Glynn Hobbs - imageweaver

  The graceful Great Crested Grebe is a familiar sight on our lakes and reservoirs, and is well-known for its elaborate courtship dance, during which it rises vertically out of the water and shakes its head. The largest and most often seen grebe, the great crested grebe has an impressive plume on its head and orange ruff around its neck during the breeding season. It has white cheeks, a dark cap, a white neck and a dark body. Grebes are diving waterbirds, feeding on small fish and aquatic invertebrates. Great crested grebes nest on floating platforms made up of waterweed. They can be found on lakes and reservoirs everywhere. I was recently fortunate to spend some time with an adult pair, who were busy building their nest. This was great news, as hopefully, over the following weeks, they would sucessfully breed and give me the opportunity to follow their progress. The site of their original nest, was perfect and directly in front of my hide. However, over the next few days, some violent

  A Male Marsh Harrier This is the second installment of my blog, covering my recent UK trip. Today, I am concentrating on the Raptors that share the marshes and reed beds with the Heron families covered in my last blog.  These include Marsh Harriers, Hobbies, Kestrels, Buzzards, Sparrowhawks and Red Kites, all of which visit this site at Stodmarsh Nature Reserve in East Kent. Some of them such as the Harriers are permanent residents, whilst others like the Hobby, visit during their migration and when their food source is prevalent. Similar to my original blog, the following images are in no particular order, but I will deal with each species separately, starting with the Marsh Harrier. Marsh Harriers The largest of the harriers, the Marsh Harrier can be recognised by its long tail and light flight with wings held in a shallow 'V'. It is distinguishable from other harriers by its larger size, heavier build, broader wings and absence of white on the rump. Females are larger than