An invite to spend the day birding at Spurn Reserve is a no brainer. So I decided to make a stop-over as I knew it would be a very early morning start. I can thoroughly recommend Westmere Farm, Kilnsea – www.westmerefarm.co.uk – Sue & Andrew Wells made me feel very welcome. Sure enough I met […]
Still the weather continues to be grey & cold for the middle of May, we have suffered for nearly three weeks now of miserable conditions. Not very conducive to photography. It was so cold today at Frampton Marsh, Lincs, the Swallows were settling on vegetation to pick at small insects and Swifts were so low
Well, I got a real surprise yesterday, when the DNA results were announced on the “Flamborough ficedula Flycatcher” – see Probable Atlas Flycatcher – they pointed to nominate Pied Flycatcher!! What !!! I must confess I found it difficult to believe but who am I to argue against the Science.
They say that lightening never strikes twice, well it did this morning. Heavy overnight rain suggested that it might be worth checking out Staunton Harold Reservoir, my local patch, before work. Maybe a Little Gull or Black Tern could have dropped in, you never know. Anyway I decided to call in for
Local birding can sometimes be rewarding, as it was today. Whilst scanning from platform 4 at Willington DWT Reserve, South Derbyshire, I managed to find a superb drake Garganey fast asleep on one of the small islands. A nice year tick. Plenty of common migrants about including a good movement of Swifts and
Photographs were posted on a regular birding forum of what appeared to be an unusual plumaged ficedula “Black & White” Flycatcher. It clearly looked, from the photos posted, that this was not an ordinary Pied Flycatcher f. hypoleuca. More eminent birders than myself were muting that it could be an Atlas Flycatcher
Spring seemed to have disappeared this morning as we arrived at the RSPB Reserve at Frampton Marsh near Boston, Lincolnshire. Non-stop rain, a howling gale and freezing cold. Just the day for great photography – NOT. In heavy rain I managed just a few landscape shots of this great reserve but no
A day of mixed weather, cold wind, April showers and warm sunshine, when the sun was out! Spring migrants are now beginning to arrive. Chiffchaff’s seem to be in good numbers this year, with plenty singing at both Willington & Attenborough. Several were very obliging. A few Reed Warblers , several Common Whitethroat
