The common cormorant or..

Loading the boat for a return trip to the island this morning, I saw what I thought was a herring gull out of the corner of my eye, flying south to north in the sound, at masthead level. I'm not sure what made me take a second look, but it turned out to be a little egret, and never having seen one in the sound, I watched it until it landed, five or six hundred yards along the foresehore, where the poles of an old stock fence stand in line across the seaweed.

I thought, Nothing ventured, finished loading as fast as I could and took the boat in a long arc to north and east, round behind the moorings and almost to the shore of Islandmore; then puttered slowly in towards the spot, my camera at the ready.

Not much of a story really, because the egret had disappeared - but I'll be on the lookout over the next few days and will post a photograph if I manage one..

Anyway, by way of compensation (and a PS to my earlier post about winter's sentinels) on the way to the cabin I passed this very handsome shag, and photographed him instead.