Carl Bovis Nature Photography

Tuesday, 15 April 2014

Hoopoe!!!

As it was another gorgeous day, I decided to pop up the road to RSPB Greylake again this morning. I'm so lucky to have such a great reserve on my doorstep!
From the hides there were some distant Ducks including Gadwall, Mallard, Teal and Shoveler, but also 3 scarce Summer visiters, Garganey! 1 handsome male and 2 females.
Plenty of Little Egrets were dotted about the site, but no Great White Egret which I had seen here a couple of days previously.
Some Lapwings entertained by doing their song flights in front of the hide.
I was surprised that no Hirundines were present during my stay, I had seen a Sand Martin and a couple of Swallows 2 days previously.
I was talking to a lovely chap, Malcolm Taylor, and saying that despite it being rather quiet, you could never tell what might fly in! Little did I know how prophetic my words were to be, for within a few minutes a Hoopoe flew in from the left and landed right in front of the hide!!! Surely a million to one happening in the UK! Unfortunately it was partially hidden by a clump of grass and within seconds flew up and headed off in a South Westerly direction!
We couldn't believe it! I managed a few passable shots, despite my excitement!
What a fantastic morning, and a real moment to remember!!

Below are some pics of the Hoopoe and other shots from the last 2 days;

^^ Above ^^ - The Hoopoe.... the star of the day, week, month and year!!

^^ Above ^^ - Male and Female Garganey

^^ Above ^^ Shoveler and Garganey

^^ Above ^^ - Little Grebe with fish.

^^ Above ^^ - Mallard

^^ Above ^^ - Lapwing

^^ Above ^^ - Little Egret

^^ Above ^^ - Goldfinches

^^ Above ^^ - Reed Buntings

^^ Above ^^ - Chaffinches

^^ Above ^^ - Dunnocks

^^ Above ^^ - Great Tit

^^ Above ^^ - Great White Egret, taken on the 13th April

^^ Above ^^ - Sand Martin, taken on the 13th April

Saturday, 12 April 2014

Redstart and Goldfinches!

On a glorious April morning yesterday I made my way to my job at Moor Lane in Wincanton, Somerset. Leaving the town and driving into the countryside I noticed a bird standing on an abandoned trailer in a field beside the road. I was amazed to see it was a beautiful male Redstart! A bird I'd only ever seen 3 times in my whole life!! I quickly stopped my van, grabbed my camera and walked back to where I'd seen it. At first I was disappointed, it was no longer on the trailer and I couldn't see it anywhere else. I waited for 5 minutes, hoping he would show himself again, and sure enough he did, standing on a fence post on the other side of the field! He was quite distant, but I managed some passable shots with my 70-300mm VR Nikon lens. It's at moments like these that I wish I had a Sigma 50-500mm lens!
Alas, I couldn't stay, I had work to do! Luckily I was working in the countryside, the sun shone and the birds were singing! Skylarks sang overhead, tragically an increasingly rare sound in the British countryside. Their song is so calming and free, the world seems to be a better place every time you hear it, and picking out the bird in the vast sky is quite a task, usually just a tiny dot at an incredible height!
Chiffchaffs sang in the roadside hedges and trees, along with Chaffinches, Blackcaps, Great Tits and Wrens.
Ravens and Buzzards were overhead, both being mobbed regularly by Crows. At one stage a Crow attacked a Raven (A much bigger bird!) in flight and they tumbled together to the ground! They both flew off afterwards seemingly none the worse!

After work I popped into RSPB Greylake close to my home. The usual birds were attracted to the feeders in the car-park. This remains the best place to see Reed Buntings at close quarters! I was especially pleased to see plenty of Goldfinches. I'd not seen them here before, I think most of Somersets population reside in my garden, costing me a fortune in Sunflower hearts!

Below are some of the pictures of the day, along with a cock Pheasant I came across in Dorchester, Dorset, last week;