British Wildlife Calendar 2017

Looking at the time of year I thought it was about now that I should bring back the blog. It's been brought back quite a few times and will probably be brought back again in the future as finding time to write is always so hard.

So anyways some new content. Well looking under the bed in the spare room this morning I realized I still had a handful of my 2017 Calendars in stock. When I say a handful I mean under 10 so here is a short write up featuring this years shots.

If anyone has started their Christmas shopping already and needs a small stocking filler, these are great little gifts. And a bargain at £7.00. Local Delivery/Collection is Free. Or I can post for a £1.00

More information or to order you can visit my websites 'Online Shop' here: British Wildlife 2017 Calendar

As always my Calendar features shots of totally wild British birds and mammals photographed throughout the past year. I always try my best to include an even mix or birds and mammals if I can relate them to the month in which the photo was taken. Here is this years selection.

January 2017 - Great spotted Woodpecker - Taken from my pop up hide around my garden feeders.

February 2017 - Brown Hare - Frosty winter mornings were perfect for catching up with the local Brown Hares.

March 2017 - Great crested Grebes - An early spring trip to the Somerset levels brought a morning with a Great crested Grebe pair on a small lake.

April 2017 - Yellowhammer - My local population were looking stunning as they came into breeding plumage.

May 2017 - Eurasian Otter - A close encounter of the Otter kind whilst holidaying on Mull.

June 2017 - Atlantic Puffin - Some Puffin therapy from a couple of hours spent on the Isle of Lunga.

July 2017 - Roe Deer - With Summer underway, the freshly harvested fields became battlefields for the annual Roe Deer rut.

August 2017 - Kingfisher - 4 Years living by a river and finally I manage a Kingfisher shot.

September 2017 - Red Kite - You never know what species will turn up in the garden when the camera is out, this Kite landing in a tree was a little bit of a shock.

October 2017 - Reeves' Muntjac - Alert as ever, my closest encounter to date with the Muntjac.

November 2017 - Wigeon - I have never had the pleasure of photographing these magnificent ducks up close until a chance visit to RSPB Greylake.

December 2017 - Short-eared Owl - No year would be complete without a shot of these awesome Owls, taken around midday on a grey December day.

As mentioned above for more information or to order you can visit my websites 'Online Shop' here: British Wildlife 2017 Calendar

If you are a social media user, Feel free to follow me on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram for up to date sightings & photographs, any 'Comments or Criticisms' are welcomed.

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'Owls For Lunch'

For weeks I had resisted the temptation to jump in the car and speed down to Southampton for some Owl action, A couple of Short-eared Owls had taken up winter residence in a small field on the edge of a residential street which bordered on to an industrial park, prime real estate it would seem for Hampshire’s wintering Shorties, surrounded on 2 sides by footpaths, I had been seeing plenty of good shots posted online. Although I am always keen to get a few more SEO photographs the main reason I didn’t want to zip down the M3 was the light, I’ve taken plenty in crap light, and longed for some sunshine on these charismatic hunters. And mainly because Sundays my only free time during the winter for the past couple of months had been a mixture of cold, grey & wet days. I say wet, the weather had ranged from mildly damp to torrentially moist every time I considered getting the camera out.





It was 2 to go weekends until Christmas, and whilst most people were out doing there festive shopping, my weekends job entailed weeding the flower bed in the front garden. By 10.30am I was all done, plastered in mud and with plenty of sweat beads running down my forehead (sorry not a pretty picture) but the sun was out. I couldn’t remember the last time I had seen it on a Sunday. I toyed with what I could do, the distance and time it would take me to get there and what I might see when I did get there, and then I thought Owls. They were showing yesterday so why not today, the skies were clear and there was barely any cloud. I raced indoors and grabbed my gear, 25 mins later I was pulling into a quiet side street on the outskirts of Southampton, 25 minutes is no exaggeration either, I literally flew down the A34 and M3. The sky, much to my annoyance got grayer and grayer the closer I got to the coast, to the point that I was almost considering turning around and going home as a few spots of rain hit the windscreen.

You always know you’re in the right place when you see the first guy in camo loitering around a hole in a hedge, I’m sure to many passer-by’s, this is a pretty strange sight, and it does baffle me also, you’re in the middle of a housing estate not the jungle what’s the need for Camo. After a brief chat he was quick to inform me the birds had been out earlier on this particular morning and there had been no sign of them since about half 9. It was now approaching 11.15am. I didn’t hurry to setup my gear but made sure I found myself a good vantage point along the roadside edge of this 10 acre or so area of wasteland that was probably a thriving meadow once upon a time.







Without any owls showing for the next half hour I honed my watching skills by amusing myself at the looks received from local residents and passers-by. Several stopping to make conversation and share their expert birding knowledge on me. I think one woman was pretty convinced the Short-eared Owls had nested their this year, raising about a dozen chicks, I’m not normally so directly skeptical to the uninitiated. But she came across as a pretentious know it all, so I felt I had to put her straight.







It had gone midday and I was just giving heading home some thought when a couple of Magpies glided over tempting up an owl from a midst the grass. Now I was alert, finger poised resting on the shutter willing the bird to come a little closer. The light was poor, but I’d worked with worse, the one great thing about Short-eared Owls is they come ridiculously close if you have enough patience and keep still. It took a while but eventually this gorgeous bird was hunting just 5 or 6 meters away. Coming so close at times to my long lens that I couldn’t fit it all in frame.





A second Owl much darker in colour joined it minutes later and they both zoomed across the tops of the grassland, dropping down to hunt regularly. It is an amazing thing to see such awesome wildlife in such an unlikely place, an area nothing better than wasteland bordered by train tracks, industrial estate, the Motorway and a residential street. With people walking around it at all times of day and dog walkers letting their mutts roam wild across it. And even though the light was rubbish and the weather depressing it was totally worth the drive!

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2012 - Big Change, Little Time

So if you thought you had read your last 2012 Review Blog Post you were wrong, you haven't! I shall try and keep it short and most hopefully sweet. As many of you may have read 2012 has been a weird old year for me, moving the family home in March and April has brought far more photographic opportunities with a wide range of species alongside the River in Longparish, Hampshire, and although this is a plus and a positive for the year, leaving behind the home and country estate that you've spent the past 25 years of your life is a little sad.

2012 started badly for me with the loss of Paddy our 6 year old Springer Spaniel, and this wasn't the end of the pet related deaths as in July we lost Sweep our 3 year old Cocker Spaniel both to horrible freak accidents when out walking. As well as several close relatives and family friends. Not a year to remember!

But enough of the personal trauma. What about the wildlife? 

Well most of the early part of 2012 was spent trying to catch up with the Short Eared Owls of Bransbury Common. Usually unsuccessfully, although 2012 was an abundant wintering year for them. (11 counted one day by another birder) I still never really got close enough to get any shots I was happy with. Although watching 4 SEO's and 2 Barn Owls hunting together at the same time was pretty special. Definitely on the list for this years early expeditions, especially now as Bransbury Common is part of my new patch. I just hope the heavy rain from the past few months drains through pretty quickly.

January - Short Eared Owl (Barton Stacey, Hants)

With moving in full flow come March and April, photography trip time was at a premium and I had to make sure I made the most of my jaunts to see my girlfriend Nat in Shropshire, I had one especially cracking weekend where all the birds I wanted to see appeared and appeared well, a couple of firsts for me. Great Grey Shrike, Common Crossbill, Red Grouse, Dipper & some really close Red Kites.

March - Red Grouse (The Long Mynd, Shrops)

By May things were more settled at home, and the garden was starting to get up to scratch. Allowing a lot more time to be spent wandering the riverbank, footpaths and water meadows of the new patch. Also enjoying some time with the local Brown Hare population.

May - Brown Hare (Longparish, Hants)

Early June was a bumper month for me and my camera, a weeks holidaying in coastal Pembrokeshire brought some great birding opportunities and a chance to visit Skomer. A must for anyone with any interest in Sea Birds. A pretty special day was spent in the company of Puffins, Razorbills & Guillemots.

Early June - Puffin (Skomer, Pembs)

With the delights of Wales a distant memory, I started to dedicate a lot of time waiting for the local Barn Owl, who took up residence in the field next to the new house. Countless hours were spent trying to anticipate the best angle the best light and the Owl's next whereabouts. My best photograph however came on the way back from Cricket Nets, spotting Barnie out in the field I ditched the car in a nearby drive, jumped across the road with my camera and tripod and bingo! Who needed to spend hours in a midge bitten state waiting fruitlessly. 

Late June - Barn Owl (Longparish, Hants)

The Summer months seemed to last for ever, lots of time to spend out and about, but not a lot to see, my focus turned to Butterflies, Moths & Dragonflies the only constant source of entertainment. Highlights included a Garden tick in the form of a Purple Emperor.

August - Banded Demoiselle (Longparish, Hants)

September, some of the best weather of the year, and another outing with Nat, this time down to Weymouth, 3 RSPB reserves and some cracking species seen. None much MEGARERER than the Short-billed Dowitcher that had been present for a couple of weeks. Even more satisfying than the 20 ft views, was the fact that no one had seen it any closer than a blurred dot in the 2 weeks prior.

September - Short Billed Dowitcher (Lodmoor, Dorset)

October started with a pretty poor weekend in Exmoor, indifferent weather as you would expect. But no rutting action with the Red Deer at all. Things improved for the better towards the end of the month with what I think will go down as my personal highlight of the year. Another weekend in Shropshire and a visit to the moorland expanse of the Long Mynd. Bringing me an awesome half hour in the company of my first ever Merlin. 

October - Merlin (Long Mynd, Shrops)

As the weather started to get a little colder and Christmas approaching, my sister and I made our now annual visit to Slimbridge. We managed to pick a nice crisp morning with some beautiful light. Just right for the thousands of Waterbirds throughout the reserve, none much more striking than the beautiful Pintail.

November - Pintail (Slimbridge, Gloucs)

December, Go to work in the dark, get home from work in the dark. Dodge the raindrops, watch the mud. You all know the story, trying to find time to spend when it wasn't raining proved near on impossible. Outings were left to dry lunchtimes and one just happened to bring a wildlife encounter that I truly think will take some beating on a lunchtime ever again. I have been spending some time hoping to encounter the Rooksbury Otters on and off since they first appeared at the end of March. Sometimes successfully other times not. Having not photographed them since the spring, this close encounter was a welcomed to end to the year.

December - Otter (Andover, Hants)

So in conclusion a pretty good year I guess, and I can't complain at all, other than I guess not having enough time. A full time job along with a part time seasonal job (Groundsman) doesn't allow for as much wildlife watching as I would like. All of my encounters apart from the Barn Owl really come down to just being in the right place at the right time. Not being able to sit and learn patterns in behaviour and when and where I am most likely to see certain species.

I think my main aim for 2013 is to try and focus on a much narrower range of species and projects, hopefully to reward me more in viewing & learning about the wildlife I hope to photograph. I ended the year with a pretty average 156 Species of Birds so I am hoping to improve that dramatically for 2013 too.

Download it here - 2012 Species List - Excel File

Here is too 2013 - Best of luck one and all!

Pembrokeshire - Part 3

It would be fair to say that the boat over to Skomer on a rough sea would be one of the more terrifying experiences I may have encounter, luckily the waves were pretty small so the 15 min crossing from Martin's Haven jammed in like a can of sardines wasn't to bad. On entering the North Haven you are instantly transported to a place where birds rule the roost, the shear numbers of Razorbills, Guillemots & Puffins heading out to fish is staggering. A quick briefing from the Wardens and we were off, deciding on the opposite direction than the Puffins which most of the boats passengers seemed to head for. We instantly picked up a Short-eared Owl being harassed by a Gull as it glided low over top of the island. The one thing that strikes you immediately other than the large quantities of Rabbits and Gulls is the colourful carpet of Campion and Bluebells which seems to cover the entire surface of this treeless island. Quite the sight to behold.

Lesser Black backed Gull in amongst the Campion

Flowers as far as the eye can see

As mentioned before the amount of Rabbits on the island is gargantuan with no natural predator they've been left to thrive and its hard to tell whats a Rabbit, Puffin or Manx Shearwater burrow. Amongst the local population were quite a few pure black colour variants.

Black Rabbit

Perched on the various scrubby bushes throughout the island were a lot of smaller birds, Linnet, Whitethroat, Meadow Pipit and Sedge Warbler all picked up within minutes, one particular Sedge Warbler happily singing away in its territory near the middle of the island, and pausing in the open enough for me to grab a few shots.

Campion Sedge Warbler

Sedge Warbler

Other than the song of the Warblers on the Island, there is one call that resonates throughout, with Footpaths crisscrossing the land at various points, the best spots to nest seem to be fairly close by, and with a fair amount of traffic walking past the resident Oystercatchers kick up quite a din. But also means they're quite photogenic.

Oystercatcher

Part 4 Coming Tomorrow

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Barn Owl & The 2012 Century

With a good hidden spot scouted out for owl watching, Nat and I set my 2 man real tree hide up on the Common late on Sunday afternoon in anticipation of Short-eared's the result to which I wrote about in my previous post.

Whilst watching them from a distance I was always hopeful that if the Barn Owl joined the fray it might stray a lot closer to the hide than the Shorties would. My hopes didn't prove to be disappointing as after about 30 mins of watching the Barn Owl hunt the long grass beyond the River Dever, it started to work either bank back and forth towards the hide. A few well placed squeak calls on the back of my hand, and he / she was heading straight for the hide. I have to admit in my amateuristic state of Owl attraction, I tempted it so close that I couldn't focus my lens in time, and was beginning to wonder if it might join me in the hide.

None the less a fantastic afternoon spent watching the Owls, and a real privilege to see such an awesome bird in the daytime. Plus I reached 100 Bird Species for the year with a Male Reed Bunting.

Barn Owl 

Barn Owl

Barn Owl 

About To Drop 

My Favorite 

In Flight 

As Close As "Barnie" Got Before I Lost The Focus :-(