Monday 28 April 2008

Marsh harrier

The male of the breeding pair which successfully raised young here

Sunday 27 April 2008

Starling


On my lawn having helped to clear up the excess chips from lunch

Fallow deer

We came face to face with this family group
they then slipped quietly away.

Lapwing

Beautiful in summer plumage here at Cley-next-the-sea

Sedge warbler


In full song at Lackford lakes

Friday 25 April 2008

Pheasant

The profusion of colour is pleasing to the eye.

Little owl


Showing well in his usual tree in Willington

Water rail

Popped out in front of the hide at Amwell and posed all too briefly

Thursday 24 April 2008

Whitethroat


A typical view of this 'skulker' more often seen than heard

Swallow

Captured in the early morning sun.

Monday 21 April 2008

guest at the bird table


This cracking jay visiting the bird table in a friends garden

Jay

photographed in a work colleagues garden

Friday 18 April 2008

Rook


many rooks are moving in to the towns to avoid persecution and it makes them far easier to approach and photograph, this one was in the cemetery in Stevenage

spider in web

taken on Cavenham heath, this picture gives a good view of the parts you don't normally see

Tuesday 15 April 2008

Caddis fly larvae

Captured on the pond by the visitor centre at Little Paxton the larvae can clearly be seen on the right, with part of its body extending from the refuge it has made for itself out of debris.

Monday 14 April 2008

Greylag geese

Flying over the mere

Mr Fox gets a lesson


We spotted this fox swimming towarsds the island where the pen was incubating the eggs of a pair of swans and the cob went straight on the attack and taught it a lesson


Friday 11 April 2008

Chiff chaff

photographed at The Blue lagoon

Brambling

A trip to the hide at The Lodge in winter is normally rewarded if enough patience is used.

Hedge accentor / Dunnock

Spring enthusiasm prompted this dunnock to pop up from the brambles right in front of us to sing

Robin

Radwell was where this robin posed for us

Common frog

In out garden in the spring mating frenzy

Wren

This little bird popped up right in front of us in a hide at Little Paxton

Red kite

Another trip to Gigrin farm, it really is a great place for photography even on a freezing winters day

Blue tit

Taken from the double decker hide at Amwell

Snow bunting

One of a flock attracted to grain put out for them at Cley-next-the-sea, they were unconcerned by a quartet of photographers clicking away ten metres from them.

Jackdaw

Rockingham forest was where we found this amiable poser, near the visitor centre

Long tailed tit

Taken at Marston moretaine country park

Turnstone

One of a group that were attracted to grain put out to attract snow buntings at Cley-next-the-sea

Kestrel

Taken fron the car ar Thurleigh where they abound on set aside fields

Wasp

wasp species photographed in Dorset

Praying mantis

This dropped out of a bush next to us near Tarifa in Spain

Grey dagger caterpillar

I found this in our garden crawling up the apple tree

Hawthorn shield bug

Beautifully camouflaged insect

grasshopper

Taken in Ickleford

Grey heron

This was taken through the window of our hostelry on Mull, this totally wild bird used to turn up each day for a free meal of dog food provided by the proprietor, and would come right up and look through the window of the inn.

Common lizard

Warming itself in the sun.

House sparrow

One of the many birds that frequent my cousins garden in Brittany

Common dolphin

I was able to photograph this with the help of Jed Andrews, the warden from Holme who warned me when one was about to breach and I could get my long lens ready, not as easy as you may think!

BARRED WARBLER (sic)

Reed warbler after some fortification!


this exhausted little traveller was captured on a pelagic trip in the Bay of Biscay, it was so tired I was able to pick it up in my hand and take it to a quieter location to rest before carrying on with its migration,

Gannet

Another ship follower attracted by the offal thrown overboard

Garden warbler

This garden warbler made use of the bits of shrubbery tied to the mast especially for tired migrants

Northern wheatear

Landed amongst the birders on deck one of many exhausted migrants

Juvenile gannet

One of many birds that flew alongside the ship, a photographers dream subject

Nile sunbird


a flying jewel, seemingly as small as a hummingbird and equally vivid, taken on a Kibbutz

Lesser whitethroat


This was the commonest species I saw, they seemed to be 'ticking' in every bush

White crowned wheatear


Tristrams grackle


Photographed by the Dead sea.