Heronry

As we walked along the south bank of the river in Stratford yesterday R and I were commenting on the fact that neither of us had seen a Grey Heron on the Avon recently, and R asked if I thought they'd already taken themselves off to their nest sites to breed. So this morning we went over to Charlecote to take a look at the heronry there, and find out. 

The answer to R's question is a qualified "yes". There was a definite gathering of Grey Herons in the area near the heronry, but at least half of them were down on the ground, doing that village hall teenage dance thing where they all stand around, narrowly watching each other while pretending to be interested in something else. A few had moved up into the trees, but although they were hanging around near the nests they were still simply standing about, ostentatiously ignoring each other.

The Charlecote heronry is technically inaccessible to humans because it's inside the Deer Sanctuary (though I had to point out that fact today to a chap who was marching across the grass towards it, and who seemed inclined to argue until we pointed out the No entry notices alongside the carriage drive), and as the trees are a long way from the drive, and very tall, the heron nests aren't all that easy to see, even when the trees are bare like this. By the time the nests are in use the trees will be leafing up and the view will be even more restricted, which will obviously suit their occupants more than it will me, so I was pleased to have captured this scene today. 

If I remember - and I generally don't - I'll try to come back in a few weeks, to see if I can spot the parent birds fetching food for their offspring.