Common Snipe

Another awful day, it poured down virtually all day. I managed to get out for a few hours with an old birdwatching friend and between th heavy showers managed to get some shots of a pair of Common Snipe. These birds are normally quite secretive and stick to the very edge or reeds or other cover. This one popped out between showers for a feed on the mud and to have a preen. They constantly keep an eye out for predators and I snapped this one looking up from its preening in order to check the skies for such an eventuality.