Spoonbilled Crane*

Fantastic life-tick this one!

Last night I was with my mother and father in beautiful sunshine high in the green mountains of Austria not far from Gondor. Having failed to see any Waxwings from our ledge on the mountainside, we waited for birds to fly past, patiently.

Luckily, this very short wait paid off and we were treated to superb views of what my Collins bird book identified as a Spoonbilled Crane that flew slowly past, at very close range. The identification was made easily due to the dark green, smooth head like that of a Shoveler, a long black bill like that of a Spoonbill, the bright gold ring around the long (up to 1 metre) neck, and the graded blocks of grey getting lighter down the back. This one appeared to be in extremely good condition and was definitely a male bird - the female is very much smaller, with a head reminiscent of a Capuchin Monkey but with buff edges to the face.

Incredible bird to see, and I hope to get many more stunning views of birds such as this in the future.

*Disclaimer: this sighting was, in fact, a dream. Bugger.