Hanningfield Reservoir Swifts

After a wet walk around more Canewdon Farmland and a quick stop at Hockley Woods we abandoned our original plan to see how the Wallasea wetlands project was developing. We met up with Dad at Hanningfield Reservoir instead to make the most of their hide facilities were we were treated to the uplifting spectacle of a thousand Swifts hawking over the main stretch of water. Click the image above to play a QuickTime movie taken through my scope (Nikon ED50) on my mobile phone (Nokia N73).
Other sightings of note included 4 pairs of Red-crested Pochard and a Black Swan, totally untickable according to the BOU list but relatively new for this patch.

It all proved too much for Matt.