No 142: American Wigeon

Whew! Went back to Anglers Country Park today because as well as the birds I didn't see last Friday, there was a report of a smew on the adjacent reservoir. Pete came with me today, and we laboured through a lot of mud alongside the reservoir - to no avail. we had some lunch in the cafe and then repaired to the hide; lots of lovely birds again - goosander, greylag and Canada geese, teal, cormorant, herons, swans, but as for birds for my challenge... nada!!!! We decided t0 finish our visit with a walk round the lake. I got some great sightings of a green woodpecker, and plenty of pochard, goldeneye and tufted duck, but none of the unblipped birds. Light now fading fast. I was thinking about throwing in the towel - not just for the day, but for the challenge, when Pete spotted the American Wigeon amongst a large flock of Eurasian Wigeon. I managed to get a few so-so shots of it, but I liked this one the best as it shows both wigeon alongside each other. I will renounce twitching as soon as this challenge is over, whatever the outcome - it's just too stressful. The American Wigeon is the 3rd bird from the right, with the green eyestripe. 8 to go