The frozen SWT reserve at Knockshinnoch had a grand total of 7 birds today: one Heron, 2 Mallard, Teal and one Water Rail. The latter gave one of the best views I’ve ever had as it ventured out onto the partially melting ice to feed. It came within 3m and totally ignored me and a mad Springer Spaniel. I managed to get a couple of shots and a bit of video (with a compact camera, so don’t expect BBC HD). As this was the first photo of a Water Rail I even managed to get an entry on the Ayrshire Species List – which just shows that anyone can do it with a bit of luck!