Well I havnt died its just that we have recently moved into a house and it has been a nightmare getting connected to the internet at the moment I cannot upload photos as the conection is to slow ,so appologies for the lack of pictures.
Have quite a lot to report on recent birding tripsbut I would like to accompany with some of the pictures (record shots mainly) of what I have been seeing.
Among some of the recent birds I have ticked are
Turtle Dove
Temminck's stint
Pied Flycatcher
Stone Curlew
Bittern
Hobby
Bearded tit
lots of Marsh Harrier
Myself and Alan were at Lakenheath gazing into the poplar trees looking for a very loud Golden Oriel but we did not get to see it, whilst we were watching Bitterns were being very active behind us, flying low level and close, it was amazing.
Biggest news is the house move,I thought my moving days were over but my company were asked to take over the management of a quite succesfull pet shop that had fallen on hard times, So Jo is caretaker manager until we find a permanent person and I am to oversee the running of the shop whilst still running Natural World (one of the biggest pet stores in the country by the way lol) However this gorgeous farm house in the middle of nowhere comes with the Job (a dream for both Jo and I) so leaving my house in the charge of number 3 and number 4 son we are gradually moving our stuff over. I have started a new garden list which is as follows
Willow warbler
Chiff chaff
Yellow hammer
Tawny Owl (I need to get a closer view of this one)
Garden Warbler (possible)
Pheasant
Greenfinch
Goldfinch
Chaffinch
Swallow (nesting in one of our stables)
song thrush
Magpie
Mistle thrush
Dunnock
Buzzard
Kestrel
and this is in one week whilst eating breakfast in the conservatory - I am so lucky
However stress has took its toll with all the house moving and job change for poor old Jo as she was taken to hospital on Saturday with pleurasy, she seems to be doing better now. At the new shop we intend to set up a pets corner so we are in the process of learning all about emu's ,alpacka's, pigs, chickens, lambs etc etc, so as I approach 50 when I thought my days were winding down all of a sudden they are thrown into a hurricane and once again a new project looms
counter
Thursday, 24 June 2010
Monday, 10 May 2010
Nags Head,Symonds Yat and Highnam
Been looking forward to this one for some time.Alan and I had a trip down to Herefordshire. With the Sat Nav plugged in and an Ordnance Survey map resting on Alans lap who would of thought we could go wrong ..... Ill say no more.
First stop was cannop pond to try and get the Manderin, considering the pond is over a mile long we dropped on lucky as low and behold right in front of our eyes was not one but 5 Manderin
We then went on to the Nags Head nature reserve. We had a long trek, not knowing the best places but on our trek we came across Blackcap,Whitethroat,siskin,Chifchaff,GSw, and Garden Warbler
This is a picture of a GSW on the feeder at highnem
We also heard a wood warbler, I really wanted to get a pic of this one after last weeks fiasco but we stood listening to it for about 30 minutes but it would not show. It was soon forgot though as we stood and watched a pair of pied flycatchers, what a beautiful bird, shame i could not get any pictures.
Next it was Symonds Yat with some great views of a perergrine but the target bird was Goshawk but unfortunately no luck on this, we did however see a Saker Falcon, Nobody knows where it came from but it has been flying at Symonds for a few days now, no jesses or ring, so who knows.
We then went to highnem woods lots of birds but we did not see or hear our target bird, the Nightingale
First stop was cannop pond to try and get the Manderin, considering the pond is over a mile long we dropped on lucky as low and behold right in front of our eyes was not one but 5 Manderin
We then went on to the Nags Head nature reserve. We had a long trek, not knowing the best places but on our trek we came across Blackcap,Whitethroat,siskin,Chifchaff,GSw, and Garden Warbler
This is a picture of a GSW on the feeder at highnem
We also heard a wood warbler, I really wanted to get a pic of this one after last weeks fiasco but we stood listening to it for about 30 minutes but it would not show. It was soon forgot though as we stood and watched a pair of pied flycatchers, what a beautiful bird, shame i could not get any pictures.
Next it was Symonds Yat with some great views of a perergrine but the target bird was Goshawk but unfortunately no luck on this, we did however see a Saker Falcon, Nobody knows where it came from but it has been flying at Symonds for a few days now, no jesses or ring, so who knows.
We then went to highnem woods lots of birds but we did not see or hear our target bird, the Nightingale
Friday, 30 April 2010
wood warbler at the pool (now confirmed as a Willow )
I decided to go upto seeswood on Monday as it is prety quiet up there at the moment with the fishermen having a one month break. I wanted to get a decent picture of a Great Crested Grebe after seeing some fantastic shots that were took by Kevin. The Grebe was well off but I managed to get a couple of shots , not as good as Kevs but the best I have managed of this bird. For some reason I just cannot get it right with these. After reading another blog which pointed me in the direction of micro focusing adjustment on the canon50D, i did the neccersary work and low and behold my focusing was out, anyways I put it right - I think
I had a bird count of 30 species which is the best I have had from up the pool but I did not get the Ring Ouzel which was showing on Sunday. I had got settled in a bit of a bush where I was watching Willow Warbler and 2 male reed buntings when I noticed a movement in the top of a nearby bush. I thought it was a Willow Warbler but somehow it was a bit different. It wasnt moving as much as the willow warblers and it had some quite distinctive yellow patches with a bright white chest, a quick look in my book told me to look for a dark mark behind the eye a bit like a hook and if so I had a wood warbler, I managed to get a few record shots and I sent them off to John H who later replied and said he thought it was a wood warbler but would get it confirmed. He later confirmed it - so Thanks John and here are a few of the record shots I got
PRO POST
Cannot believe the ammount of interest this has caused, I thought the bird was a little different from the willows I had been watching so I tried to get the id confirmed - which it was but then after everyone has saw it has been id as a willow warbler - new mission now , to get a wood warbler up the pool lol
I had a bird count of 30 species which is the best I have had from up the pool but I did not get the Ring Ouzel which was showing on Sunday. I had got settled in a bit of a bush where I was watching Willow Warbler and 2 male reed buntings when I noticed a movement in the top of a nearby bush. I thought it was a Willow Warbler but somehow it was a bit different. It wasnt moving as much as the willow warblers and it had some quite distinctive yellow patches with a bright white chest, a quick look in my book told me to look for a dark mark behind the eye a bit like a hook and if so I had a wood warbler, I managed to get a few record shots and I sent them off to John H who later replied and said he thought it was a wood warbler but would get it confirmed. He later confirmed it - so Thanks John and here are a few of the record shots I got
PRO POST
Cannot believe the ammount of interest this has caused, I thought the bird was a little different from the willows I had been watching so I tried to get the id confirmed - which it was but then after everyone has saw it has been id as a willow warbler - new mission now , to get a wood warbler up the pool lol
Tuesday, 20 April 2010
Hooded Crow, Choughs 'n' Ravens
Well What a week,I had a 10 hour journey upto a scotish town called Hopeman which is very close to Inverness.We were only there for a couple of days on a visit to see my sister and her family and WOW what a place, so quiet and tranquil, cant wait to get back up there. Chris her husband is a rock climber and hopefully we are going to share a cottage for a few days in the west of Scotland, where I can go spotting and Chris can go Climbing.Whilst I was up there we did a bit of sight seeing and I had 2 hours birding with my little nephew Reece. He did take a picture of a thrush but I think I have deleted it by mistake so if you are reading this Reece, Sorry we will get another next time I come up. Birds I seen included Eider, Crossbill, Red Grouse, Curlew, Shellduck along with the usual waders
A couple of pictures from our trip
On Sunday I joined the mini bus with Nuneaton bird club and we were off to Great Orme North Wales, another long slog but well worth it. The sea was very calm and a lot of seabirds on the surface, just as we were getting to a viewing point an almighty sound sent all the birds out off the coast,seconds later a group of jet skiers came roaring across the bay, we cant really moan as the sea is for all to enjoy.However I werent so keen on them when Alan and I saw two skis deliberatly chasing cormorants.Initial birds were Cormorant, Shag,Gannet, Guillamot, Razor bill. On the rocks we saw Kittywake, Herring gull, GBB Gull and Fulmar but best of the lot was a hooded crow that flew over the bay.
Alan,Nick,Richard and I slogged our way upto the mid carpark where the rest of the group were waiting by the mini bus. As we got our snap out Alan told the rest of the group about Ring Ouzel that had been spotted at the top, so off they trogged up a very steep hill soon to be followed by us as soon as we had eaten. 5 minutes later a birder came to us and told us that we were in the best position to spot Ring Ouzel, Chough, and Wheatear and fair enough within 20 minutes or so we ticked all these birds along with Raven Meadow Pipit loads of jackdaw. I missed the sandwich tern and a perergrine but never mind plenty of time for me to get these.
A couple of record shots of the day
A couple of pictures from our trip
On Sunday I joined the mini bus with Nuneaton bird club and we were off to Great Orme North Wales, another long slog but well worth it. The sea was very calm and a lot of seabirds on the surface, just as we were getting to a viewing point an almighty sound sent all the birds out off the coast,seconds later a group of jet skiers came roaring across the bay, we cant really moan as the sea is for all to enjoy.However I werent so keen on them when Alan and I saw two skis deliberatly chasing cormorants.Initial birds were Cormorant, Shag,Gannet, Guillamot, Razor bill. On the rocks we saw Kittywake, Herring gull, GBB Gull and Fulmar but best of the lot was a hooded crow that flew over the bay.
Alan,Nick,Richard and I slogged our way upto the mid carpark where the rest of the group were waiting by the mini bus. As we got our snap out Alan told the rest of the group about Ring Ouzel that had been spotted at the top, so off they trogged up a very steep hill soon to be followed by us as soon as we had eaten. 5 minutes later a birder came to us and told us that we were in the best position to spot Ring Ouzel, Chough, and Wheatear and fair enough within 20 minutes or so we ticked all these birds along with Raven Meadow Pipit loads of jackdaw. I missed the sandwich tern and a perergrine but never mind plenty of time for me to get these.
A couple of record shots of the day
Monday, 12 April 2010
Draycote and Brandon
I picked Alan up on Sunday and decided that we would stay local and visit Brandon and Draycote. We wanted to catch some of the recent migrants and Alan was trying to teach me different bird song. Well I think I have mastered Chiff Chaff, Willow Warbler , Great Tit but wow what a mountain this is going to be.
We started off at Draycote and notched up 38 species including the Great Northern Diver, Black Cap, Willow Warbler and we were lucky enough to see a kestrel quite close
We also heard a green woodpecker (i think i will remember that one) and ChiffChaff but they remained elusive. Not many photo opportunities as most of the birds were too far but I did get a nice shot of a cormorant and a coot
As it approach dinner time Draycote was resembling Nuneaton Market on a Saturday and we were constantly looking over our shoulders to dodge the hordes of bikes that were charging round the reservoir. Time to head for Brandon.
Now then, trying to impress Alan and show that I didnt need a Sat Nav to get there, and I could find a quicker way round the backroads, the 5 miles or so that is the distance bhetween the 2 venues soon became 10 miles and we were close to setting the sat nav when we saw a sign - phewwww.
Although the birds were quiet we managed to increase a species total to 53 so not a bad tally for the day. When Alan showed me the iris colour of the little Ringed plover it convinced me that I needed a scope - so today I have been and invested in one - more back ache me thinks on these long treks we seem to get involved in.
some of the birds seen
great tit,blue tit, long tailed tit, yellow wagtail,pied wagtail,Redshank, Oyster Catcher, Little ringed plover,Golden Eye,Great Northern Diver,Black Cap,Willow Warbler,Chiff Chaff,Buzzard,Song thrush,lapwing,teal,tufted Duck,Mallard,Shovelar,Kestrel,Great Spotted Woodpecker,Gadwall,rook,c.crow
We started off at Draycote and notched up 38 species including the Great Northern Diver, Black Cap, Willow Warbler and we were lucky enough to see a kestrel quite close
We also heard a green woodpecker (i think i will remember that one) and ChiffChaff but they remained elusive. Not many photo opportunities as most of the birds were too far but I did get a nice shot of a cormorant and a coot
As it approach dinner time Draycote was resembling Nuneaton Market on a Saturday and we were constantly looking over our shoulders to dodge the hordes of bikes that were charging round the reservoir. Time to head for Brandon.
Now then, trying to impress Alan and show that I didnt need a Sat Nav to get there, and I could find a quicker way round the backroads, the 5 miles or so that is the distance bhetween the 2 venues soon became 10 miles and we were close to setting the sat nav when we saw a sign - phewwww.
Although the birds were quiet we managed to increase a species total to 53 so not a bad tally for the day. When Alan showed me the iris colour of the little Ringed plover it convinced me that I needed a scope - so today I have been and invested in one - more back ache me thinks on these long treks we seem to get involved in.
some of the birds seen
great tit,blue tit, long tailed tit, yellow wagtail,pied wagtail,Redshank, Oyster Catcher, Little ringed plover,Golden Eye,Great Northern Diver,Black Cap,Willow Warbler,Chiff Chaff,Buzzard,Song thrush,lapwing,teal,tufted Duck,Mallard,Shovelar,Kestrel,Great Spotted Woodpecker,Gadwall,rook,c.crow
Tuesday, 30 March 2010
Gibralta Point
I had a quick visit to Gibralta Point on Sunday and as I walked round There were one or two birds singing that I hadnt heard before, well I probably have but not noticed. One was a warbler which I thout was a Chiff Chaff which was later confirmed by John H as one of the eastern race thanks John
he was flitting about but I just couldnt get a shot without something in front of him.
I went onto the sand spit and there were lots of knot, dunlin, sanderling, curlew I sat there for about an hour just watching the waders. There were lots of skylarks about and I managed to snap one in flight
also there were a group of shellduck that took up
a couple of other pictures from the day
he was flitting about but I just couldnt get a shot without something in front of him.
I went onto the sand spit and there were lots of knot, dunlin, sanderling, curlew I sat there for about an hour just watching the waders. There were lots of skylarks about and I managed to snap one in flight
also there were a group of shellduck that took up
a couple of other pictures from the day
Friday, 26 March 2010
Great Yarmouth and Fritton
Sunday 21st March I was with Nuneaton Bird Club on a trip to Breydon Water. Masses and masses of birds but I needed a scope to take full advantage. It is great with the club as all the members are happy to show birds through there scopes. I always learn a bit more each time I go. On Breydon water we saw all the usual gulls along with Oyster Catcher,Redshank,Golden plover,pintail, wigeon and the beautiful grey plover. We moved on to Yarmouth beach where we spotted the gorgeous mediteranian gull, as we looked out to Scroby Sands Cormorants and Gannets were to be seen. I was looking at something else when a Black throated Diver flew through.
We then moved on to Fritton on the hunt for a rough legged buzzard.As we looked over this non descript field we saw 3 Short ear owls, a couple of Marsh harriers,buzzard, egyption geese, kestrel,sparrow hawk and a chinese water deer. It wasnt long before someone shouted out ring tail, this bird settled on a post when the scopes settled on it and it was obvious that it was a light headed buzzard of some description. We were all waiting to see whether this buzzard had a ring tail to prove it was a rough legged.2 hours later the bird still did not move, we came away amongst much discusion and whether it was a new tick for a lot of those there.Luckily a couple of other birders were there and about 30 minutes into a journey coming home somebody had a text saying R.L.B. confirmed. What an end to a great day. Loads of birds but unfortunatly no pictures - they were to far off
We then moved on to Fritton on the hunt for a rough legged buzzard.As we looked over this non descript field we saw 3 Short ear owls, a couple of Marsh harriers,buzzard, egyption geese, kestrel,sparrow hawk and a chinese water deer. It wasnt long before someone shouted out ring tail, this bird settled on a post when the scopes settled on it and it was obvious that it was a light headed buzzard of some description. We were all waiting to see whether this buzzard had a ring tail to prove it was a rough legged.2 hours later the bird still did not move, we came away amongst much discusion and whether it was a new tick for a lot of those there.Luckily a couple of other birders were there and about 30 minutes into a journey coming home somebody had a text saying R.L.B. confirmed. What an end to a great day. Loads of birds but unfortunatly no pictures - they were to far off
Monday, 15 March 2010
finedon - fineshade whats the difference
I have been looking forward to this Sunday for a couple of weeks now. It had been planned to pick Alan up 7 am Sunday morning and have a shortish trip into Northamptonshire - That was the plan.All was well at 7 am, at 7.05 am was when things started to go wrong. Leaving Alans house I headed towards the M6 to pick up the A14, as my Sat Nav suggested (it said we were 43 miles away from intended venue), but Alan in his wisdom, said that the way he had planned the trip ,we would be better off going along the A47 - fair enough I thought Al's an intelligent guy and has obviously done his homework, he is bound to know more than the 'world wide sattelite tracking navigation systems' (not sure how many billions have gone into developing the sat nav system) but I was sticking with Al. A trip around Hinkley and into Leicester was when problems set in. The A47 suddenly changed to the A46, and signs for Peterborough became none exsistent (not sure why we were following signs for Peterborough) I put the sat nav back on and it wanted us to go towards the motorway and back towards Hinkley (the sat nav says we were 44 miles away now) but no I still had my trust in Alan So we persevered for a bit taking in the marvelous sights of Leicester City Centre. In the end we succumbed and put the Sat nav back on. It sent us back to where we had come from,we joined the motorway and we were still 42 miles away. Along the A14 Alan kept pipe-ing on about the A43 and as I had lost a little bit of confidence in his directions, I said we will stick with the sat nav, it may know a short cut or something. It wasnt long before we pulled off the A14 and Jo (thats the name of my sat Nav - because it keeps nagging - hope Jo dont read this lol)said that we had arrived at our destination - It didnt look very birdy to me, the centre of Finedon, a nice place but not many birds. Alan obviously realising that I had put the wrong name in, said it was Fineshade we were going to not Finedon and he assumed that I was pronouncing Fineshade wrong-- No I wasnt. Luckily we were not far from the A43. Things started to get good
A few miles along the A43 we saw a red Kite - then another and another. We parked at Wakerly wood in the hope of our target bird, the Crossbill, no joy im afraid but it was a great stroll through the wood with quite a few tits, including coal tit which Alan pointed out there song, and I was hearing it all over the place.We went accross the road into fineshade and after a visit to the visitor centre we started on a trail, with Alan leading, it wasnt long before we were lost and on the outside of the wood, and that was where I managed to get this picture of a red Kite not brilliant but im glad i got it
it wasnt long before a buzzard came along
I turned round and sitting on some wires was a kestrel
turning back the kite and the buzzard were riding the same thermal
this was brilliant I was like a kid a christmas. Red Kites and buzzards were every where we saw 3 kites up at once and we also saw 3 buzzards up. Alan pointed out how to recognise at a distance, which made the skies even more interesting. I think we must of saw over 12 red kites over various venues in the county.
We then moved on to Blatherwyck lake in the hope of a Manderin but we had no joy but seen a lot of waterbirds. Next stop was auldwinkle (titmarsh) it was a flying visit a such as we wanted to get to some dissused airfield to spot a short eared owl - Alan had read about it on some roving doctors blogspot (wonder who that can be). we got to the airfield and I saw my first yellow hammers - what a great start. I was trying to picture where Kev in one of his posts had seen this owl but suddenly it appeard (absolute rubish photo but the best I could get)
it went over the back and sent up a flock of golden plovers. We stopped there for about an hour before it got to dark.
All in all a fantastic day and lots of ticks for me - we saw over 50 species on the day. the time just flew by. Alan went home with instructions to plan our next trip next month - I cant wait. Im off to Breydon water next week with Nuneaton Bird club - another trip to look forward to. Im hoping to pop in at Brandon soon to as there seems to be quite a bit going on there
A few miles along the A43 we saw a red Kite - then another and another. We parked at Wakerly wood in the hope of our target bird, the Crossbill, no joy im afraid but it was a great stroll through the wood with quite a few tits, including coal tit which Alan pointed out there song, and I was hearing it all over the place.We went accross the road into fineshade and after a visit to the visitor centre we started on a trail, with Alan leading, it wasnt long before we were lost and on the outside of the wood, and that was where I managed to get this picture of a red Kite not brilliant but im glad i got it
it wasnt long before a buzzard came along
I turned round and sitting on some wires was a kestrel
turning back the kite and the buzzard were riding the same thermal
this was brilliant I was like a kid a christmas. Red Kites and buzzards were every where we saw 3 kites up at once and we also saw 3 buzzards up. Alan pointed out how to recognise at a distance, which made the skies even more interesting. I think we must of saw over 12 red kites over various venues in the county.
We then moved on to Blatherwyck lake in the hope of a Manderin but we had no joy but seen a lot of waterbirds. Next stop was auldwinkle (titmarsh) it was a flying visit a such as we wanted to get to some dissused airfield to spot a short eared owl - Alan had read about it on some roving doctors blogspot (wonder who that can be). we got to the airfield and I saw my first yellow hammers - what a great start. I was trying to picture where Kev in one of his posts had seen this owl but suddenly it appeard (absolute rubish photo but the best I could get)
it went over the back and sent up a flock of golden plovers. We stopped there for about an hour before it got to dark.
All in all a fantastic day and lots of ticks for me - we saw over 50 species on the day. the time just flew by. Alan went home with instructions to plan our next trip next month - I cant wait. Im off to Breydon water next week with Nuneaton Bird club - another trip to look forward to. Im hoping to pop in at Brandon soon to as there seems to be quite a bit going on there
Monday, 8 March 2010
Im still here
I have managed to get out birding each week but struggled to get on top of my blog. Hopefully I can get it back on track now that I have a bit more time on my hands as the web site is about done.
I have been out with Nuneaton Bird Club a few times this year including Frampton Marsh, Friestone Shore, Titchwell, Sculthorpe Moor. I really enjoy these outings, They are a great bunch who make you feel really welcome and I am learning each and every time I go out with them.I dont get to use the camera much on these occasions so most of my bird photos are now done at Brandon.
Bit of a dissapointment at Frampton /Friestone in January as I thought I had got a nice linnet but as soon as the more experienced guys came the yellow bill confirmed it was a Twite. Other birds that day included snow bunting, Blacknecked Grebe, Woodcock,White fronted goose,Pink footed goose and some wonderful Barn Owl action
The following month found us at Titchwell and Sculthorpe I think it was a count of 82 birds seen on the day by the members so not bad at all. My highlitghts were watching 3 hen harriers prefoming 1 marsh harrier, Avocet, Bar tailed Godwit.
I have also been getting out to Brandon where I have been enjoying snipe, shellduck , siskin, lesser redpoll, goldcrest but alas no Bittern. Here are a few recent pics
And a couple of fish
I have been out with Nuneaton Bird Club a few times this year including Frampton Marsh, Friestone Shore, Titchwell, Sculthorpe Moor. I really enjoy these outings, They are a great bunch who make you feel really welcome and I am learning each and every time I go out with them.I dont get to use the camera much on these occasions so most of my bird photos are now done at Brandon.
Bit of a dissapointment at Frampton /Friestone in January as I thought I had got a nice linnet but as soon as the more experienced guys came the yellow bill confirmed it was a Twite. Other birds that day included snow bunting, Blacknecked Grebe, Woodcock,White fronted goose,Pink footed goose and some wonderful Barn Owl action
The following month found us at Titchwell and Sculthorpe I think it was a count of 82 birds seen on the day by the members so not bad at all. My highlitghts were watching 3 hen harriers prefoming 1 marsh harrier, Avocet, Bar tailed Godwit.
I have also been getting out to Brandon where I have been enjoying snipe, shellduck , siskin, lesser redpoll, goldcrest but alas no Bittern. Here are a few recent pics
And a couple of fish
Tuesday, 5 January 2010
freezing cold at Brandon
Well the holiday period is over so I can get back to normal at last. Work has been very hectic but cant complain it keeps the boss off me.I managed a trip to Brandon on Monday only to find a tiny strip of water with about 100 birds squabling to get on to it. It was early morning and some fantastic light so off came the long lens and on came the short lens. Got quite a few landscape pictures but no birds im afraid. There was not much about at all or so it seemed and then I met Kevin Grewcock (the birding medic) in the carlton hide, I have been following his blog for ages so it was great to meet him. As we sat in the hide he picked out numerous birds singing, a Jay flying and he had spotted quite a few birds in the woods. Just shows how much skill and experience counts in this game - One day Kev I will get there, but I am enjoying the journey. Im really looking forward to the year ahead particularly after seeing the venues Nuneaton bird club have lined up. Anyway no birds but a couple of landscape pics
A couple from last year
A couple from last year
Wednesday, 11 November 2009
out at last
Well it has been quite a few hectic weeks at work along with some rubbish weather has kept me in, but I have managed a trip down to seeswood and a trip over to Brandon.It was drizzling on sunday and couldnt make my mind up whether to go out or not, in the end I decided to drop in a Brandon. I was hoping to see some snipe and cettis warbler well that was the plan. I think I needed to listen for the Cettis but not knowing what to listen for I think I was on a bit of a no hoper. The light was absolute rubish so an ISO of 800 on a hand held 400mm was not going to give me any decent Photos. I walked past Grebe Pool taking my time and listening intently, but I aint much good at spotting these smaller birds and for my trouble I watched a dunnock for a few minutes along with several Blackbirds ,Great tits and long tailed tits also a Jay flew over which was a first for me, nobody was about and the peace and quiet was most welcome. I then moved to the John Baldwin hide where there were several cormorants,Teal,Shoveler,Pochard,Mallard,Lapwings and 1 L.B.B gull along with other unidentified gulls and black headed gull
I then moved onto the Teal hide where all I seen was a moorhen and a couple of Teal, I sat in there for about 30 mins and nothing arrived except a grunt well I dont think I even got a grunt off this one when I quietly said hello, he soon went and sombody else came in and they actualy said good morning, I nearly grunted at them thinking this was the thing to do when you are in a hide but I returned the greeting and this guy was a nice bloke. I went into East Marsh and there was nothing different to be seen than what I had seen in the Jon Baldwin hide. I was really enjoying my morning out so thought I would just have a quick wander down to Carlton. Glad I did as I saw the kingfisher along with a tree creeper (a 1st ) bullfinch
heron and a group of mixed tits. The tree creeper was thanks to a guy next to me who was taking pics and he pointed the tree creeper out, twas a shame I was too slow on the button.
I dropped in at seeswood on my way back and there was little to be seen but I did get a nice foto of a B.H.Gull
I then moved onto the Teal hide where all I seen was a moorhen and a couple of Teal, I sat in there for about 30 mins and nothing arrived except a grunt well I dont think I even got a grunt off this one when I quietly said hello, he soon went and sombody else came in and they actualy said good morning, I nearly grunted at them thinking this was the thing to do when you are in a hide but I returned the greeting and this guy was a nice bloke. I went into East Marsh and there was nothing different to be seen than what I had seen in the Jon Baldwin hide. I was really enjoying my morning out so thought I would just have a quick wander down to Carlton. Glad I did as I saw the kingfisher along with a tree creeper (a 1st ) bullfinch
heron and a group of mixed tits. The tree creeper was thanks to a guy next to me who was taking pics and he pointed the tree creeper out, twas a shame I was too slow on the button.
I dropped in at seeswood on my way back and there was little to be seen but I did get a nice foto of a B.H.Gull
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