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.

A few before I Go.

This will be my last post until I have settled in at my new home, I hope to have something on here not too long after I move.



Its been a mixed week or so. Not a great deal to show for it, I will start with a plant. I dont do plants normally but when out looking for dragonflies the other day I saw this Common Spotted Orchid and couldn't resist.

Back to birds, whilst driving around the sticks the other day I saw this House Sparrow coming out of a hole in a sandstone wall. I quite like this picture.

Two more trips to the Blorenge after Marmora's Warbler produced this Whinchat,

and this Tree Pipit.

Over the other side of the hill I found this Skylark.

In the Forest I got these shots of a Redstart pair. They are well photographed and you can see similar shots on Brian Williams's blog which you'll find in my links.

Both birds are looking tired, not surprising with the amount of feeding they are doing, I noticed that the male seemed to be catching a lot of insects on the wing whereas the female was happy to come down for some offerings.

You have to just love them though.

Now I mentioned earlier the Marmora's Warbler. Its a visitor from afar, usually from Corsica or Sardinia. I made 4 visits to see it but couldnt get decent shots. This was my first attempt.

and unfortunately this shot, my best, isnt a lot better.

I'm gonna stick my neck out and say that I cannot quite fathom twitchers. I met people who had travelled from Essex, Nottingham, Manchester, Somerset, and Surrey. Most of them had come armed only with their scopes, nothing to record the fact that they had seen the bird. It seems odd to me. I love birds, love wildlife, but to travel hundreds of miles and have nothing but memories seems odd. But then me trudging around with 8 or 9 kilos of kit on my back just to take a picture will, I don't doubt, seem mad to others.

Anyhow, thats it for now, give me a week or two and pop back and see what I've been up to in South Yorkshire.

Moving on again.

I promised you more Pied Flycatcher and Redstart pictures, I hope these will suffice. These birds were caught in Powys. I quite like these shots.

This is the female. and although she appears as a dull bird she is far from it, in fact she is very elegant and sweet.

The male is more striking, here he is with a mouth full of insects for his chicks.

This male at the entrance to his nest hole was a particular success for me as I found this hole myself and wasn't directed to it by anyone else. The Pied Flycatchers are not overly worried by human presence near the nest site as long as one the photographer is quiet, keeps low and doesn't sit too close to the hole. I can assure you that for the short time that I sat and photographed them both adults made numerous visits to the nest.

I think I said in my previous post about Redstart that the male is the prettier of the adults, I wish I could show you a picture of the female for comparison but as yet I've failed and chances are that as we are now quite a way into their breeding season I may not get one.

Back at home the feeders are being constantly visited by juvenile birds, this Starling is one of many.

I am more pleased to have the Goldfinch coming back to the garden. They stopped for a while, presumably while they found a nest site and had eggs.

I truly love this shot. The buds you can see are on the dead branch that I'm using as my feeder post. Its much more photogenic than the green metal post.

Now the title of this post suggests that I am on the move again and this is true, I am moving away from Ross on Wye up north to Barnsley to live with my sister. I am looking forward to the new challenges that this will present. I am hoping to feature more coastal birds in the next twelve months or so. I am also going to be living within a stones throw of Old Moor RSPB reserve so I am very excited about that.

I hope you will continue to follow my adventures and keep coming back to see what I've been up to. I guess I should rename the site again and perhaps call it "Wildlife beyond the Forest of Dean" your opinions would be welcome. The move is due to happen at the end of this month.

Last week I spent a number of days in and around the Elan Valley. Its a favourite place of mine especially early in the morning. I love the fact that if you get there early enough you're very unlikely to see another vehicle for hours. But you will see lots of wildlife.

This Buzzard was one of many that I saw during the week, I know he's backlit, but I couldn't get to the other side of him. I love the way he has his tail spread and appears to be warming himself up.




This is a different bird in a different location, but no less lovely to see.

I would rather have had this Swallow sitting somewhere other than on the wire of the fence but beggars can't be choosers.

Meadow Pipits were everywhere and with some care you can get close, again not an ideal perches but.....

This one was collecting nesting material.

Curlews were slightly harder to get close too, this is a good crop.

But my favourite birds of the week were Whinchats. They seem to be in high numbers this year, I'm pleased, they are a real beauty.

I'll post a few other things from Powys next time, I know I've promised you more Redstart and Flycatcher. Make sure you come back soon.