It’s all about the birds at the moment, with autumn migration in full swing and with my local area fortunate to be enjoying visits by some stunning birds, like this one.

The day I saw the three phalaropes there was another cracking bird at Cardiff’s northern reservoirs but it was a bit overshadowed by the three rarities, and I doubt many birders bothered to walk to the far end of the adjacent Llanishen Reservoir to see this one, a beautiful juvenile Garganey (Anas querquedula).

An explanation is necessary here; I actually visited the reservoirs the day before I saw the Grey and Red-necked phalaropes, as one Grey phalarope had been reported that day. But it was literally blowing a gale so I had difficulty staying upright, let alone trying to scan the choppy waters with my binoculars to find a small grey bird. In fact, it was so windy that a marquee, which had been pegged close to the visitor centre, had come loose from its pegs and blown across the path to the reservoir where the phalarope had been reported, so the path had been closed off for safety reasons. Seeing that, I gave up looking but, enjoying the fresh air and wanting the exercise, I stomped briskly around Llanishen Reservoir. And, during that walk, I spotted the Garganey (the photo below was taken that first day) but, as I’m a bit hopeless with female/eclipse/juvenile ducks, I didn’t initially trust my identification skills. Amazingly, I’d got it right this time.