Bad blogger..........

I know, i know, its been a while! The truth is, i have had very little worth putting on this blog for a couple of months. Its not that i haven't been out, because i have. More very little in the form of subject matter (also if the truth be known, a lack of enthusiasm).
Now the sun has returned (sometimes), i feel a renewed vigour for the natural world.
Migrants have already started pouring to our shores. Wheatear, Ring ouzel, Sand martin to name but a few, have been seen in the area for at least a couple of weeks.
This morning, to my delight, i spotted a very contrasty looking small bird in the back garden. Grabbing my bins from the spare room, I confirmed my suspicions & nailed the male Pied flycatcher, flitting from branches after its insect prey.

 Panic then set in as i raced back to the spare room to grab the camera, already fitted with the 600mm lens. A couple of bankers were taken quickly through the glass. I then inched open the window & managed to grab about 20 shots before it moved to another tree & was lost from sight.

Whilst driving across Tealham moor, on the look out for the reported Yellow wagtail (not seen), I flushed a Wheatear from the roadside verge. This is my first this year & i normally see quite a few over the spring & autumn period. It posed quite nicely on a roadside gate post, allowing a slow approach & a handheld shoot through the open passenger window.

A little earlier this year, also on Tealham, was this Short-eared owl. Up to 3 birds were using the same area & were seen most days during the late afternoon. This particular afternoon, it only approached as close as 100m. This shot has had a lot of post processing & is a fairly large crop of the original. Necessary to get a usable image. The watery winter sunshine & the backlit subject add something to an otherwise standard record shot. It goes to show how an uninspiring image can become something better with a little thought & a bit of computer work.

I recently visited a private nature reserve on Cary moor. The reason for visiting this delightful reserve was to try & photograph the Tree sparrows that have regularly been coming to seed, put down by Bruce Taylor.

Around 6 were present on my visit, but far greater numbers have been seen over the winter. Birders in the county will appreciate that Tree sparrows are scarce in Somerset. A site on the Mendips being the previous best place to see them. Now at Cary moor, you have the luxury of a carpeted hide only meters from the feeding birds. Also present were numerous Reed buntings, Chaffinches & a single Yellowhammer. A shallow pond lies on the opposite side of the hide & attracts waterfowl.

Anyone wishing to visit, should first get in contact with Bruce by email on brucetaylor@hotmail.com to get directions, parking instructions & the code to the lock on the hide.

Please remember that this is a private reserve & we can visit due to the kindness of the landowners. Providing we all conduct ourselves in a proper manner & follow Bruces instructions, we will be able to see Tree sparrows for years to come.

More later..........I promise!

Winter wonders

Since my last post, I have been out a few times without a shot being taken. Other trips bagged only a couple mediocre record shots. Then there was the times when the light was just nice & the wildlife was behaving.

These Waxwings are part of the "eruption" we in Britain have been experiencing this winter. Due to harsh weather or failure of the berry crop in their native Scandinavia, they move south in great numbers, searching out berries, Rowan being a particular favourite.

These birds (a flock of up too 22 birds) was frequenting the grounds of the college in Minehead. These images were taken late in the day, just before sunset & needed a lot of processing to get them to a reasonable standard.

A drive one afternoon caught this roadside Buzzard in the watery winter sunlight. They usually scarper at the first sign of a human.

I was pleased to see a Barn owl hunting in one of their favourite haunts local to me. This was taken a couple of days ago at 2 in the afternoon, a sign that the bird is struggling to find enough to eat during the recent snow. On a lighter note though, the snow on the ground lights the underside of the bird nicely. A 2/3 stop over exposure was required to counteract the snows effect on the cameras meter.

A couple of hours at Shapwick heath on the levels, produced this fly-by Bittern. Again the snow on the ground has reflected the light back onto the underside of the bird. To prevent a silhouette, +2/3rds stop exposure compensation was needed.

To end, I would just like to wish you all a Merry Christmas & a Happy new year. Please come back soon in 2011!

Sika here, Sika there.....

An early start this morning & a 11/2 hour drive found me at the RSPB reserve at Arne in Dorset. The reason for going? The rutt of the Sika deer (Cervus nippon). Sika deer were introduced to the UK from Asia during the mid 19th century. Initially confined to parks, individuals managed to escape over the years so that there are now established populations within the British countryside. Often confused with fallow deer, this species possesses a much richer coat spotted with white during the summer months.
Parking on the side of the road beside the car park (they dont get up as early as me in Dorset, the gates were locked!), I soon heard the unearthly whistling (more squealing) call of the Sika stag. If you have never heard this noise, then you could be forgiven for thinking that someone is being murdered!
Following the squeals along a path, i soon found the first deer, a hind, then further along, a few more. Then the first stag of the day.
It ended up that you could not walk around the reserve without litterally bumping into deer. They are everywhere. At one junction in the track i stopped to check my route map, when a young stag decided to check me out. He was only a few meters away when i turned around & saw him. I froze, he ran.

 And to finish with an opportunistic Dartford warbler..........

Crake at Greylake

For the second year on the trot, a Spotted crake has taken up residence at Greylake RSPB reserve. Although not nearly as easy to see or photograph as last years, it still thrilled the watching birders & photographers in the hide. Luckily i had only been there about 10 mins before i seen it skulking along the base of the reeds on the right hand side of the pool beside the hide. It showed on & off for the next hour at least, letting most people get a view.

I managed a couple of record shots during this time.

Also of interest were a pair of Kestrels that were continually about. This immature male posed beautifully on a nearby tussock in the autumn afternoon sunlight.

 Teal are also turning up now, some didnt leave. This drake is still a little scruffy looking having not completely moulted from his eclipse plumage.

More from the seaside

Continuing the maritime theme, today i visited the Parratt estuary along the Huntspill seawall. In the strong north westerlies a pair of Manx Shearwater battled up river against the wind. This was a rare chance to get some shots of this tough little seabird, not often seen close to land on the Somerset coast.
Several Wheatear were present along the rocks & on the short grass that they seem to love.
Other birds seen included a small flock of Turnstone & a single Whimbrel.

Cornish pelagic

Early on the morning of the 4th september (01:30 to be precise, well i did say early!), I set off from home to drive to St Ives (via N Petherton to pick up a mate). The roads as can be expected at that time of night were clear & we eventually pulled up to Smeatons pier in St Ives harbour at around 04:15. After a short nap in the car, I boarded the boat (Prime time) which was due to leave at 05:00 & take us out around 7 miles NW. 9 others joined Dave & me & we headed out of the harbour onto the open sea, which thankfully, was fairly calm (although not calm enough for one indivdual).
After about an hour, just as the light was getting to a reasonable level, the skipper, shut down the engine & startied chumming. For those of you that have never heard of this practice, fear not! It is not some sort of sordid practice of folks of the sea, but rather the depositing of a foul brew of fish heads, guts & blood, that had been hanging around for a while (in this case, 2 weeks), into the sea. The stench coming from the barrell reminded me of drains, but at least 10 times worse! Anyway this chum has the effect of drawing in birds from a long way off, & it wasn't long before the first Fulmars turned up. A kittiwake  followed us for most of the morning. The first Storm Petrel arrived around 2 hours after we stopped. More were seen during the trip, with up to 3  in a group. Unfortunately, no one managed to turn a stormie into the star bird of these trips, Wilsons Storm Petrel. Other birds seen included Gannet, Great & Arctic Skua, Herring & Great black-backed Gull, Guillemot, Cormorant & several Terns. Anyone that fancies a few hours with a barrel of chum, a bucket of sick & several other foolhardy souls, go to http://www.cornwall-birding.co.uk/pelagics/ for more info (trust me its fun, so much so i intend to have another go next year!)
The photos below were the best from a dreary day whist trying to stand up & not fall in the chum barrel. All were taken using a D2x at iso 400 & 800 with a Nikon 70-200mm VR lens fitted with a 1.7x teleconverter.  

Pro video camera for sale.

We have decided to sell our Canon XL2 mini DV video camera & all associated kit. The camera is in mint condition & has only had light amature use.
Extras in this sale include all you need to start producing broadcast quality video.
Please go to http://www.lnrwildphoto.co.uk/otheritems.html for full details.
Please contact us if you have any questions or to arrange a viewing.