Goosanders and River Severn

Over the last few months I have been walking up and down a small stretch of the River Severn in and around Shrewsbury. Apart from the the usual suspects Mallard, Black Headed Gull, I have seen cormorants regularly on my excursions, but also increasingly as the weather has got colder and the levels of the river have receded after the high water marks of November and early December I have seen Goosander. Not just the occasional one or two, but five and sixes regularly spaced out. This is a picture I took a couple of days ago of a male taking off, heading up stream towards the Welsh Bridge in on the Severn in Shrewsbury.

Nearly twenty years ago I worked on a survey for the RSPB counting the number of Goosander on the rivers of Central Wales. As part of that exercise I walked along a number of rivers in march and again in June to look for the birds. Compared to then the population seems to have somewhat increased this is reflected in the experience of others (Wharfdale Naturalists) have commented on the same population increase over the last few years.

I have managed to get quite a few pictures of the critters over the last few weeks, but of all this is my favourite. This is a female Goosander that has caught something just a little to big to deal with in one go.

Immediately after she was set upon by a male goosander and a couple of marauding gulls. I could not work out what happened to the fish whether it was alive or not but it seemed that the female that originally caught it was unable to keep it for long.


OK bed time but more soon ish.....