He’s Back
Now that full feeding has been restarted in the garden the male Sparrowhawk has returned, no doubt attracted by the increased number of small birds. During the week he was seen to fly off with a House Sparrow and probably caught other prey when we weren’t watching. On Hopwood, at dusk, I encountered a flock […]
Ready and Waiting
The exceptionally mild weather is prolonging Autumn and without a gale there may be some leaves still on the trees in December. Whilst there are very few Fieldfares about at present I did see a flock of fourteen Redwings on the 17th. On Hopwood the first Woodcock arrived on the 14th with others appearing the […]
Launch of the Raptors DVD
Years of filming and more than three hundred hours of editing have come to an end and the Raptors DVD is now complete. The DVD is £15 plus £1 postage. At the moment copies of the DVD are not available through my website but hopefully will be soon. You may obtain a copy by sending […]
November Butterflies
A last reminder of our week on Islay is this photo of the Grey Seal with its pup. It is only in the last two years that we have been able to find newly born seals on Islay as previously they have given birth on an island off shore. Two mild days this week have […]
An Islay Goose Feast
Last week we had our annual Autumn break on Islay. We have already had three very wet visits to Islay this year so the four good days during the week were a bonus. No matter how many times you see the Barnacle Geese the spectacle of twenty thousand or more going to roost at dusk […]
Goldcrest Drop In
The Southerly winds have delayed the arrival of migrants following the first Redwings, Fieldfares and Brambling last week. However, Goldcrest have been calling in the garden and also from parts of Hopwood Woods. As soon as we have an Easterly wind the remaining Fieldfares and Woodcock should come flooding in. Perhaps some Waxwings? In the […]
Migrants Arrive
On the 9th three Redwings flew over the garden heading South West on exactly the same date that I had my first sighting two years ago. A Buzzard was circling high over the garden on the 15th and a male Great Spotted Woodpecker has fed several times during the week. Hopwood produced my earliest ever […]
Grey Wagtail’s Visit
The only food we are putting out at present in the garden are fat balls but this week we have been visited by an amazing number of birds. Two Grey Wagtails were the big surprise and as there is no flowing water in the garden I can only presume that these two were on passage […]
Crocus and Commas
At long last five days of constant sunshine with a maximum temperature of 27°C which is a local record for the 1st October. There has been a massive increase in the number of butterflies with nine Commas,seven Small Tortoiseshell, three Speckled Woods, three Red Admiral and two Small Copper on Hopwood but strangely enough […]
Fly Agaric Bonanza
There is little doubt that September is the best month of the year for fungi. On Hopwood this week there have been the best examples of Fly Agaric that I have ever seen. Also present this week there has been a continual passage of Swallows and House Martins with more Siskins arriving all the time. […]