The Aerobatic Waltz .............................................................. Rasik Bhadresa

The Aerobatic Waltz

Back in late March we were lucky to have a ‘room with a view’ in an old mill conversion; even luckier that the view comprised a river running through a marsh, grassy damp areas – some waterlogged – interspersed with large and small areas of the previous year’s dry flowering stalks of reeds moving in the wind. There were the ‘gooselike’ Shelduck, prodding Oystercatchers, feeding Greylags, one or two Curlews wading along the exposed edges of the river, a few Lapwings scattered about, a Little Egret rearing its head with a sagging crest from along a narrow ditch on the far right, and sporadically a Grey Heron flying across the marsh. Occasionally a Marsh Harrier with its somewhat rounded wings would take to the air from amongst the amoeboid-shaped reed swamps, fly-glide around for a while before dropping back into obscurity. Altogether a real treat, especially through the eye of a telescope. But every so often a spectacle would break loose and an innocent looking bird with large white-tipped rounded wings would rise all of a sudden vertically skyward. More often than not followed by another closing in on it, in what looked like a spiral chase, pairs of fan-shaped wings appearing to beat in unison, one moment showing the upper dark side of the wings, next the white generous bib of the underside and the rufous rump as the large flaps flipped. Tossing, turning, twisting, rolling for up to a minute at a time. They reminded one of well-versed ballet dancers dancing in a weightless universe. La La Land. This supple, athletic, flexible and energetic aerial acrobatic dance would suddenly come to an end as one of them literally plummeted down in a joyful, life-affirming plunge to a wonderfully executed landing, wings drawn in microseconds before the dark pink legs touched the ground, all movements brilliantly controlled, the other following suit. An extraordinary feat had been performed of which the birds appeared not even to be aware, now walking gently, calmly and confidently as if to say ‘life can go on as normal’. The composed manner, the crest erect, difficult to tell if the heart was beating fast, providing a perfect cover for its tantalising manoeuvres in the sky. It was impossible to think this was not planned and executed just as was intended. Once down, the sun caught the emerald green colour varnished with lustrous magenta iridescence of the dark upper parts of the Plover. As it walked, the long curved crest on a black crown of the male bobbed up and down – a mannerism that most probably gave it its name – Lapwing. A few minutes later and we would witness another flappy and dextrous aerial exhibition, wonderfully controlled. And yet another and another, sometimes singly. One simply couldn’t tire of this eye-catching spring courtship display of the males. Pure magic. Lapwing

Photo: Gi Grieco