Kicking off this year's odds and sods with Starlings in a rainbow on that extreme rarity: sunshine.
It was early morning, with the sun barely cresting the tree line. We were able to get out for our morning walk as it wasn't raining. This photo is my trusty Canon 80D and Sigma 18-300mm lens zoomed in at 300mm.
Pulling back a bit.
And finally all the way back.
Oh, 2024 got off to a good start with this.
So far my cat, perhaps two neighbouring cats visiting our garden, a local fox and Tawny owl, and this trap have accounted for at least five of the beasties. Sightings of rats in our garden are getting rarer, so I think I'm winning. Two rather timid and wary rats, that I know of, are proving more elusive to catch. I've resorted to buying a lethal trap. The trap was triggered, yesterday, but no rat, sadly. Though a mouse might have triggered it, and was small enough to be within the kill bar.
90% luck, 5% field craft, 5% camera skills.
And wings! Very important are wings to be considered part of the avian community. Though bats may beg to differ.
I've definitely hit the limits of my medium lens. Decisions, decisions: do I splash out the mega bucks and go Canon (Eeek)? Or do I wait for Sigma to bring an equivalent RF lens out? Well, as a Yorkshireman with Scottish heritage, their is only one answer.
This subject was well within the capabilities of my Sigma lens, as I could stay at 18mm.
Found in middle of a footpath we take during our morning walk.
At first we thought it was dead as it was motionless and appeared to have damage to its mid and rear sections.
Thankfully, it wasn't. I picked it up (whereupon it burst into life, wriggling away), and moved it to the side of the footpath, where it slithered into the undergrowth. Can't have walkers stomping on it, or dogs killing it.
What I took as injuries to this Slowworms mid and rear sections could be shedding of skin.
Now a House Sparrow. What I find strange is we have no Sparrows along our section of the housing estate we live on. Yet the blighters appear all over the rest of the estate, even around houses opposite us on the other side of the road
The houses are more or less the same, thus offering similar nesting sites. Tree cover, with lots of suitable nesting holes, are similar, if not better around our house, but we are bereft of Sparrows.
That's why I got excited and stopped to take a photo of this Sparrow during our walk.
Great to see a slow worm Angus, I have not seen one in years.
Nice work Angus. Good job.
A small mix of things on a short walk farm behind the estate I work on. Oh and some interesting Heron nests down at the heronry.
A few more.
Garden Warbler
Stonechat
Dunnock
A pair of nesting Goldfinch.
Enjoying all your latest pics Mr Kes, thanks for sharing
2013 photos & vids here
eff37 on Flickr
Nice selection Mr Kes, those Heron nests are impressive constructions
Been in Buxton for a few days with my sister, as her husband has been critically ill in Stepping Hill Hospital. He is improving slowly, so with no set-backs hopefully he will pull through. I am going back tomorrow for another few days, but will post when possible. Whilst there I managed to get out a bit walking the dogs and managed a few shots in a different area.
Birds egg - Possibly Song Thrush
Just a few Tadpoles!
Brimstone Butterfly - My first in the wild ...
Would this be a Mistle Thrush?
Chaffinch