What A Weekend!

A vertible bird watching extravaganza.

It all started at the breakfast table with the puffed up Dunnock I posted on here last week. I managed to take a quick "snap" of our resident Robin that landed right outside the patio doors. Garden Birdwatching Snappers, here is why you should always keep those windows clean. Anyone tells you you can't get a decent shot thru patio doors, rubbish!

Sunday was my first day off after four long tiring 12 hour shifts. We decided to go up to Nagshead RSPB Reserve. I've been wanting to visit for ages, and it's only an hours drive away. Dawn and I met up with my brother (Beagle1831 on here) just before lunch. It was a glorious day, crystal blue skies.

The woods were very quiet, not a lot of wildlife about at all. We had gone in the hope of spotting Hawfinches or even maybe even a Goshawk displaying. For once I wasn't out to get some nice photos, I was more for the nice walk in woods type of day out.

Half way around the 2 mile long nature trail you can walk I happened to hear a call from above the tree line. Undoubtably a Bird Of Prey. And we were lucky enough (well me and Dawn were, my brother missed it!) to see a Goshawk perform a display flight. It only lasted about 20 seconds before it plunged out of view. I didn't want to believe it at first, but I have had it checked out by far more experianced bird watchers than me, but it was classic diplay flying. Roller coasting, flying straight up like a small plane doing a stall at an airshow, and then a final plunge back into the woods. I want to go back to Fancy Point now, which is a proper Goshawk viewing platform just down the road from Nagshead Reserve, and see if I can get an uninterrupted view!

The walk back to the car park yielded some lovely views of a Tree Creeper, a bird I have not seen for about four years. We also watched Nuthatches and a Mistle Thrush. Alas no Hawfinches, but hey, one can't be greedy.

Tuesday, I met a mate down at Newport Wetlands. The Kestrel was on his/her usual perch as you left the visitor centre. Managed to get a nice shot of it sat on the telegraph wire.

Never get bored of watching Kestrels not matter what!

On walking around the lagoons I encountered a first for me, there were a pair of Shovellers on the lake.

Managed to get a few shots of the pair of them, but the male was looking particularly resplendant!

But the day was not over. Walking back to the visitor centre for a welcomed cup of coffee, we noticed the Kestrel was still sat on the wire, as we watched she dropped down and caught something. We could see her ripping the poor small animal up behind a reed pile. When she had finished, she hopped back onto the top of the reed pile and posed for me! I mean how can you refuse such a beauty!

I am rather proud to say, the one made the RSPB Daily yesterday, chuffed with that! ;o)

I did some photo editing yesterday, and had a break for lunch. Forgetting the Sparrowhawk that glided by the patio doors when I sat down for my bacon sarnie, I happened to be looking up into the woods beyond the hedgerow that is at the back of my garden, when some movement on the Birch tree caught my eye. I grabbed the binoculars .. a tree creeper ... you wait four years to see one, and two come along at once! ;o)

Ant