Start of the season at Donna Nook

My first day this year of my seal warden duties. Yesterday there were 2 seals and today about 25. They will be coming ashore onto the salt marsh in ever increasing numbers from now on. Last year we had over 1600 pups. Here we have a male (bull) and 2 pregnant ladies (cows). The males tend to come ashore just before the cows to stake their claim to a bit of beach and the cows they fancy on that bit of beach. The shoreline was crowded with seals and I expect over the next week we will have huge numbers coming in. We are expecting about 1600 cows , 800 bulls and then there will be around 1600 pups. It all gets exciting and crowded. More pictures as the season progresses!
There were lots of geese, plovers, shellducks, starlings and a load of different gulls. Great for birdwatchers as well as seal watchers!