Morning Glory

Early mornings in Norfolk are great. If you can be out before the early dog walkers you can find some true gold. Much like these Golden Plover at rest with a few Lapwings. The sun was just starting to rise and the light was a nice orangey gold. I've said it many times, but this really is my favourite time of the day. When it's just me and nature, it feels like it belongs to me. Only I am seeing it at that time, and it feels special. Just need a few more of them to be bright like this, and not cloudy. Here are a few pictures of what I saw.

Golden Plover with a few Lapwings.

Grey Heron looking rather cold.

Grey Plover

Bar-tailed Godwits

Bar-tailed Godwit scouring the coast line

Black-tailed Godwit

Mixed Bag

A few weeks ago I popped over to Macclesfield to see what was around, and because if I'm honest I get withdrawal symptoms if I don't go. There is always something to see, and add to that a wonderful place to just be in. I can always find a quiet area away from others, and this usually coincides with being out early in the morning. This visit was no different, and I was content once I had been.

There were quite a few juvenile birds of all sorts around. Chiffchaffs and Blackcaps especially were numerous. On the reservoirs the young Great Crested Grebes with their stripy heads were now a good size and there were lots of juvenile Grey Wagtails around Bottoms reservoir (that name always makes me smile). Grey Herons were making quite a racket, as they do, but it all added up to a good morning and put my mind at ease that all was well in one of my favourite local areas. It seems nature can get on on it's own whether I'm watching it or not.  

Juvenile Blackcap

Common Buzzard

Coots chilling (look at those feet)

Grey Heron enjoying the morning sunshine

Grey Wagtail, of which there were almost a dozen youngsters.

The Cold Snap Continues

 We seem to be stuck in this constant cold spell at the moment. I don't mind too much if it is cold and frosty, but cold and wet just won't do. Pre the latest lockdown I went out when there was still a little snow on the ground, but the skies were battleship grey. Not ideal for photography, but that's never stopped the need for a bird to feed. So off I went.

There was plenty of activity as usual, with good numbers of our more common species, but a lot of the others seemed to stay at a distance and the light didn't help me with them. I got myself tucked into a bush and they came quite close without even noticing me.

Blue Tit

Great Tit

A bit gloomy for this Nuthatch, but I always enjoy seeing them.

I was quite annoyed at the electricity cables that ran along the background of this Grey Heron, but I liked the light underneath the bird from the snow, so I thought I'd share it anyway.

Pennington Flash

These pictures are from a few weeks back when I took a visit to Pennington Flash, which is one of the premier birding sites in the North West. Such a varied array of habitats, it attracts so many different species.
It was a bright morning (always a bonus) and there was lots to see. There were Reed and Sedge Warblers in the reed beds. A Kingfisher zipped past while I was watching some of the many Grey Herons, and the main water held hundreds of Swifts, Swallows and Sand Martins. It was a fantastic Spring morning.

A male Blackcap was letting everyone know he was around.

Common Terns taking a rest in front of Horrock's hide.

Great crested Grebe.

A juvenile Grey Heron, and some Lapwings behind.

Little ringed plover.

Stock Dove

Something I try every year. Catching a Swift in flight. It's not very easy.

Pennington Flash

A quick trip to Pennington Flash brought me nice and close to some of our regular birds. Often overlooked in the field when looking for something a little more exotic, or something new for the year list, these more common birds reminded me that they still hold a lot of natural beauty. You just have to give them the time to realise it.
The Blue Tit is possibly my favourite garden bird, and it is always good to see. More often than not it is a fleeting glimpse as it forages through bushes and trees or sits at a feeder. The beauty of having binoculars or a camera is that you get to see everything a lot closer up. Feather patterns, colours and detail are really highlighted. 

Blue Tit

Nuthatch doing what a Nuthatch does best.

Willow Tit do very well in this part of the North West.

Greenfinch

Out on the flash itself, among many waterfowl and waders was this pristine Grey Heron. In fact I counted seven on the spit from Horrocks hide. Once again, it was nice to be able to observe it for some time and appreciate it's majesty.

RSPB Burton Mere

Lots of activity everywhere right now, with young birds needing feeding. It means that birds are a made a little easier to see, even with trees now in full leaf, as they dart between nest to feeding area.
Whilst looking for the Spoonbills at Burton Mere, there were plenty of warblers in and around the reed areas. I managed to catch up with my first Sedge Warbler of the year. A very showy bird. Singing loudly and marking out it's territory.
Reed Warblers and Common Whitethroat were also in abundance. The Reed Warblers only gave fleeting views as they were constantly foraging in the reeds.

Standing next to one of the pools, a Grey Heron.

A Reed Warbler.

Distant views of the Sedge Warbler.

A Common Whitethroat in full song.

Macclesfield

My recent walk in the Cheshire countryside led me to some of my favourite spots. Clough Brook runs along beneath Macclesfield Forest and is a very good spot for Dippers and Grey Wagtails. I only managed to see one Dipper, but there were plenty of Grey Wags, with busy parents feeding their young.

This juvenile Grey Wagtail was sitting patiently while Mum and Dad were off looking for food nearby.

Grey Heron in the gloom.

A Robin looking a little dishevelled. It's probably had a busy time raising a family.



Grey Heron

I came across a few Grey Herons recently at Pennington Flash. I think most were juveniles, as they were a darker grey then the adult birds and lacked the striking markings usually found on the head. The joy of watching from a hide or behind a screen is that the birds tend to stay put and are not frightened off by the sight of me strolling up. This of course gives ample opportunity to study them a bit more and hopefully get some good shots of them too.

This chap was determined to stand on this post no matter how small it was.

You can see how dark the plumage is on this particular bird.

Having a bit of a scratch while not falling off his post. Impressive!

Grey Heron

The Heronries in my area are in full swing. There are young in the nests. What a racket these birds and their babies make. It's almost like a squeal of someone in severe pain. Until I lay my eyes on the birds I'm always a little disturbed, and even then I think is there really any need for such a noise.
That said, I could stand and watch a Heron for hours. I just love watching them stalk their prey in the water. Sometimes standing there motionless, waiting for the moment to strike.
Even in flight they have a sort of majesty about them. Long lolloping wing beats, neck tucked in.
They don't always look that graceful though. When they try to land near their nests, there is usually quite a lot of flapping, with branches swaying. It does make me laugh.
A pleasure to see at any time though.

Not where I'd typically see a Grey Heron standing.

 

Coming in to land in a tree.