Mr and Mrs Mandarin duck

Yesterday was another shockingly cold day starting with snow and then rain and and icy wind.
I went out to a farm shop to get some meat to make a 'hearty' stew in my slow cooker and thought to stop on the way back to check out the nesting herons.  Road works stopped me getting at the herons but to my delight l found a Mandarin duck and his partner; hopefully they will nest there and l may get photos of tiny Mandarin ducklings some time in the future.