Early morning at Tophill Low

It's Bank Holiday Monday and I have an early start for Tophill Low. It is mild and mainly overcast, but with a few sunny spells, and it seems good weather to catch up with late season dragonflies and perhaps some bird migrants.
 Indeed, dozens of Sand Martins are passing over and descending to feed at D res. And on the new path behind the visitor centre a male Southern Hawker is resting, waiting for the sun. He is completely oblivious to the camera and I can get some close ups of its eyes.

At North Lagoon the low water level expose the soft mud. Five Black-tailed Godwits feed precariously, as they keep sinking and have to flutter out. Two Green Sandpipers, my first this year, are also in attendance, feeding in the company of teal, a mud-loving duck.

Black-headed Godwit and Teal.

Black-headed Godwits.

Green Sandpiper.

Green Sandpiper.

 At South Marsh a noisy Little Egret joins the long-staying female Goosander when she starts fishing. I've seen Little Egrets feeding near fishing Cormorants too, the diving birds probably flushing small fish towards the shore where the Little Egret can fish them and therefore benefits from the association. The Goosander didn't seem too happy when the egret picked something too close to her as you can see in the clip below.

Young Black-headed Gulls joined in a flight chase game, the first one holding some plant material, eventually losing it and the next individual catching 'it' being chased by the remaining party. For a bird that uses piracy on smaller birds such as terns or other conspecifics it must pay to hone your chasing skills when young.

Playing Black-headed gulls.

Marsh frog.

Watton had a mixed geese flock, with Greylag, Canada, a male CanadaxGreylag hybrid paired with a Canada and an lone Barnacle Goose.

Hybrid CanadaxGreylag (right) with his mate.

Barnacle, Canada and greylag geese.

On the west side of O res several hawkers, including mating ones (likely migrant) and Southern, Common Darter and mating Common Blue Damselflies were present.

Common Darter.

Common Blue Damselfly.

Female Migrant Hawker.

Mating Common Blue Damselflies.