How fast does a swallow fly?

I would say the answer to the title above is "Bloody fast"!!!
Yesterday I ventured across Brading marshes, and decided I would try and photograph the swallows flying. If you havnt tried it before its not easy! After about 20 minutes of losing them in my viewfinder and trying to keep them in focus I managed to get some record shots. They wont win any photography contests but at least I got something!

I also managed to see the common but beautiful magpie close up 

I have had to wait for 3 weeks for my Nikon camera to be repaired, which seemed like an eternity, so now im itching to get back into the field. Carol and I are going on a dawn chorus walk at 04:30 on sunday, not done that before so looking forward to it.

Another recent tick for me was a whitethroat, also taken on Brading marshes here on the island.

Also taken recently was a house sparrow. We shouldnt take these common birds for granted, they are just as beautiful as some of the rarities, and are becomming more scarce themselves nowadays.

Hopefully I will soon be ordering a new scope, an Opticron HR 80 GA ED model with zoom eyepiece, with tripod, waterproof case and digiscoping set-up. As you can imagine im itching to get started! More to follow when funds arrive!



Ducks galore !!

Recently I saw a picture taken by a workmate of a Mandarin duck, which took me by surprise as I didnt expect to see one on the Isle of Wight! He told me he saw it at a small pond just outside Brading so last tuesday I drove the couple of miles in the hope of seeing one of these beauties!
Imagine my surprise when I got there to see lots of unusual ducks most of which I had never seen before!
The light was absolutely perfect, filtering through the overhead willow. A tufted duck was closer than I had ever seen before.

A beautiful pintail looked splendid in the dappled shade

I was in my element, my love of photography and birds was being satisfied to the utmost! The male Red-crested pochard was next.

I finally spotted the beautiful male mandarin, what a beauty!!

I had such a good time I decided to return the following day and captured lots more images. The guy who has this collection of ducks certainly has a superb selection. Next up was a beautiful shelduck.

Ringed Teal...

Chiloe wigeon...

Wood duck...

Female mandarin...

Male Pochard...

And a couple which Im not sure of at the moment, if anyone knows what they are called? ...

So, I had a wonderful couple of afternoons at this newly discovered gem! Definately going to go back soon and see how they are doing  :)

Sunday stroll in the sunshine :)

Sunday morning was glorious so wife and I decided to have a nice walk. We have heard about the old railway line between Blackwater and Shide, but have never been on it, so that was our choice!
The scenic path seemed alive with birdsong, but not much wanted to come out and show as usual!

My first tick for the day was a Carrion Crow

We kept hearing the Chiffchaffs, but like my previous walk, we were finding them hard to show. All of a sudden to our surprise one started singing above us, and I managed to fire off a few pics before he disappeared, another tick! 

 The disused line was proving to be a good choice for a walk, and I soon added to my year list with a Red-legged Partridge. A pair were in a field and started to walk away from us as soon as we sighted them, as per usual, but managed an ID and a pic or two. 

 Next to show for us were a Kestrel on overhead wires, and a Buzzard, which was well spotted by Carol. She often spots birds before me, its always handy to have an extra pair of eyes to hand!!

Another excellent day out, and 3 more ticks for my year list!!

A day on Brading marshes

Finished work at a reasonable time, so decided on the spur of the moment to take a trip onto Brading marshes, passing the sewage works, and onto Centurians copse.
At the sewage works I saw my first Swallows of the year, a pair were flying overhead. I managed to get a picture as one landed on the overhead wires. Spring is here!!

On the sewage tanks, (Not sure of the real names!) lots of Chaffinches and Reed buntings were sifting through the stones for grubs. Very difficult to spot the small birds especially the reed buntings amongst the stones.



A robin was singing from amongst the spring blossom ...

As I passed through the copse, I heard a rustle to my side. Through a gap in a fence I could see a pair of eyes watching me! I tried to get a picture but decided that I needed to get closer. So I walked up quietly to the fence and gingerly peered over it, to be met by a beautiful pheasant hen. i was quite surprised that she didn't fly off or run, and managed to get a nice portrait...

Over the marshes onto Centurians copse, I managed to see 3 red squirrels, all of which were very shy, and not at all interested in posing for my camera! The best pic is below...

The spring blossom looked beautiful in the warm spring sunshine, although there was still a brisk wind...

                                                            All in all a very pleasant day!



Owl's about that !!!

Firstly, apologies for the headline, but read on for explanation!!
Had a free afternoon on saturday, and the weather was fine, so I decided Id visit Bembridge for a change.
I parked up opposite the boat houses, which must be ancient now, as I have lived here for 45+ years and have always known of their existence. Captain Hook and his mate were keeping an eye on me!!

I walked off the main road and started to walk towards the ponds. As I did a Mallard flew overhead, managed a quick series of shots, the best of which is below.

Six Tufted ducks, 3 male and 3 female were paddling round the first pond, along with a swan and the ever present mallards.

Onwards to the next pond. Black tailed Godwits were on show, Id seen my first ones a week or two ago, so recognised them. With them were a similar bird, like a black and white version (!!) being a new birder im ashamed to say I havnt yet found out their name, help anyone?? I have the Collins massive bird book, but not had time to look it up yet (*Embarrassed*) 

Two Shelducks, a Dunnock and a beautiful Chaffinch were sighted shortly afterwards.

Onto the shore at Bembridge harbour I checked a pair of Great black-backed gulls off my life list.

A lone Canada goose posed for me, as did a distant Cormorant, fishing in the harbour. The tide was almost at its lowest, so I decided to call it a day, and returned via the ponds. A robin was singing on a fence post. The views across brading marshes are beautiful.

As I walked along the path, I wondered if the Little owl would be at the hole in the tree. I had heard about it and had seen photos, and a kindly man had shown me the tree on my outward journey. Imagine my delight on reaching the tree, when I saw the little beauty perched in the hole, another first for me. He was about 150 yards away, and my 300mm lens hardly reached, so had to crop the picture heavily. Cant wait till I can afford a 2x converter for my Nikon camera!!

I returned to my car with a big smile, and a few ticks, a very enjoyable hour or so.....

A day out in the West Wight

We had a week off last week. Most of it was spent erecting a 9 foot square shed in our garden. Towards the end of the week I was getting withdrawal symptoms from a lack of birding, so as we had to buy a few bits in Newport in the morning, we decided to go onwards to Newtown and Yarmouth in the early afternoon. Just outside Newtown Carol pointed out a pheasant just ahead. I stopped the car and walked towards it. The light was perfect and the bird quite tame, but I didn't get to close in case he took off. Managed to get some lovely pictures (Below)

Onwards to Newtown. On arrival we were disappointed to find that as the tide was really high there were hardly any birds to be seen on the creek, what a disappointment! We managed to see a beautiful Little Egret, and managed to get a shot of it in flight.

As there was nothing much to see we set off for Yarmouth ponds, a site that had been recommended to visit. The ponds are next to a disused railway station, and also right next to Yarmouth estuary. As before, the high tide meant that the ponds were the best option. Would have loved to have had a scope with me, but still saving up for that one!! Saw a few Black tailed godwits, a first for me, did I mention I'm a new birder? The one below seemed to be guarding his own little island! 

Other birds seen were another Little Egret, Teal, Redshank, and Mallard. Next time we venture off out, a check of the tide tables will be a must!

Despite this, we had a lovely day out in the spring sunshine. Lots more locations to check out, keep watching!!