Mr & Mrs Coot - Fulica atra

I am assuming that this pair is the one who has just had their nest flooded out just a little further down the canal - I wonder if they are going to try yet again.

This is a fairly safe area behind some booms a little way behind the weir... which I assume are to stop boats trying to go that direction instead of through the lock. But what they also do is collect flotsam and in this case, allow growth on the opposite side to the flow of water. The Coots were not the only birds making use of it, and you can seen a few out of focus mallards at the front of the shot.