Sounds like a dozen less two with ferocious mustelids, for a short while

In preparation for the next Ely birders pub night I devised my own cryptic clue to the species I twitched down at the Cam Washes this afternoon.  I don't think it's bad for a first attempt.  The pictures below should point you in the right direction if you haven't got it yet, although they're probably just as cryptic as identification shots.  Hopefully you get the gist.

 



 

Indeed there were two stopping off at the Washes on their journey northwards which may end way beyond the Arctic circle.  A deliberate link purely to allow the use of this picture of a displaying bird we found on a frozen, roadside lake edge in far NE Norway, in June 3 years ago.

 

 



While at the Cam Washes I was pretty disappointed to see that others had chosen to leave the riverside path and make their way closer to the birds into, what appears to be, good habitat for lowland breeding waders such as Snipe, Redshank and Oystercatcher (all of which were present).  I hope it is clear from the picture that this is not a good choice of observation point and this is compounded by the observers standing a moderate distance apart.  I'm sure we've all made mistakes like this in the past unwittingly but at this time of year we all need to be mindful of the potential impact of our birding activity.