Gods Country.

The Welsh are very quick to tell us that Wales is Gods country and after a 2 day stint in Powys and in particular the Elan Valley I am tempted to believe them. The Elan valley, close to Rhayader, is truly one of Gods best attempts to give us heaven on earth. Most of you reading this will have been there, but if any of you haven't then you should go. If for no other reason than to spend time in the open to admire the stunning views and the countryside at its best. The reservoirs and dams are beautiful, although if I had a choice of when to go to see them at their best it would be autumn/ winter.

Birds were our target, obviously, and Powys and the valley did not let us down. Let me list what what I've added to my yearly list from the 2 days spent there.

Red Kite, Ring Ouzel, Swallow, Redstart, Pied Flycatcher, Grasshopper Warbler, Lesser Redpoll, Meadow Pipit, Tree Pipit, Whinchat, Stonechat, and Dipper.

We also saw lots of stuff that I've already got this year, infact most of my yearly list to date was seen. The Highlight though were nesting Kestrels. I'm not going to say where we saw them, I'm sure you will understand why, but we did and although the views of them were very distant, it was great to see a pair of one of  Britains most loved bird of prey hopefully bringing more of their number into the world.

Thats all well and good Brian I hear you say but lets see some photo's. Okay here goes.

Wheatear.

The top bird is the male of the species.

Meadow Pipit.

Buzzard,

Whinchat,

and finally Pied Flycatcher.

There will be more going into the gallery in the next day or two so have a look, its in my links. As usual you can click on each picture for a larger version.

I will be returning to Powys and the Elan valley again throughout the summer and will post anything more that I get on those trips in due course.

From a distance.

Another 3 or so hours spent in my hide in the forest yesterday produced one single Hawfinch shot, not a very good one but its all I have to show.

It turned its head towards me just as I pressed the shutter, spoiling a better shot. It then flew off, obviously scared by the camera, not to return.

Other things came down including this Siskin.

I am slightly concerned that the leg with the ring on it appears to be swollen. I have voiced my concerns on this blog before about the excessive ringing of birds in this country. I hope the scientists and the like hurry and compile all the info they need so it can stop. I saw Blue tits, and chaffinch with rings on them too, I cannot believe we dont know all we need to know about these birds.

I then decided to have a walk in a different area of the forest and saw Blackcaps, Chiffchaff, and Willow Warblers in good numbers but they were all at a distance. I did manage a few shots of the Blackcaps and Chiffchaff, these are all crops.

Male Blackcap.

Female Blackcap                                                                                                             

Chiffchaff.                                                                                                                      

Nothing would come close. Still, lovely to see and lovely to hear.

Whore Finch

No not a spelling mistake, just me venting my frustration. I've spent the best part if 10 hrs in my hide in the last 5 days trying to get shots of the Hawfinch. As you will see below, I failed.

I got Squirrel.

I got Brambling, happy with this as she's lovely.

But thats it. I saw one Hawfinch, too high to photograph. I saw Siskin but behind a stump.To cap it all I also broke a section of my hide pole. Fortunately I had a spare section which I have adapted to fit. I am gutted. The weather is turning this coming week so I may not get another chance this year.

Other stuff I've seen this week include this Great spotted Woody,

He's actually at a nest hole, I've posted another two shots of him in the gallery, along with a couple more of the squirrel, dont forget to keep having a look, its in my links.

I was also driving near Eastbach and stopped to try and locate a Chiffchaff I could hear, whilst I was trying to locate him I saw some movement to my right in amongst the tall undergrowth. I hoped Fox, Stoat, Weasel. But no, just a female Pheasant mooching around.

So disappointing.

I have found a few nests whilst out walking the dog this week, GSW, Nuthatch, and Blue tit to name three. I actually saw something today (sun 10th) that I've never seen before too, GSW's mating, it was noisy and over in moments but it was amazing to watch.

A trip to Anglesey in the week fishing with my brother, although fishing isn't quite the right word as we caught none,produced my first Willow Warbler and Sand Martins of the year. The list is now in the 80s, dont think its going to be such a productive year this year.

As I said at the start the weather is predicted to get cold and wet this week so it may be a while before I have anything else to post, come back and check though hey.

Oh just one more thing, had a hedgehog in the garden twice during the night this week, must be coming in under the side gate. I put it in a box the first time hoping to photograph it in the morning but it escaped. Then the second time I quickly got my camera and flash together but not quickly enough, it disappeared somewhere. I dont want my dog getting fleas so I have blocked the gate but its given me the incentive to spend a night having a mooch around to see if I can find one on one of the many grassy areas on this estate. I'll let you know how I get on.

Every day is getting greener.

No photos this time, have not had the chance to do any, but more of an observation. You will know that I have Belmont woods on my doorstep and that I walk the dog in them often twice a day.

In the last fortnight there has been a dramatic increase in the activity in the wood. The most noticeable change is the buds opening on the trees and bushes. It really is a different wood compared to a fortnight ago. The next thing that hits you is the noise, the cacophony of bird noise is breath taking. There has been a massive increase in the variety of birds in the wood too. I have seen all of the following in the wood.

Buzzard, Woodpigeon, Crow, Magpie, Jay, Blackbird, Song thrush, Mistle thrush, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Pheasant, Robin, Wren, Blackcap, Chiffchaff, Goldcrest, Great tit, Blue tit, Long tailed tit, Nuthatch, Dunnock, Coal tit, Treecreeper, and Mallard duck.

I am watching a thrushes nest, the female is sitting at the moment, I have seen wrens collecting moss off the bottom of a beech tree, and I am pretty sure a pair of Buzzards are going to nest in the wood. I see the two of them on a daily basis. The Jays are particularly vocal at the moment, as are the Chiffchaffs. I have counted 7 different males in different areas of the wood.

In february it took me about 30-45 mins to complete the walk, now it's 60-90 mins, purely because I am spending increasing amounts of time watching the birds and just listening to them. I know I'm a bit of a gobshite, but when I'm on my own It amazes me how much fun I get from the simplest of things, I stood for over ten minutes at the weekend watching a Coal tit at one of the old nest boxes that have been erected in the past. It was in and out of the opening and flitting around the box, I dont think it was looking to nest in the box but it may well have been hunting insects. My dog kept looking at me as if to say " come on pops, what you up to?"

Non of this will come as a surprise to any of you, I'm sure you are all out and about in you local areas, discovering your own amazing things. Isn't it great that in a country where everything has increased in price recently the best things can often be those that are free.

Gallery glitches.

It was partly me, I had somehow corrupted the program. However there is a glitch for which I am not responsible. I know now though how to get around it, so hopefully the gallery should work ok.

Thank you all for your patience. Thanks again to a certain someone for his help.

Just need some decent shots now to put on the gallery. Dont forget to keep checking to see what I've added.