Shelducks on the Teign Estuary

Down to the Teign estuary this Saturday at low tide expecting to see various wading birds.

Not a sausage. Mudflats bereft of bird (as drawn by Haze there)

Where’ve they all gone? Back to Africa?

Fortunately (for bird blogging purposes) this pair of shelducks turn up.

Sifting and sweeping across the mud-flats with red beaked hoovers.

Kind of goose-like in size and shape.

They took off, with big beating wings, syncronised in tandem together (I got that on film and may use it at some point in the future)

It was cold on that estuary. More like chilly January than April Spring.

Sketch: Hazel Brown; Words: Ian Nisbet

Estuary Eats

If you’re a Little Egret the Teign Estuary is a 5 star restuarant.

For a crow its more of a greasy beak caff. Much work required to break open those hard-to-crack muddy mussels.

Little Egret looks for breakfast

While we were sat eating our fried bacon breakfast this Little Egret turned up.

Looking for his own breakfast.

‘Songs of a Summer Night’

This is a painting Haze did immediately of her wild camping night on the Teign Estuary.

And here is what she’s written about it.

Wild Camping on the Teign Estuary

Down to the Teign Estuary on a lovely summer night for some ‘wild camping’.

Listening to Mahlers ‘Das Lied von der Erde’ (Song of the Earth)

Listening to owls hoot hooting.

Listening to the trains skattle rattle din on the far side.

Listening to the curlews melancholy moon music.

Listening to the air mattress slowly deflating, reflating.

Listening to that fried bacon sizzle.

We didn’t sleep much.

There’d been too much magic going on out there to waste it on sleep.

So that was Wild Camping Part 1.

Part 2 will be in a wildly wilder place: Dartmoor.

Successful completion of which will qualify Miss Brown for her Level 2 Wild Camping Certificate! (accredited by the Nizzwaz Institute of Outlandish Pursuits)