The weather continues to be nice and clear, bright blue sky and frosty morning, a good day to be out and amongst it all. The only problem with that of course, is that everyone else thinks the same and the marsh was like Old Trafford on match day! Birdwatchers, walkers and cyclists all over the place making it hardly a peaceful, idyllic wildlife haven. So it was with some surprise when I reached the area that I had seen the Hen Harrier yesterday to find it very easily again. This time, I almost got up close to it. As I walked on one of the public paths across the marsh….. there it was on a fence and not too far away. It was being worried by a couple of crows and I quickly realised that they were trying to get a share of the prey that the Harrier had  caught. Almost immediately it lifted off carrying it's prey, which I could not make out, and landed on the  telegraph pole that you can see above, with the two crows in hot pursuit. As soon as it had landed the crows gave up and I watched it eating the prey through binoculars. Unfortunately it was just too far for the camera and there was a mist in the air that made any kind of photography really hard.  I sat  on the ground and waited, and watched and then waited some more. I could see it feeding and I was hoping that it would fly back in my direction, and who knows how close it would perch.  But it didn't.  Eventually the crows returned and continued their pestering and after a few minutes of that, it left   not to be seen again.

A walk back to the canal left me full of frustration because now we had the spectacle of the University Rowing Club, complete with coxswain bawling out orders and three more riding down the towpath on bikes.  It is never right that they do this so close to this environmentally sensitive area. .  There we are, birdwatchers and like-minded people hoping to see wildlife when these people think it OK to interrupt the  sanctuary of the  reserve.  I watched as a birdwatcher/photographer with his expensive 500mm lens trained on a possible Bittern or Water Rail(probably the later) opposite, had his peace and opportunity shattered as the boat crashed past between him and his intended  sighting.  The canal is 5 miles long why can't they do their rowing further towards the city where they are doing potentially less harm. I think it quite ironic that this was all taking place in the forenoon. Why are they are not studying or attending lectures on Wednesday morning  smack in the middle of the academic term?