16th July 2023 ff
It's about 3 miles...
Early July in the garden
Once you have pressed the play arrow try pressing the enlarge symbol bottom right if it shows on your screen view.
The title of this blog refers to the relatively short distance travelled to see birds at Saltholme, Greenabella Marsh and Hartlepool Headland.
July 16th: Saltholme, Paddy's Hide
I was hoping to see a pectoral sandpiper so I was pleased on my walk to the hide to be told by Caroline Farry that it was still there. Unfortunately it stayed resolutely over on the very far bank - unlike the common sandpipers that dropped in just in front of me!
The bird is on the far right. Redshank and godwit also visible.
Pec is now against the dark mud background but shows quite well.
The 2 common sandpipers were putting on a show for me!
Same day on Hartlepool Headland I snapped some kittiwakes and an eider duck.
The next photo was an experiment in depth of field control. I think it worked pretty well! 16 kittiwakes at F16 for one thousandth of a second.
July 20th: Greenabella Marsh for a scaup
First pool from the road. And there it was. Noticeably bulkier than the tufted duck nearby.
More images from where I was sitting comfortably on the dry clinker. Carline thistle; small skipper and a rather poor [common spotted?] orchid; small heath butterfly and a goatsbeard seedhead.
