Wednesday 28 April 2010

Grasshopper warbler

This was the only worthwhile image that I got whilst patiently watching this bird reeling for an hour. At one stage it even flew into the bush I was standing behind, giving me a fantastic close up but I dare not move in case I spooked it

Friday 23 April 2010

Cuckoo

A distant view of this charismatic summer visitor but the best picture I have.........yet.

Thursday 22 April 2010

Red legged partridge

Taken through the car window, this was one of a pair completely unafraid us.

Monday 19 April 2010

Osprey

One of many Ospreys seen on our Scottish trip.

Roe deer stag

One of a pair seen on the Glentruim estate as we set off early one morning. He certainly looked to be in fine fettle although he had a few scars of battles past on his nose and rump.

pheasant


This is the pheasant that was 'charged' by the squirrel, he regained his composure and is seen here doing his territorial call and wingbeat on the garden lawn. I am sorry about the blurred images but thought it worth adding.

Red grouse

A drive along the Farr road into the Findhorn valley was rewarded with this 'famous grouse ' picture. There were quite a few of these and we also saw short eared owl, and a cracking male hen harrier.

Red squirrel




Our holiday accommodation in Scotland was on the Glentruim estate at Newtonmore and it turned out to be a major source of the photographs that I took. This red squirrel was a regular each day to the peanut feeder that I had hung outside our kitchen window and it was a great poser. On the last morning I was watching as it picked up the peanuts it had obtained by demolishing the feeder ( no easy task) and going away to hide them. A cock pheasant came along while it was gone and started to eat the peanuts. When the squirrel returned he quickly decided that it was not going to let this upstart pinch his hard earned haul and he brought his tail up over his back and charged right underneath the pheasant which jumped into the air in surprise and soon afterwards departed to leave the victor its spoils. The only shame is that the camera was nowhere near to hand as it would have made a great picture.


Snow bunting


I had taken the ski lift to the top of Cairngorm at Aviemore to try and see some ptarmigan which duly obliged albeit somewhat distantly, however, there were twenty superb snow finches up there to greet me on the rocks and also some rather dirty snow.

Wednesday 7 April 2010

Black tailed godwit

This bird was well on its way to being in summer plumage, this was seen on our first visit to the RSPB reserve at Freiston shore.

Yellow wagtail

This flavissima yellow wagtail is the British variety of the species and this one at Frampton marsh was a cracker.

White wagtail

One of many at the new Frampton marsh reserve in Lincolnshire.

Pheasant


The cock pheasant is one of the most vibrantly coloured birds on earth with the sun on it in spring, strutting about in its pomp.

Yellowhammer

A spring fresh male yellowhammer, taken at the 'raptor triangle' near Old Warden.