, that was, until earlier this week, when Stuart got a great view of it, feeding along the edge of the reeds at the west end of the Great Lake. With the day off, I got up there fairly early, at about 7.40am. There was no sign of the bird, so I wandered down the path, noting a female Pochard with c65 Tufted Ducks, two Pintails, nine Goldeneyes and nine Mandarins. I decided to go all the way to the other end as there are some more patches of reeds there, plus there are some good stands along the pathside. Still no sign, although I did see a Roe Deer in the reedbed which was kinda weird, and the female Red-crested Pochard.
I wandered back and decided I'd put in a good stint back at the west end, in the hope it would appear. Time ticked by and I constantly scanned the edge of the water. Five female Goosander were snorkelling along in a group, seeking an early morning snack. Two Moorhens alarm-called and one shot out of the reedbed. Taking this as a sign, I quickly focussed my scope on that area. A slight movement, and yes, there it was, the Bittern! It was mostly hidden but its upper half and head were visible through the reed stems. My first York-area Bittern at last. I moved position to get a better perspective, but it quickly melted back into the reeds. I waited for another 45 minutes and it didn't reappear, which was a bit frustrating, but it didn't take the shine off seeing this cool bird.
Can you see it?!
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