Category Archives: General

At long last a week of dry weather and good sunshine giving the best photo opportunities this Winter on the 9th I checked my Adder site and was pleased to find two males enjoying the warmth. A Woodcock was also seen with Green Woodpeckers very vocal. Both Peacock and Small Tortoiseshell butterflies were active in the sun.
The best two days weather of the week were spent at Pennington Flash and Martin Mere but the birds targeted were too far away for the camera. I did film some of the species present but these were only the regular ones.Click here.
The garden has sprung to life this week with twenty three different species feeding on the 14th, which is the most this Winter and included our second Brambling. A Tawny Owl was present at 3.30am on the 12th! On Hopwood at dusk on the 15th three Buzzards were soaring and were very vocal.

All birds have to drink and bathe on a daily basis to remain in top condition. Whilst engaged in this activity they are vulnerable to predation and so are always wary of a camera and cameraman. During the last few months, having already failed to film Crossbills feeding,I have concentrated on Siskins and Bramblings. With the abundance of water this Winter I have had many blank days but perseverance has paid off. click here
On Hopwood the first frogspawn appeared on the 6th which is two days earlier than last year. A Weasel was seen on the 8th the first sighting for over a year. Scarlet Elf Cup fungi is out in greater profusion than ever this year.
In the garden Siskin, Redpoll and Reed Buntings are feeding in much lower numbers than last year at this time. A Sparrowhawk made a meal of a Collared Dove on the 6th. Buzzards circling high over the house are now a regular occurance.

Last Friday as we were driving to the ferry to leave Islay a juvenile Sea Eagle was eating a Barnacle Goose on the salt marsh at Bridgend. It was only 8 o’clock and the conditions were appalling with driving rain in a strong wind but I took some record shots of what is the third largest Eagle in the world and sometimes called the flying barn door because of its enormous wing span. It was competing  with a Raven and a greater Black Backed Gull. Click here.

Back home in the garden we had our largest number of different species feeding this Winter on the 26th February with 22 different birds. These included our first Siskin of the Winter and an increase number of Reed Buntings.

On the 28th February I visited Morecombe Bay hoping to film the large wader flocks that used to gather there some twenty years ago when I last visited. Sadly none were present except for small gatherings which I have included in this week’s gallery. Perhaps the massive sea defence boulders have moved them elsewhere in the bay?

During the week I have searched for frog spawn in all my regular sites but I have found none which is surprising in view of the extremely mild Winter. I have often felt that many of our wild creatures can predict severe weather to come so could it be that we have not yet finished with Winter?

Another week on Islay and this time better weather produced more photographic opportunities.

In the Sound of Islay I caught up with a dog Otter that was fishing for more than an hour. When it finally came ashore I was ready for the shake and also managed a few shots when it rested.

On another afternoon I encountered some feeding Chough and managed some individual and group shots of our rarest member of the crow family. In the past I have obtained video of Roebucks walking through the snowdrops but did not see any in the woods this year. You will have to make do with our two Golden Retrievers  instead . Click here for the photo plus other photos taken during the week.

Whilst our February visit this year has been windy and wet it has also been very mild so much so that we have watched two pair of Ravens building their nests and found a Rock Dove’s nest with one egg in. Still more surprising was the emergence of a Small Tortoiseshell butterfly on the 18th desperately searching out the mid-day sun.

On 19th February forty Black Guillemots were active in the Sound of Islay. A trip to Jura was disappointing and only produce a pair of Canada Geese, a multitude of which we can see any day on our local canal!

Well not exactly Snow Geese but Barnacle Geese in the snow. We have just had one of the wildest ever weeks on Islay complete with several inches of snow on one day. One of the reasons for visiting Islay in February is to see the fabulous carpets of snowdrops and we were not disappointed. Amongst the snowdrops were many fine specimens of Scarlet Elf Cup fungi.

Each day we have driven around the island and conducted all our birdwatching from the car as it was impossible to walk far in the strong winds and heavy rain. We have seen thousand of geese and flocks of up to thirty seven Chough. Merlin and Hen Harriers have been watched most days but the strong winds have grounded any Eagles! Seals and Deer have been encountered along with one Otter which disappeared from view almost as quickly as it was found. Hopefully Spring is not too far off as two Hares were seen boxing!! Despite the weather and lack of sun I have still managed to capture some photos click here to view

The practise of Lapwings roosting on rooftops is something that has been going on in Greater Manchester for more than twenty five years.The borough’s of Leigh, Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Stockport, Ashton and Middleton all have regular sites used by Lapwings and sometimes these are joined by Golden Plover. The reasons for the move from roosting in pastures to rooftops is not clear. Safety away from the ever increasing Fox population could be one reason with another being the benefits of underground heating that an industrial unit provides. A local industrial unit has had as many as one hundred and eighty Lapwings roosting this Winter and I have obtained flight shots as they have been coming and going. Click here.

At dawn on the 4th February we had a record of thirty four Goldfinches in the garden. Unfortunately they were on the telephone wires of the front garden and not on the food put out in the back garden! In Hopwood on the 5th I had a welcome sighting of a Woodcock which is the first I have seen for some weeks.