Hawfinches, Fforest Ganol 15/12/2013

It was a horrible, foggy, grey and wet Sunday morning but I had to go and see if the flurry of hawfinch activity at Fforest Ganol was still going to be there today so I got up early before we ventured to the cinema to see The Hobbit 2, and managed to get some terrible records snaps of a group of Hawfinches feeding high in the trees near the path. A GSW was in the trees over the carpark and this will definately be worth a return visit on a nicer day.

 

The Penduline swings - 09/11/2013

The autumn migration period is pretty much over for another year, but Thursday afternoon at work brightened up considerably with the news of a male Penduline Tit at Newport Wetlands, and 5 of us (including 3 members of Wales Management Team mind you) bundled into a car to see it. Unfortunately then weather wasn't exactly onside and fiftenn minutes before we arrived it emptied down and the bird went to ground in the rush beds immediately outside the center, of all places! I kept an eye on the forums yesterday and eagerly again this morning before making a quick exit for round two.

When I arrived it was where it had been two days previously and he was busy feeding on seeds. He had practically gone up inside a rush, the seeds floating away in the breeze. Another one of the rarest birds I've seen to date in the latter half of 2013!

Starlings - 20/10/2013

A weekend trip to Surrey went by without much in the way of a wildlife visit, although we did pop into NWP for a quick stroll on the way down. At the services in Reading on the way back there were lots of starlings in the trees calling noisily, and I couldn't resist a few shots, especially because the sun was bringing out a spectrum of colours on their feathers.

Yankee Doodle - Rhaslas Pond - 13/10/2013

News of a Long Billed Dowitcher up at Rhaslas while I was away down Pembroke last week, (wondering whether I could risk my meeting times to fit a trip to see an Isabelline wheaear in - sadly not to be) and some amazing shots online made me consider an early morning trip up to Rhaslas to see the bird in question, especially so when I read news of it being very approachable and still around yesterday. I hadn't been up there before, and after a rubbish night of weather I half expected it to have cleared off, but it was there, and I located it quite quickly (follow the trail of birders) The early morning light and general gloom meant that it was hard to get amazing shots, but I reasonably happy with some of them. There were photographers camoed up on the shore waiting for it to make it's way down to them, and that would have to be the next move for better results in future.

There was also some quite a lot of wildfowl up there in good numbers, so it will bear another trip over the winter, especially if I can cobble together money for a scope. It isn't the most glamorous of places but it certainly attracts good species in amongst the fly-tipping!

Sniper in the grass - Forest Farm, 28/09/2013

It was fairly quiet on this afternoon's walk with Jess, although we did see our first jay of the autumn foraging in the meadow and some long tailed tits in amongst the usuals. There was a cracking little snipe in front of the Llyn-y-Gamlas hide, bobbing almost  jack-like while going about it's feeding. I spent some time shooting in manual and managed to get this image, although it was difficult with it being quite an overcast day to get the lighting right.

 

Jynxed - 01/09/2013

Reports of a wryneck at Newport Wetlands near Saltmarsh Lane when we returned from Ramsey yesterday were too tempting to pass up so I took a quick trip down with James this morning. We weren't there long but we had some decent views of it looking for insects but it wasn't quite close enough for a decent shot. Very happy to have seen it.

Ramnesia - 30th and 31st of August 2013

We had weekend trip to The Welsh Wildlife centre in Cilgerran and Ramsey Island, and had a great couple of days. A trip to the kingfisher hide on Friday brought me down to earth with a hard bump. What I had thought was a kingfisher's alarm call turned out to be a stupidly similar sounding squeaky wheel from a bike or pushchair going behind the hide. Budding naturalist? Back to the drawing board.

Jess was very keen eyed, and saw this weird Ichneumon wasp, and also a Magpie moth!

This giant badger (as well as allegedly spreading TB) was also photobombing our shots -

After a stunning meal in the Bishops (a pint or two, including one called Ramnesia which knocked my head off) and a sunset visit to the Cathedral in St Davids, we woke up nice and early in the B+B and made our way to St Justinians to the boat station. While waiting for the boat I saw a peregrine fly by just beyond the shore. 

Landing we saw a grey seal mother and pup in the small bay by the landing, and met Greg and Lisa on the way up onto the Island.

 We were soon off exploring and we saw plenty of chough, probably the most I've ever seen in one go, lots more seals, mippits and rippits, wheatear, warbler, 'sprawk, buzzard, fulmar, stone chats. We left feeling slightly sun burnt, tired, but very happy.