It's been a while since I was last at Middleton Lakes, but it didn't fail to show its beauty, as always.
Not everyone's cup of tea, a juvenile brown rat (they are part of the eco system), hoping to get on the feeder.....
A juvenile sparrow, also hoping to get on the same feeder...
Not everyone's cup of tea, (yes, again, another part of the eco system), I think these are green bottle flies, devouring animal dung (probably goose or swan)...
Snipe on the North Pool
Heron, standing proud.
It would have been nice if it had groomed itself properly for the photo-shoot ....
There were a few little egrets on the North Pool, but this one provided endless photo opportunities while it was feeding.
You can just make out the fish in its beak.....
And finally, a juvenile sparrow on a five bar gate.
Unknown said:Nice to get the Snipe out in the open, but you just can't trust Herons to act properly in front of the camera. You'd've thought that rat would have been up that branch and down onto the feeder in no time from there.
Thank you Nige.
You know the old phrase about working with animals!
I did see one on Twitter, even scruffier!
https://twitter.com/sisyphus1961/status/1171786254716985344
Could even be the same heron!
Unknown said:beautiful photos Mike, I especially love the L.Egret and water splash. Great sightings including ratty !
Thank you Hazel.
For the technical, the shutter speed I've found as an optimum (light permitting) to obtain the water splash is 1/2000 sec.