Pensthorpe Nature Reserve

02/08/11

On 30/07/2011, I visited Pensthorpe Nature Reserve, near Fakenham, Norfolk. The reserve is a brilliant place and very well maintained. There's plenty worth seeing - the gardens, the wildfowl, and the conservation areas.

For me the trip to the reserve had three highlights. The first was seeing the several species of Crane kept there. The African Crowned, Blue, Manchurian, Eurasian, and Red Crowned Cranes, were all beautiful birds to observe from the hides in the conservation area. When they occassionally called out their musical, highly vocal calls could be heard through-out the reserve.

The second highlight was in the main Aviary where one can enjoy viewing Black-Winged Stilts at really close proximity. The aviary provides a great chance to see these wonderfully long-legged birds from just a couple of yards away; allowing one to enjoy every detail.

The third and best highlight was a meeting with a juvenile Bald Ibis; also in the Aviary. The friendly, puppy-like, bird came right up to my feet, allowing me to lean over and carefully stroke the bird's feathers - something which it seemed to enjoy. The Bald Ibis is critically endangered in the wild, so to enjoy such a close encounter with this one was quite something special. If other visitors to Penthorpe get to enjoy such close encounters with this species of bird then maybe awareness about the wider plight of the species will be raised.

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