When news of an adult Squacco Heron at Kilnsea (Spurn NNR) in Yorkshire appeared yesterday morning, I quickly decided to make the trip over there.
I arrived on site a couple of hours later than planned due to an accident on the A63 shortly after the end of the M62, which closed the the eastbound carriageway. As I approached Spurn a negative message popped up, but was swiftly followed by a positive message with the bird simply moving between two favoured areas. Fortunately for me, the new location was on the Canal Scrape which is right next to the new vistor center & only a few paces from the car park. I had a quick look through to the back of the Canal Scrape just before entering the hide & could see the bird. The Squacco Heron performed really well as it moved slowly along the far bank, pausing motionless for several seconds at a time. When a Little Egret wandered along there was a bit of an altercation with the egret chasing off the heron. This resulted in some excellent flight views as the Squacco Heron circled the scrape before setting back down. After about 20mins the heron took off & headed back to the other area it was frequenting a short distance to the north.
Squacco Heron is another species I've seen many of abroad, but failed to see in the UK previously, so very satisfying to finally catch up with one.
