Bits and Pieces

Originally a song by the Dave Clark Five, it seems the different [and dreadful] song by Artemisia and others is much better known... it may be my age...

1: The Light that Failed

Takes me back too - a book I had to read at school by Rudyard Kipling but it's a decent title for the first segment of this blog. Friday 11th November I decided to visit the Nunburnholme red kite roost. I set off from York in sunshine but clouds darkened the wooded hillside as the birds came in low. Photography against this back ground was tricky and any birds that came in high were silhouetted. Interesting afternoon however.

What on earth is this?

White Pheasant I saw a white pheasant. White Pheasant I've avoided using the word albino as I saw 6 white pheasants including three at once. 

Buzzard and red kite. Buzzard

Red Kite Red Kite

Red Kite

The moon rose behind me. It seemed unusually big... Moon 11.11.16

2: Sunny Burniston 

Reports of lapland buntings and a short-toed lark drew me to a Sunday afternoon visit [13/11] to the stubble fields north of the observatory. I could only positively id skylarks: those trampling the field may have flushed other birds but in flight [and into the sun a lot of the time] I couldn't tell. It was very reminiscent of a previous visit. A curlew called and I swung the camera and pointed. The 5D and 500mm lens seem to be suiting me well enough. Curlew

3: Supermoon

From the back garden a couple of hours apart - I had to grab my chances in between periods of cloud cover - on Monday 14th November. Hand-held 500mm lens; 800 ISO Supermoon 14.11.16 Later... Supermoon 14.11.16

4: Egrets, I have a few...

Tuesday 15th November: off to Lincolnshire, starting at Skidbrooke for a couple of cattle egrets. First time I'd ever seen more than one cattle egret at once.  Cattle Egret Cattle Egret Cattle Egret Cattle Egret Cattle Egret Cattle Egret Cattle Egret Cattle Egret Cattle Egret Cattle Egret Cattle Egret Cattle Egret

Local birders sent us to Horseshoe Point for the pallid harrier. Waste of time! Immediately reported at Donna Nook! Chiffchaff at Horseshoe Point. Chiffchaff

Quite a few little egrets out on the marsh.

Cattle Egret I drove off to Donna Nook. Although it was a weekday, the car park was overflowing. I had to go to the overflow car park, pay my £2 and walk all the way along the seal colony. It was very busy with school parties and the elderly who all wanted to go 'Arrrr' at the seal pups. I can't imagine why...

Grey Seal Grey Seal Grey Seal Grey Seal Grey Seal Grey Seal I plodded on towards the realignment where everybody had been watching the rough-legged buzzard. I never saw it although I walked right out to the north end of the realignment where I did watch the pallid harrier cruising distantly along the shoreline - which was a long way away across the saltmarsh.

I headed back. The RAF got very busy and the noise was deafening. The jets came quite low and it has often surprised me that it's much easier to 'kill' the movement of a fast moving jet than it is to 'kill' bird flight... Jet fighter Donna Nook Jet fighter Donna Nook Not rotated by the way. Jet fighter Donna Nook

This stonechat stood its ground in spite of the racket overhead... Stonechat ...and 'Am I bothered!' said this egret. Little Egret The teal were more easily spooked. Teal Teal Spot the wigeon in the first photo!