The Kilnsea Great Snipe....What a bird!!.....15.09.2013.

After hearing late on Saturday evening that a Great Snipe had been found on Beacon Lane at Kilnsea i was determined not to go for the bird as i had seen 2 previously in the Spurn recording area.But after hearing that it had been showing at point blank range and in the open,i finally gave in.A quick phone call to Chris and half an hour later we were speeding...literally,through the villages on the way to Spurn.On arrival the bird was roosting in a partially water filled ditch across from Warrenby Cottage at the southern end of Beacon Lane.But after a short while it began to feed showing amazingly close.This carried on for the next hour and a half until people finally backed off and it came out onto the grass verge to feed.At one point it walked right past me through tripod legs and people to carry on feeding at another spot.Once it settled down to feed on the verge you could properly appreciate the bird and take in all the i.d. features properly.It was a beautifully marked,contrasting bird,with it's shorter,broad based bill than Common Snipe,broader 'Super',white spotted coverts and white edges to the tail.The latter observed as it preened and it looked obviously chunkier than a Common Snipe also.This bird had never encountered humans before and sadly it's tameness became it's downfall as it was reported this morning as being found dead,killed by a cat.What a sad end for such a stunning bird,but while alive this cracker gave birders the chance to study this enigmatic species at close range instead of a flyby view......What a bird!.