To continue.

More trips to Old Moor have not furnished me with any good bird shots. However this cheeky Squirrel made me chuckle.


Dragonflies and Damsel flies are busy rushing around.



This Black tailed Skimmer is regularly seen.

Further afield I went to Bempton Cliffs RSPB reserve near Bridlington on the East coast. I was a little disappointed, dont get me wrong I saw lots of the sea birds that Bempton is famous for, but the opportunities for photography were limited. There were too few viewing platforms and too many people. I travelled 2 hrs to get there and I left feeling that I wouldnt be rushing to go back. Thats not to say I wont, but I am sure that there are better places for Puffin (Skomer) and Gannet (Bass Rock).

That said, here are a couple of shots of the Gannet.

Razorbill.

Puffin

Kittiwake.

and Herring Gull.

Inland there were lots of Small tortoiseshell Butterflies.

and my favourite shot of the day, this Linnet.

Not a bad trip I guess.

As usual click on a pic for a bigger version.

South Yorkshire, a good start.

Hi everyone, have you missed me? I doubt it.

Well I'm finally settled in at my sisters place, with the exception of waiting for the delivery of a chest of drawers. I have had time to look at one or two places and even get a few shots.

Old Moor RSPB reserve has been my first port of call. It's on the site of one of Yorkshires old coal mines and if I do say so myself its pretty impressive. I have had 2 1/2 days there and thoroughly enjoyed myself.

I have added 3 species to my yearly list so far, Common Tern, Tree Sparrow, and Med Gull. I think I also saw a small flock of a different Tern but unfortunately the photos i got were under exposed and too far away to ID. However on the same day other small flocks of Artic Tern were seen flying over by a number of birders. I am not going to record them as a tick though because I could not say what the flock I saw were.

Old Moor has a good number of Mammels on it, amongst which are Water Voles, Weasels, Stoat and Hare. I only managed Rabbit, here's one I saw.



I was hoping to get Tree Sparrow, but I would have liked one away from a plain post. However I was not complaining.

The reserve is alive with Buntings and Warblers at the moment. Full breeding plumage Reed Bunting males are everywhere.

Reed Warblers are also around in high numbers. I managed to get this one which was creeping around the reed bottoms.

The star of the week was this Whitethroat, I believe its just a common, but I have seen and heard Lesser Whitethroat which nest on the reserve but not photographed. If not next week then that will be a target for the future.

There are a number of reserves in very close proximity to Old moor. Wombwell Ings, Bolton Ings and Broomhill flash are just three of them. I have already checked out Broomhill and Bolton Ings and believe there are good photo opportunities to be had at both. I also saw Ruddy duck and Green Sandpiper at Broomhill so that makes 5 new ticks to my yearly list. Also nearby is Gypsy Marsh, which has Northern, Southern and Marsh Orchids and I'm reliably told a good head of Grasshopper Warbler. I will check that out ASAP.

Its good to be posting again and I hope you'll come back and have a look.