Hen Harrier

A bittern has been seen several times at The Loons marsh in Birsay so I caught a bus up there today. It is an RSPB reserve and there is a hide, which was extremely useful today given very sharp showers of rain driven by high north winds. Bittern is a southern species always hard to see and today proved that with no sighting. This harrier was hunting over the reedbeds and is either a female of juvenile. Other birds- raven, wigeon, mallard, gadwall, moorhen, curlew etc.