August 2019 Great to catch up with my fourth species of owl ~ Little Owl

These were quite common in my younger days before I had a camera.  I would often hear their loud shrieking call and see them looking at me out of a small hedgerow of old willow trees.  They were great confident little birds for their diminutive size.  Over the years they have seemed to disappear locally and I had not managed to get any images of them.  I think an harsh winter when the ground stayed permanently frozen for a few weeks devastated their numbers.  I was really pleased to get some information of a site where there were some newly fledged young still hanging about and feeding.  They are great birds to photograph and have really expressive faces.

More confident together

They were perched in a old dead tree and frequently flying to the ground and seemed to be living entirely on worms,

 

Nice meal if it can be pulled from the ground

It was a great morning watching these three juveniles going about their antics.  Of all the owls I am likely to see in the UK this leaves me with the Long Eared Owl missing.  I would really love to spend some time with one of these, probably roosting quietly hidden deep in a bush.  One day I am sure!

August 2019 Local park ~ not just for common birds.

I was just reflecting how the local park is a great place to photograph birds.  It is not just the obvious and tame species that you would expect to get.  Some quite good rarities can turn up over the years.
At Pittville park in Cheltenham there is quite a list of unusual birds that have got the birders excited:

Great Northern Diver

This was a fantastic bird that stayed around for a number of weeks a few years back.  It was a first for this species for me photographically. This image was taken as it took off and never to return.

Dartford Warbler

The local council had decided to leave a patch of wild flowers that was left un-cut.  This must have been an amazing and unexpected result for this action.  A Dartford Warbler stayed and could be seen regularly hanging around with a pair of Stonechats.  To locate the bird you had to first find the Stonechats sat on top of the vegetation.  The Dartford warbler was never far away.

Male Goosander

Over the last few years we have had both male and female Goosanders.  It was really great to watch them fishing.  It was amazing to observe how far they can travel under water.  It could easily appear at the other end of the lake from where it had dived under the water.  Certainly kept me on my toes trying to capture an image

Male Night Heron

Making a repeat visit in the last few weeks is this stunningly beautiful adult male Night Heron.
It was last seen in 2014 but has decided to make a return visit.  I guess it's the same bird that remembers what great fishing is provided by the lake.
It's is quite impressive for a municipal park, the rarities adding to the list of more common birds.  A great place for a wander around with the camera.