Sedge Warbler #51

A long awaited visit to Lunt Meadows this morning gave us a wonderful couple of hours before it got too busy. Fantastic weather and those people that we did meet, all kept way further than 2m away from us, so we felt very safe. As we were leaving we noticed a lot more people around the reserve so were glad we went quite early. There were a couple of wardens onsite checking out the hotspots and planning for more "passing places" on the thinner pathways to make it easier to socially distance. 
It was so lovely to hear the sedge warblers, whitethroats and Cetti's Warblers singing loudly around the circuit. I've missed them.  We even got to see a Pectoral Sandpiper that was on a pond at the far end - apparently they are quite rare in the UK. I'm not sure we would have found it, or even recognised it as anything special if it wasn't for the small group of people standing at the top of the lane, all 2m apart, pointing their cameras and scopes in that direction. Everyone was very respectful of each other and gave each other both space and a "turn" at the prime spot so we could all see it safely. There is a poor Heavily cropped, record shot in extras in case you want to see what it looks like. 
 
We also got to see that they have applied for permission to build a small "Welcome centre" with toilets on site which will enhance it even more. It's  becoming one of the Lancashire Wildlife Trusts better sites now it has matured a lot. I think we will be going back to Lunt pretty soon. It's a special place and less than 20 minutes drive for us.