For the third year running Grey Herons are nesting on one of the islands in Abington Park, Northampton, with one nest occupied and another being built. It’s unclear whether the second nest has a pair or just one heron building and is hidden from view.
Whilst most visitors to the park seem happy with these recent residents some have been keen to express their views. “I don’t like them, they’re ugly” and “they’re nasty, they eat all the babies” are just two of the comments I’ve heard whilst photographing the birds.
Fishermen seem ambivalent to their presence, justly so as the herons tend to fly out of the park to catch prey and have been seen returning with goldfish taken from garden ponds! Cormorants on the other hand don’t seem to be as welcome, neither was the Otter seen several times during December.
A Kingfisher has delighted visitors with irregular sightings mostly after heavy rainfall when the river is too murky and fast flowing for it to fish efficiently. Goosander have also been seen in varying numbers with one still present today, and it won’t be long before the prehistoric looking young herons hatch and show their faces above the nest.
All images above taken in Abington Park
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