When a young man's thoughts turn to spring...

We were so lucky this morning - to witness the courtship and mating of a pair of grebes at Killingworth Lake!

We watched awestruck for about 20 minutes as they swam round each other, occasionally coming closer then separating again. Eventually they both dived and each picked up a leaf which they then shared with each other. The sequence in the extras shows that they then "kissed": the male (on the right) then threw up his head in delight after which they swam into the reeds to "do the deed" as seen in the final extra (you can just make out the female with her head almost under the water in the reeds).

Photography was a little tricky as the sunlight was harsh, so the dynamic range was rather extreme but I did my best. (I took over 1400 shots so I may put some more in a Google album another day if I have time.)

Hopefully it won't be long before we see some babies.