Female reed bunting

At first glance I thought it was a sparrow, but a knowledgeable man leading a large group was encouraging them to stop chatting and look at this interesting bird. It wouldn’t come close while the party were around, but I waited.  The male with a much darker head was also around. 

Middleton Lakes was ridiculously busy this morning. You arrive from the road behind the Aston Villa Training ground and I thought the stream of cars would turn off. No. The RSPB reserve car park was heaving.

Don’t get me wrong, I totally approve of encouraging people to love the creatures around us. ( But I like my happy places a bit quieter.) Fortunately they were more interested in the camaraderie and  didn’t hang around. They went. I popped a bit more high quality seed on the feeding log and was really spoiled by so many visitors. (Extras too - a nuthatch, and lots of action in the heronry.)

And it started to rain as I drove home. My lucky day.