A heronry or not?

The heron has not been in his/her usual place for a while.  When I've caught sight of that beady yellow eye its been elsewhere.  And although somewhere round the other side of the reserve has clearly been a favourite spot for several years it's not been until this winter's scrub clearance that it was possible to see it.  S/he can also now be seen - if you're lucky - with a mate.  And today, watching for some time, there was absolutely no question this heron was building a nest with bits of reed and twig being pulled up wholesale.

The RSPB says on its website, 'Herons are sociable birds when nesting, invariably nesting in long-established heronries.  Most heronries are in trees, with the majority of nests at least 25m above the ground. However, reed-bed heronries are not unusual...'  So I guess this may qualify as a reed-bed heronry, though I don't think we'll ever see more than one pair.  Wouldn't it be wonderful if they really did bring up chicks here?  Something to keep an eye on.

The rest of the day's been fairly peaceful apart of a huge pro-EU demo in the middle of town this afternoon.  I saw a bit of it but didn't have my camera  :(

Happy Saturday night to you all  xx