Ring Ouzels

Another weekend is upon me and I've not detailed the events from the last one yet. Not that there are many to list, given that my target birds didn't play ball. On the Saturday I thought that I ought to try again for the local avocets at the Flashes and again, they resolutely stayed on the far side of the lake, though a little ringed plover did show very well, wandering along the channel nearest the hide.

And on Sunday, I made my first trip east to Rutland, with the promise of Lagoon 4 being a hotspot for ospreys. Hmm, hot it wasn't and only one osprey showed up in about four hours, landing and then washing itself on the other side of the lake. Oh well, plenty of time to see more of those.

So here we are at this weekend and Good Friday was a complete wash out, so I stayed at home and fixed the guttering. Very rock n roll. Today though was a bit better and I met up with a friend at Titterstone on Clee Hill, in search of ring ouzels, a bird I'd never seen before.

Their call is like a cross between a thrush and a fieldfare, and was about the best way of locating them as they blended in against the rocky outcrops very well indeed. But, once located, they were fairly easy to follow, though the numerous walkers and dog-emptiers meant they often took flight. "They" as in two of them, and a bit of effort yielded some half decent results.


Aside from the ring ouzels, there were at least three wheatears around, several ravens, a kestrel and various wagtails and pipits. Might have to try my luck there again, especially if the sun is likely to come out.

Black Redstart

While the barn owl remains an attraction, I'll be going to photograph it whenever the weather is favourable, though work commitments are getting in the way at the moment. So I'll try to limit comments on that somewhat to avoid being more tedious than usual.

Saturday was spent moving TV sets around as it was rather wet, and didn't suit my fair-weather photography. Sunday was better though, and I aimed firstly for a sighting reported from a business estate at Alcester. Being a quiet Sunday morning, I was able to trundle around the area slowly, peering over the steering wheel in search of the bird, which I eventually spotted sat on a warehouse roof.

A female black redstart, and by the look of the number of flies on the roof, in a perfect feeding spot. Quite a vocal character too, making a rather strange call between darting strikes on the sunbathing flies.

Alas with it favouring the roof of the building, and me lacking the ability to fly or stick to walls like perhaps Spider-Man, I could only make do with relatively distant shots unlike the bird that I saw at Coleshill last year.

It didn't have the flies to itself though, as a pair of pied wagtails were around and perhaps they scared the redstart off, as after turning my back momentarily, to check the images were okay, I looked to find it had gone, and despite me walking all around the immediate area, I couldn't relocate the bird.

Following this, I headed over to the Flashes at Upton Warren, but the avocets remained distant and the little ringed plover did its best to stand in an area partially obscured by the fence. I did get some nice shots of a dunnock singing next to the hide, though I did feel slightly self-conscious using 700mm to photo something that could have been captured with my phone camera!

Leaving here, I found myself with several hours on my hands before the owl would come out to play, so I opted to trundle over to Shropshire, to see if the peregrines were around. They were. For about 1 minute, before belting off and not returning while I was there. Ah well, at least they're around and I'm sure will provide subjects later in the year.

Finally I zipped back to see the barn owl which was already hunting when I parked up, causing me to go into a blind panic, and then had to wrestle with the tripod that didn't want to exit the boot of the car. When it did, I was able to get some decent shots as the owl quartered the area, quickly catching a couple of rodents, and consuming them, before hunting once more. At one point the crimson stain of blood was clearly visible on one of its feet as it flew by.

I'm still playing catch up on all the shots from recent weeks, so will be adding shots to the gallery each free evening I get. Hopefully this weekend the LRPs will show better for me, as I'd like some better shots of these.

A Bittern And 3 Owls

With there being a barn owl at a local site, I've been trying to get over that way as much as possible, though at times the weather has got in the way and the bird not shown. As such, I have not ventured too far away from home though that's no problem when Upton Warren's seasonal visitors put on a show.

Saturday was supposed to be sunny. It was when I woke up, and remained so right up to the moment I opened the door to aim the camera at the little owls at Lea End. At which point it was like someone had pulled a blind of cloud over the sky and matters were made worse when both owls decided they didn't like the look of me, and took flight to the other side of the field. Back into the car and down the motorway to Upton Warren.

The first sight there was of several lenses poking out of the Hobby Hide, over the North Moors. Looked crowded but I thought I'd see what was going on anyway - well, I sort of knew, as one of the bitterns had been posing for shots the day before. Space was at a premium as I opened the door, and a lady quickly ensured I remained silent by shushing at me, then saying the bittern was in the open. It was, and I was lucky in that I could open the side window and set the camera up there.


Partially obscured by the reeds, the bittern was busy poking around under the reeds in search of fish and going by its success rate when striking, there must have been plenty to choose from. Curious birds at the best of times, but another strange behavioural aspect of this one, was when it caught a fish, its legs quivered - maybe from the excitement of another bite to eat?

As time moved on, people moved out and I was able to inch into a better viewing position. Needless to say, I bagged several hundred shots - hell, why not? How often do you see one like this?

Eventually hunger got the better of me, and I left to grab a sarnie and head off to look for the barn owl. But do you know what? I've been that many times lately, I can't recall the details of each visit! Must be getting more senile. I do know that a few friends were there and it's been a good laugh generally, waiting for the bird to appear.

Sunday was supposed to have showers according to the Beeb, but I tend to ignore them in favour of Accuweather and Metcheck, and both of those were more optimistic. And correct, as it turned out. After the disaster with the little owls on Saturday, I thought a new plan was needed to get close to them. So upon reaching the site, I drove a bit further down the road and parked up. Shifted the passenger seat right forward, and then popped open the boot. Back into the car, and reversed it back to the site. Parked, then climbed into the back seats and set the camera up through the boot opening.

The owls were probably somewhat bemused by my antics but crucially not spooked, and stayed put. I've no idea how to determine the gender of a little owl, unless perhaps one is smaller than the other, but when they're 30 feet apart in a tree, that's not easy. Anyway, I did get to photograph both "Little Grump" and his "Missus". Fingers crossed they'll breed and I'll get to see some fluffy little owlets later this year. That'd be ace.


Avocets were the next target and I strapped the suitcase-sized rucksack to my back and trudged down to the far hide at the Flashes, to discover that most of the birds, avocets included, had been flushed to the Moors following a monthly bird count. Typical. Given how busy the hide had been on Saturday, I didn't think I'd get a look in, so was very surprised when I found the hide to only have one occupant; another friend of mine. He'd been sat for over 2 hours but not seen the bittern. But he reckoned it was there earlier and so it was, after a mere 30 mins, it strolled, silently out of the reeds and carried on where it had left off the day before. It had been too close at times before, but with a lack of space, I'd been stuck with the 700mm reach. With more room, I could take off the TC and shoot at a mere 500mm, which seemed to focus more accurately on the bird. Must be something about the markings, as the little owls were picked up perfectly, and from further off.

After the bird had been spooked into the reeds by clunky footsteps entering the hide behind us, we both left and I went looking for Barnie again. The pictures of which are in a queue to be processed... While the bird hangs around, I'll be trying for more shots, though the last couple of times, it's sat and waited for the sun to go down before hunting, making picture-taking somewhat frustrating. I say "somewhat" as it can't ever be a bad thing when a barn owl is involved.

Keep an eye on the gallery for more photos of barn owls and bitterns appearing over the next few days.

If At First You Don't Succeed...

Last weekend I found myself plodding through a swamp, water almost reaching my socks over my boots, to reach the hide at Feckenham, to see the Slavonian grebe that (seemingly) everyone else had managed to get superb shots of. Funnily enough I muttered something similar to "Feckenham" when I heard from the hide occupants that it had gone overnight. To make matters worse I then got rained on walking back to the car. Over at Upton Warren there was little about apart from the little egret which may as well have been a plastic pond guard, the amount of action it provided.

Sunday wasn't much better either so that weekend was a write off. However in the week that followed some interesting news appeared locally on two counts.

On to this weekend when on Saturday morning I opened the curtains to yes, rain. Brilliant. After a sunny week at work, the sight of rain on your day off is most pleasing, not. Anyway I decided to try to see the waxwings over at Wilnecote near Tamworth. Didn't have to wait long for the three of them to appear and in terms of seeing them it was great as they perched in the branches of the trees above me, or on the wires nearby. In addition to these migrants, the resident mistle thrushes, who were guarding the rowan berry tree, were also great to see. Sadly the light was awful, so I'll be performing some paint-by-numbers on the shots to add some colour to them.

Over to Ladywalk next where the feeders were busy with the usual flocks of finches, plus a welcome visit of a willow tit. No brambling alas, but as I was about to leave, the bittern appeared from the reeds in the small pool, and crept across the gap to the next patch to disappear completely again. Made a change to see one away from Upton Warren or Brandon Marsh.

By now I had my mind on another subject, one that I normally have to go to Norfolk to see. A barn owl had been seen at a private site I have access to, and with the skies clearing, I headed over full of optimism. My spirits were lifted higher when I met up with several friends who had obviously seen the same info and also wanted to see this bird.

So great end to the day? Well, no. You see, in the excitement of watching the barn owl in full sunshine, I tried to apply the techniques from running around with my 100-400mm lens to this new one. It doesn't work. Too awkward, too slow. End result: zero pictures, yet my friends with their smaller hand-held lenses all managed great shots.

Feeling rather peed off with myself I went home to lick my wounds and plan Sunday. I was going to head to the Wirral, but a late night conversation with Steve Seal put me off (cheers mate!) as the tides were wrong and not high enough for what I wanted to see.

With a clear sunny start, and the Slavonian grebe back on the map, relocated at a farm near Grimley, I was soon setting the tripod and camera up next to two other 'togs by a small lake, with the subject lazily bobbing around on the water in front of us. What followed was quite extraordinary, with the grebe coming so close to us that I could have reached down and picked it up out of the water! And what a striking little chap it was, especially with that pair of ruby-red eyes.

Okay, so the morning sunlight was rather harsh at times, which made for some blown whites on it, but it's rude to complain when a subject is so close!

Tamworth again, this time in glorious sunshine. Shame that the waxwings were nowhere to be seen! Timing eh? And Whitacre Heath failed to amuse either, with a pair of little grebes being the highlight.

Round two with the barn owl then, only this time I opted to engage my brain, and set the camera and tripod up, parked my bum against a nearby tree, and waited. No point running around after a subject if it can come to you, and it did.


I've watched several barn owls hunting in Norfolk, but this hour spent watching this bird was arguably better. Ghostly yet vibrant, and bloody fast when they want to be.

Watched it hunt back and forth until the light faded and we left it sat, in the distance, taking a much deserved breather.

And so ended a weekend of ups and downs, but most definitely one to be remembered for the right reasons.

Shriking Out

It's owl season at the moment, so I am always going to be headed off to see some shorties whenever possible, though another bird had taken my fancy, a great grey shrike. It had been seen and photographed over at Morton Bagot, which is a speck on the map, the turn off for which I drive past every time the M40 is closed and I have to use the "old" roads to get home.

Arriving reasonably early on Saturday morning, I knew I was in the right place when I clocked Max's car on the verge, and sure enough, in the distance I could see the neon glow of his latest winter "camo" jacket, along with the trail of down leaking from it, along the path.

The shrike however, was even more distant and I glimpsed it via a kind fellow's scope, before it flew off. Opting to go for a walk down the path further and over the fields beyond, Max and I hoped the bird would oblige, but of course it didn't, and Max sensibly wandered back after a short while. Over the hill I got views of a deer bounding along and a distant buzzard. No sign of the shrike.

Then the phone rang. Max had got the shrike in a tree next to him. Argh!! It's hard enough to walk carrying the camera and tripod let alone run and needless to say by the time I did get back the bird had vanished again. Waiting around yielded no more results so I headed for the shorties at Cossington again.

What a crowd! Loads of my friends were already set up, and had been for some time. As usual, the owls made us all wait but showed just after 4pm, when 2 appeared, followed later by a third and a barn owl too. Unlike the previous encounter the owls remained more distant, but they're simply fabulous just to watch. I love the colour and intensity of their eyes. And that stare!


Sunday morning started with a text from a mate to inform me we'd had some more snow. For a change I swapped cars and took out the Scooby, which made me smile through the lanes, having to opposite lock at times when the back stepped out through some corners. Having failed to get a shot of the shrike, I tried again and managed some record shots this time when it landed on the top of a distant tree.

Nothing much to celebrate, especially having seen the shots Max had taken the day before, but still, another one for the collection.
With the snow melting, I headed north again and opted for a different location at Cossington. One which turned out to be out of bounds, when a Trust worker wandered over to tell us we weren't allowed away from the paths. Worth noting for anyone reading this!

However, the owls had appeared by then albeit later than the day before and I'd managed some more shots in the late afternoon sunshine. Also close by was a barn owl, and with a rather high ISO (1250!!) I managed a half decent shot as it ghosted by.

So, not a bad weekend really, though I have to add one extra note. The highlight of the weekend actually came within 2 miles of my house on Saturday morning, when through the mist as I drove along, I spotted a buzzard perched up near the Peacock Inn pub and for once, it didn't fly off when I parked nearby.

What awesome looking birds they are and I was rather chuffed to finally get some decent perched shots of one. Excellent.

Harrington Nil, Cossington Three

This time last year I was spending most of my time working out when I could get down to Milton Keynes to see the group of short-eared owls hunting around the fields and canals there. Unfortunately, these fabulous looking birds of prey don't return to the same area each year, so I've been scouring the bird news sites hoping to spot a new site.

One such place was Cossington Meadows, but having visited there last year and only seen kestrels, I wanted to try somewhere new. Harrington Airfield kept appearing and is only a few miles from Maidwell, which is another location where I saw these birds last winter. Alarm sounding at 5:30am on Saturday morning, I was soon chatting to Ian whilst trudging up the pathway to the northern most bunker.

A strange site - lots of twisted metal lying around the bunker ruins, and lots of mud too, which got caked around my boots. Lots of shrubs and rough grasses, and lots of bales of hay further up the fields. Lots of open spaces but unfortunately not lots of owls.

We think, though to be honest couldn't be sure, that we saw a merlin perched on one pile of hay, but it was so distant it may have been wishful thinking. Aside from that, we stood and froze for several hours in the fields, sheltering from the icy breeze behind the concrete structures and saw the occasional yellowhammer and a small flock of goldfinches.

Rob, Joe and Steve all arrived which kept things amusing with the banter, but didn't bring any luck with owls and just before lunch Ian and I decided we would try Rutland to see if the long-eared owls were visible.

In short they weren't and it's probably the shortest amount of time I've spent at Rutland. There was hardly anything about. And as for the long-eared owls, I saw a small portion of the top of one's head. Great. And to finish things off, we got rained on.

Rob had mentioned earlier that he might try Cossington later on, so I persuaded Ian to come along for a look and upon eventually finding the place (Ian found it, not my satnav!) we opted to just take the bins to the meadow to see what was about in the drizzle.

Bad move, as within seconds of seeing the meadow and clocking Rob further down the path, we realised there were 3 short-eared owls quartering the fields. Bugger! Needless to say we scuttled back and returned with our cameras (won't make that mistake again) to try for some shots in the gloom.

We actually had some really (too) close views of the owls as they chased each other in flight, and for the first time since getting the 500mm lens, I wished I had brought my trusty old 100-400mm out, as the birds were just too close to capture with the long-lens kit.

That said, I managed a few half decent shots and in doing so turned the day from a cold and wet disaster into something worthwhile.


So now I'm thinking about how and when I can get over to Cossington again, though the weather really isn't helping at the moment, with more snow forecast this week!

Belvide, The Chase, The Moors and Being Cold

Cold. To have or to be? That is the question.

And on the weekend the answer was both. I'd sniffled all week with one and then on Saturday, sat in the Gazebo Hide overlooking the lake at Belvide, I was aching from it... my fingers eventually went numb, even with gloves on, so I was glad to head back to the car that morning.

By then I'd seen a few tree sparrows, tits and finches, but no brambling alas, though I did spot the lone knot, wandering amongst the iced up edges of the lake. Handholding this new lens is almost impossible - I need bigger shoulders... I wonder if I can buy them online?


Back at the feeders in the woods, there were more tree sparrows, a nuthatch and loads of tits, including one great tit that stuck its tongue out at me. How bloody rude!

Having almost induced hypothermia, I opted to spend the rest of the day in the warmth of my car, so headed north east to Cannock Chase, to a good spot called Freda's Grave, where the locals put out seed for the birds. As the seed had mostly been eaten, I could make use of the seed in my bean bag. Now this was a tip from a professional wildlife tog. Fill your bean bag with seed, so you're never without any should the need arise!

What he didn't mention was the weight of seed. Bear in mind that the lens and camera probably now weighs about 6kg, plus the old lens and camera is maybe 4kg, plus the bag is about 4kg empty plus all the rest of the gear carried around, including drinks, and the backpack suddenly feels like someone hanging off the back of you, so the last thing you need is a bean bag weighing another 3kg!!

Hence, this week I bought a pink pig micro-bead cushion, and used the contents of that to fill the bean bag, and it's almost weightless now. My lounge though, is covered in microscopic white beads, which seem to stick to anything and everything! And I have a semi-deflated pig looking rather sorry for itself, in a plastic bag to contain the remaining leaking beads.

Back to the Chase, so to speak... there were yellowhammers, long tailed, blue, coal and great tits, robins, blackbirds, chaffinches and a lone siskin by the feeding area. The long tailed tits seemed to have a taste for a piece of banana someone had put out, and hung acrobatically from the bushes, pecking at it.

With the light fading and the interruptions from passers by increasing, I opted to head home, to warm up properly.

Sunday was spent locally. After reports of a goshawk at the Moors (Upton Warren) and missing it the previous weekend by being at the Flashes, there was only one place to go, and I was soon sighing in relief as I took off the suitcase from my back over in the East Hide. I was soon however sighing in annoyance, as the local farm workers kept thundering past in a dumper truck, scaring away the snipe and coots from the water's edge and filling the hide with choking diesel fumes. So backpack back on, and over to the West Hide for a few hours.

While the goshawk never materialised, I did enjoy seeing a pair of water rails sliding around on the ice, as were coots, which comically fell over several times.

The usual woodland birds helped themselves to the seed out, and I took advantage of the glowing male bullfinch, as he posed in the hedge. The sparrowhawks buzzed by occasionally and reminded me that I need to learn how to aim the new lens at flying object better, and the great spotted woodpecker popped in a few times for the suet on offer.

Not great light, but an enjoyable day nonetheless. Then, as is becoming tradition on the way home, I spotted 2 buzzards, both perched close to the road, both bathed in fabulous soft evening light and both in locations impossible to park by. I could and in fact did, scream.