Ten days ago I was ensconsed in Townend hide at Blacktoft Sands, gazing through my monocular at a small island where about fifteen pairs of avocets were nesting. I spied a couple of avocet chicks; all looked well. I was back at Blacktoft Sands a couple of days ago, having promised friends that they would be able to see the chicks. It was quite a shock to find the island vacated. Instead of avocet nests, the island was covered with grass. The avocet colony felt like a mirage, something I’d imagined. After half an hour, a couple of avocets flew in. As they looked around the island, their piping call sounded particularly mournful. With so many marsh harriers quartering the reedbeds, in search of food for their own offspring, I doubt if any of the avocet chicks had survived.
Despite this setback, avocets are thriving. I remember seeing my first avocets, maybe forty years ago, following their return to Minsmere in Suffolk. When the RSPB was looking for an emblem, it was an avocet they chose. Now these beautiful birds are plentiful once again, especially around the coastal fringes of eastern England.
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