At Lavell's Lake again, there was a single male Shoveler feeding in a small pool in front of our hide.
Another unmistakeable bird, with a comically-large bill (hence its name) a bottle-green head, and most noticeably of all from a distance, a large chestnut patch down each flank, with snow white plumage surrounding these patches.
The shoveler seems to be breeding more and more in the south-east of the UK these days. It wasn't so long ago that I felt incredibly lucky if I saw one, they do appear to be much more common these days. Shovelers are large ducks, about 50cm long, and if you see them in flight, their large bill does make their head appear very long - quite distinctive.
Really nice to see yesterday though!
[photo (c)Arthur Grosset]
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