tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-65146754203635976942024-03-05T09:07:11.662+00:00Not Your Average Wildlife WatcherNeil Spiershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15477070425639600029noreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6514675420363597694.post-44889422339870070922011-03-25T09:23:00.000+00:002011-03-25T09:23:33.692+00:00A nice little bird took a fancy to me... sorry Liz!!!After reading a great post on <a href="http://brianraffertywildlifephotographer.blogspot.com/">Brian Rafferty's blog</a> regarding Otters on Waterhead Pier in Ambleside, I asked my boss if it would be possible to take Tuesday off to head off early and hopefully get some shots of these amazing animals. Luckily I have a good boss who instantly said yes get yourself off there and after a quick call to Liz to see if she and Briony wanted to join me, the plan was set in motion.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>Alarm was set for 5:00am, YES 5:00am!!! And as soon as it went off I was up, dressed and raring to go and while Liz saw to Briony I got lunch and flasks full of hot water all ready and we were out of the door and heading to Cumbria by 6:00am. The weather into Cumbria was fantastic with low clouds over the hills and mountains and the sun starting to blaze through and with the M6 north traffic being quiet at that time in the morning we arrived in Ambleside at just before 7:00am, no I was not speeding!!<br />
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On arrival there was only one other car present in the car park in front of Waterhead Pier but not someone who looked like they were waiting for Otters. Anyway I stuck around the pier till around 8:30am and no Otters showed, I was seriously gutted as I now think Otters are going to be my bogey animal to photograph but as Brian said in his email to me yesterday "it's always worth another try" and believe me it is. Not to be to down trodden, we then headed off into Ambleside to get some breakfast and then we carried on into Grasmere. Still early, as we even beat the hardcore walkers but we didn't beat the kids into the local school and after a short walk Briony wanted to be fed and myself and Liz decided that we would walk down towards the River Rothay behind the church in Grasmere. What an idea this was as Liz suddenly went "look at them" and she had noticed 7 Goosanders happily swimming around literally 2-3 metres in front of us. I was over the moon as this is one of my favourite birds, plus one I have being trying to photograph for a long time now, nearly every lunch on the River Ribble but always so skittish but these were unbelievably tame.<br />
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After firing off lots of shots, this one female Goosander seemed to take a fancy to me as she was parading up and down in front of me and got closer and closer. I may sound a little weird but just look at the picture below, she is gorgeous, almost the punk rocker of the bird world. (Click pic for larger view)<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHFgCo_K-2Um6NqvRZrtRzsBKdnfjIDEI5N21fu8g_ozJ1pcd20thcNV5H1QdXyzgDGct_2HHK4uRBUeAKvnO5lq0MK5N7jYrgUezH9H5YvYFyTEDgKk3jggwa4bBvegRVia1_D7j3k68/s1600/fgoos22032011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHFgCo_K-2Um6NqvRZrtRzsBKdnfjIDEI5N21fu8g_ozJ1pcd20thcNV5H1QdXyzgDGct_2HHK4uRBUeAKvnO5lq0MK5N7jYrgUezH9H5YvYFyTEDgKk3jggwa4bBvegRVia1_D7j3k68/s320/fgoos22032011.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Female Goosander - River Rothay, Grasmere 22/03/2011</td></tr>
</tbody></table>For anyone wanting to know a little more about Goosanders please carry one reading. <div><br />
</div><div>Members of the sawbill family, which you can see from the serrated bill on the above image, this is used for catching small fish. They are largely freshwater birds, forming into flocks of several thousand in some parts of Europe. If you live in Preston there is a great chance to see both male and female Goosanders up the River Ribble near Holme Road.<br />
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</div>Neil Spiershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15477070425639600029noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6514675420363597694.post-35259350335648310122011-03-24T18:28:00.005+00:002011-03-24T18:41:46.099+00:00Past two days of SUN and horny wildlife.Well it may only just be Spring but after the past two days (Wednesday and Thursday) anyone would have believed we were in Summer. Yes it may of only been 14-15 Celsius but for the people that don't know me that's the perfect temperature for me before I start to bake!! So on both days I decided to make a little time in going just a short distance from home and from work and got some nice little sightings.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>Spring has sprung and all the birds are at it... literally!!! And after work on Wednesday myself and Liz took Briony for an early evening walk in Stanley Park, Blackpool and my first sentence in this paragraph became real, when I clamped eyes on a male and female Great Crested Grebe doing there courtship display in the middle of the lake. (Click image for larger view)<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsGyznyC4UGz3MP8iatuKHIfOubqgsCcpD2UTj0MLSxcBXvwBh_dkRSs_eXOUU9j5pYGKJsLyl8juqI82kM7-aLLg1AYqvRFppb8UIYJq8Wc7WwVuFESUSiBVVP0KTRTTpAKxcIfxy5G4/s1600/gcgspark230311.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="193" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsGyznyC4UGz3MP8iatuKHIfOubqgsCcpD2UTj0MLSxcBXvwBh_dkRSs_eXOUU9j5pYGKJsLyl8juqI82kM7-aLLg1AYqvRFppb8UIYJq8Wc7WwVuFESUSiBVVP0KTRTTpAKxcIfxy5G4/s320/gcgspark230311.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Great Crested Grebe - Stanley Park, Blackpool 23/03/2011</td></tr>
</tbody></table>This elaborate courtship display involves beak to beak head shaking, to fluff out and enhance the crest feathers (see below pic). Male and Female dive under the surface to grab at pondweed, then raise themselves out of the water, breast to breast, by paddling very rapidly. The water frothing at their feet, their bodies raised up and their heads swinging from side to side, a sight to be seen... well I believe so. (Click image for larger view)<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4-B66x8cZdoK4S7AmnzIZvaLjvJ29HhfJcXUwgGBiRWSa47NNvbN9ASTLGo7g5SuQZ5YWQ8WRpUy7R0wRZV8A6_DBPayGWbOIiKTHAByyR8N79nriNbiG_Mo9GU-BrQKgyr95GLfsIys/s1600/gcgspark230311_2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="205" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4-B66x8cZdoK4S7AmnzIZvaLjvJ29HhfJcXUwgGBiRWSa47NNvbN9ASTLGo7g5SuQZ5YWQ8WRpUy7R0wRZV8A6_DBPayGWbOIiKTHAByyR8N79nriNbiG_Mo9GU-BrQKgyr95GLfsIys/s320/gcgspark230311_2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Great Crested Grebe - Stanley Park, Blackpool 23/03/2011</td></tr>
</tbody></table>On to Thursday. Seeing as I was stuck in work and the previous day I hand not headed out during lunch, I decided that seeing as it was a glorious day I would go for a walk up the River Ribble. I would recommend this walk to anyone on a quiet day, when there is no idiots setting fire to the side of the river bank!!! Location below<br />
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</div><div><iframe frameborder="0" height="300" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?q=53.756678,-2.762654&num=1&t=h&sll=53.757729,-2.70344&sspn=0.052789,0.128059&hl=en&ie=UTF8&ll=53.756678,-2.758169&spn=0.015223,0.025749&z=14&output=embed" width="300"></iframe><br />
<small><a href="http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?q=53.756678,-2.762654&num=1&t=h&sll=53.757729,-2.70344&sspn=0.052789,0.128059&hl=en&ie=UTF8&ll=53.756678,-2.758169&spn=0.015223,0.025749&z=14&source=embed" style="color: blue; text-align: left;">View Larger Map</a></small><br />
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</div><div>I made a point of looking out for butterflies as its starting to be the time of year they come out of hibernation. And not surprisingly the only species I saw was the Small Tortoiseshell, which is very common in the UK and one of the first to come out of hibernation during a warm spell. Luckily enough this pair were at it as much as the birds were. (Click image for larger view)</div><div><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2s_RVB22Ogifq4s5GTX15jtN3OJewYmcbZYiMv5Zb_gKmIp_0IycHfZzKKIdQRr8468ysSvKtUh_TMfgXaxmEh9KU9KeImhowsz-YA28jGdb8QS5wOK-g6Ps7x3ZLuaAFW8fh9m5_4ic/s1600/stortoiseshell.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="187" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2s_RVB22Ogifq4s5GTX15jtN3OJewYmcbZYiMv5Zb_gKmIp_0IycHfZzKKIdQRr8468ysSvKtUh_TMfgXaxmEh9KU9KeImhowsz-YA28jGdb8QS5wOK-g6Ps7x3ZLuaAFW8fh9m5_4ic/s320/stortoiseshell.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Small Tortoisehell - River Ribble, Preston 24/03/2011</td></tr>
</tbody></table>For anyone who has not had sex education the male is on top and the female is on the bottom (not always the best LOL). The male is drumming his antennae on the hindwings of the female, making a feint sound that is audible to the human ear but I heard nothing. The female may fly a little distance, with the male in tow and the process is repeated. This can go on for several hours (lucky sods) with the couple spending alot of time basking in the warmth of the sun together. In the early evening the female leads the male into a small patch of vegetation, usually nettles and eventually they will mate and what most women will like here is that they remained coupled until the following morning, to which the male will then do one... like SOME blokes LOL.<br />
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</div><div>Anyway there is a post on the mating habits of 2 British species of wildlife and something that you can all witness IF YOU GET OUT MORE!!!! So what you waiting for... get outside, the weather is beautiful!!!<br />
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</div></div></div></div>Neil Spiershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15477070425639600029noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6514675420363597694.post-29341145790099769212011-03-17T09:12:00.001+00:002011-03-17T13:30:13.020+00:00A night on the NewtAfter a failed attempt last week at my first experience of a local newt and amphibian count due to the horrendous weather conditions, I was contacted by <a href="http://www.lalows.blogspot.com/">Mr DM</a> who asked if I was free to join him on Wednesday evening for the count at my local Wetland site and seeing that the weather was clear I jumped at the oppurtunity.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>On meeting up with Mr DM at the local Wetland site, it was nice not to be greated by hoards of uncontrollable dogs and their owners (I know I harp on about this but it really ruins my time out). Heading down to the first pond after a brief catch up we realised it was incredibly quiet with no Frog or Toad calls from the ponds and we may of possibly got there a little to early (8pm start next time?). First sighting was a Caterpillar or Larvae which I am currently trying to ID and will then post up if of any interest. On a near circuit of the first pond I heard a slight splash and shone my torch to the ponds edge to see the first Common Frog of the evening, only a young one but still nice to see at least one.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4AO3PFJJG-h6zskhPT9k2QoR7QUJnGe8F8BTTQr0qurcX3wpz4LY520Wyq1ZDVvMPwuf_JqEh2bF87dng4Z3zY24ZfcP5lfO2uk65KeaDxbd4B7D8eJdig1Xnn9D4d5c43y6EkTJ5mvY/s1600/frog.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="243" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4AO3PFJJG-h6zskhPT9k2QoR7QUJnGe8F8BTTQr0qurcX3wpz4LY520Wyq1ZDVvMPwuf_JqEh2bF87dng4Z3zY24ZfcP5lfO2uk65KeaDxbd4B7D8eJdig1Xnn9D4d5c43y6EkTJ5mvY/s320/frog.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Common Frog - Blackpool 16/03/2011</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Still no newts as of yet but alot of Frog spawn. Onto the second pond and it wasn't to long until we caught glimpse of our first newt, a Smooth Newt also known as a Common Newt. This being my first attempt at a newt count in the evening, I now realised why Mr DM was giving me pointers on where to look as my god are they difficult to spot!!! Trying to work out what is a Newt or what is a dead leaf is not easy I can tell you. At least four Newts in pond 2 and then onto the next pond. While Mr DM explained what sort of plants Newts like to lay their eggs on and how to notice if the plant I am looking at has been used we noticed alot of movement just to the edge of pond 3, to which we then noticed at least 3 Smooth Newts together, Mr DM tried his up most to gather one up but each dove down without a chance of locating again... slippery buggers I can tell you that. While on the far side of pond 3 we started to notice alot of Newts, mostly females but a few males aswell and this time Mr DM was successful in getting hold of a Smooth Newt to get a closer ID.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhakp-EKVmFUJXJiVjuvuF_oSAvd0SNH9cgOn1GPDGUJ08zEut8Se0zeyc2k0VbeXsVFrlBKTOVPsPLn_p53uxh5phNQ9RXVSswF6dpnnc2SaQ6ytSwxHt-Nhg6vaIGNdddKyVrj-FuwCQ/s1600/smoothnewt1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="233" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhakp-EKVmFUJXJiVjuvuF_oSAvd0SNH9cgOn1GPDGUJ08zEut8Se0zeyc2k0VbeXsVFrlBKTOVPsPLn_p53uxh5phNQ9RXVSswF6dpnnc2SaQ6ytSwxHt-Nhg6vaIGNdddKyVrj-FuwCQ/s320/smoothnewt1.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Female Smooth Newt - Blackpool 16/03/2011</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Mr DM started showing me how to tell this was a female Smooth Newt, smaller than males and during the breeding season the males develop a wavy crest to the tail. Therefore with the above this one was definitely a female, due to no crested tail plus dark spotting or speckling on the throat as you can see below.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFwgPmfcd21ksWooItMHQQueJasmPuLYmisOezNwj91ks5VTSzIlm3KsLER2mARKl4dGn-m9GXFtGz7s4QM7Vo6MdvbYMljl_fy504MKf-hEb8o-Z15kOC7H1SfpxylxrEUwi5XrIPNjE/s1600/smoothnewt2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFwgPmfcd21ksWooItMHQQueJasmPuLYmisOezNwj91ks5VTSzIlm3KsLER2mARKl4dGn-m9GXFtGz7s4QM7Vo6MdvbYMljl_fy504MKf-hEb8o-Z15kOC7H1SfpxylxrEUwi5XrIPNjE/s320/smoothnewt2.JPG" width="299" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Female Smooth Newt - Blackpool 16/03/2011</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div>Mr DM then placed the Smooth Newt down on the back of his clipboard to get a closer shot and size comparison and then back into the pond in the exact location we located her.</div><div><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhmDv2Rug6RcTbUOPLfFERUfC4NT_5CqXrBGlIVq1H4Jmn7voliXVn88uvWD44MPw-memTURQQKsiYJXUzXuSOVS_0tui1fH3gDLVBXaQyDHK7aV81uiy6Uj-o_C1vlcYcV3aCL2p2yB8/s1600/smoothnewt4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="292" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhmDv2Rug6RcTbUOPLfFERUfC4NT_5CqXrBGlIVq1H4Jmn7voliXVn88uvWD44MPw-memTURQQKsiYJXUzXuSOVS_0tui1fH3gDLVBXaQyDHK7aV81uiy6Uj-o_C1vlcYcV3aCL2p2yB8/s320/smoothnewt4.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Female Smooth Newt - Blackpool 16/03/2011</td></tr>
</tbody></table>While heading round the last part of pond 3 we started to hear more vocal Frogs and then Mr DM clamped his eyes on a Common Toad. No pic from me as I could not focus in the dark and even with torch light it was difficult but Mr DM was able to get a decent shot which you can find over on <a href="http://fyldearg.blogspot.com/">Fylde Amphibian and Reptile Group</a> when added later today or tomorrow. <br />
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No Great Crested Newts tonight but hopefully next time I head out I will finally see one for the first time since I was in Senior School!! A great evening, not to cold but hard work on the old back bending down and scouring around the edges of ponds but around 10-15 Smooth Newts and I was happy.<br />
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</div><div>Also please be aware Great Crested Newts are protected under the UK and European legislation and it is illegal to intentionally or recklessly disturb, harm or kill Great Crested Newts. The maximum fine on conviction of offences is currently £5000, therefore beware and do not panic Mr DM is licensed for the count and identification we did this evening.<br />
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</div></div></div></div></div>Neil Spiershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15477070425639600029noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6514675420363597694.post-13223226037485726452011-03-07T08:47:00.001+00:002011-03-07T08:48:05.757+00:00Walk into the unknown or the final frontier!!Not really much of a wildlife related post, possibly 2 mentions of that but headed out on 2nd and 3rd March to attempt a long exposure shot of the International Space Station (ISS) heading over in the clear night sky. Seeing that the past few nights have brought incredibly clear skies I decided to head to Marton Mere and try my first shot of the ISS.<br />
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On arriving I was greeted by...well... darkness, no street lights around so a perfect opportunity of a low light shot. Looking towards the coast there was still a blue hint to the sky so I thought this would make a nice touch to see the ISS go from a faint light to bright. Then it appeared but me being me had not taken into consideration that the damn thing would be literally right above me and not closer to the horizon as I expected DOH!!! A quick alteration to the camera and I was in position, fired of around 5 shots and luckily ONE is possibly a keeper, see below.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXOQ3Kq6lvDa5Yy68fYqx0w1ePjt-bNp3wMWShMWhSNkkutlf1AevaK3UXo8NjOna-hUremAxMbJJFuAKVOynLKZfj_zjCl51kLMXNUSQgunXOM3ZL57UY6f0FuQGJLoOBWj6VrzNqa88/s1600/ISS03032011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXOQ3Kq6lvDa5Yy68fYqx0w1ePjt-bNp3wMWShMWhSNkkutlf1AevaK3UXo8NjOna-hUremAxMbJJFuAKVOynLKZfj_zjCl51kLMXNUSQgunXOM3ZL57UY6f0FuQGJLoOBWj6VrzNqa88/s320/ISS03032011.jpg" width="214" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">ISS over Blackpool - 03/03/2011</td></tr>
</tbody></table>I promise you this IS NOT a white line added to the image in post processing via Photoshop as that's how it may look but seeing as the shot was taken with the camera's lens open for 30 seconds, that's what you get.<br />
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</div><div>Right finally to the mention of wildlife. I did hear something that I had never heard before in my life go over and it sounded incredibly unnerving but after a brief discussion with <a href="http://lalows.blogspot.com/">Mr DM</a> and an explanation that it had a undulating call, he pointed me in the direction of <a href="http://www.xeno-canto.org/europe/">http://www.xeno-canto.org/europe/ </a> and to check either Woodcock, Snipe or Long Eared Owl. Soon as I listened to the 3rd Snipe call that was it nail on head, I had heard a Snipe go over, thanks to DM and his years of expertise. On the walk back home, I was also possibly buzzed by a Long Eared Owl, this is not 100% as I obviously was in the darkness but larger silhouette that anything else that could of been around at that time and possibly call in the distance not long after.</div><div><br />
</div><div>All in all a quite successful evening and definitely somewhere I will head again in the early evening. Oh and one more thing, had a run in with another dog owner... sure I must attract them.<br />
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</div>Neil Spiershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15477070425639600029noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6514675420363597694.post-58789489907930898962011-02-28T09:25:00.000+00:002011-02-28T09:25:20.686+00:00Bitterly cold and embarrassing amount of lifers!!!<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="color: #999999; font-family: inherit;">Post is a week late due to not having the chance to even turn the ole PC on in the past few days as work, home life and baby were top of the order.<o:p></o:p></span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #999999; font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="color: #999999; font-family: inherit;">Anyway, after exchanging a few emails with <a href="http://lalows.blogspot.com/">Mr DM</a> regarding what had been going in the local area, I was informed that it would be an impressive high tide up at Warton Bank. So after a brief think and realising that Liz and Briony would be away for the weekend; I decided that it would be worth meeting up with D to be shown the ropes of Warton Bank.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="color: #999999; font-family: inherit;"></span></div><a name='more'></a><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="color: #999999; font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #999999; font-family: inherit;">Waking at 08:30 on the Sunday morning after having a bit of over indulgence with beer, movies and sweet things, it took me a while to pluck up the courage to slope out of bed and get myself ready. So on noticing that it was a good clear day but looking quite brisk it was snowboarding pants and boots time. With thermos cup of coffee in hand, binoculars and camera packed I headed towards Warton Bank near Preston (Map below)<o:p></o:p></span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #999999; font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="color: #999999; font-family: inherit;"><iframe frameborder="0" height="300" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?q=53.738254,-2.906055&num=1&t=h&sll=53.800651,-4.064941&sspn=6.881357,14.941406&hl=en&ie=UTF8&ll=53.736122,-2.900906&spn=0.030462,0.051498&z=13&output=embed" width="300"></iframe><br />
<small><a href="http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?q=53.738254,-2.906055&num=1&t=h&sll=53.800651,-4.064941&sspn=6.881357,14.941406&hl=en&ie=UTF8&ll=53.736122,-2.900906&spn=0.030462,0.051498&z=13&source=embed" style="text-align: left;">View Larger Map</a></small><o:p></o:p></span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #999999; font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="color: #999999; font-family: inherit;">On arrival I parked up, walked down to the marsh and noticed only 2 other people. I was surprised by this as thought the high tide later in the day would of brought a lot more people... this was to change. I headed through the orchard behind Warton Aerodrome and after a few precarious moments of losing my footing in mud I arrived at a good vantage point looking towards the river/estuary. Another fellow birder was about who informed me that not much had appeared but for me already the sighting of 6 Little Egrets was a plus point (1st lifer of the day). Around 10:45 Mr DM appeared and after a brief introduction to Frank (wonderful chocolate brown Labrador, which more dogs SHOULD act like) things started to happen. First of all a Skylark was flushed from the marsh towards us, followed by a group of Whooper Swans which settled further up the bank making the group around 30 strong. Pink Footed and Greylag geese a plenty flew in over the marsh, followed by my 2nd lifer of the day a Stock Dove which settled just in front of us.<br />
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Then for me the highlight of the day happened, 3 raptors in quick succession. The gent that was near myself and DM pointed out a Merlin (3rd lifer of the day) that was flying low over the marsh, which then skirted through the bushes behind us. Soon after I noticed a huge flock on the opposite side of the river (Hesketh Out Marsh) which DM id'd as Lapwings but then he noticed 2 Marsh Harriers (4th lifer of the day) underneath the flock, possibly what had sent them packing. Then what I had hoped for a Short Eared Owl (5th lifer of the day) was seen heading in from marsh, never imagined how large these beautiful birds seemed. After DM noticed a flock of Golden Plover over and a few Long Tailed Tits and Chaffinches flitting around in the orchard, we realised the tide was now seriously pushing in as all channels were filled and the water was flowing over the path out into the marsh, we decided to head down towards where a throng of birders were stood looking outwards from another vantage point. No sooner had we arrived than the 6th lifer of the day appeared a Water Pipit and also a lifer for DM, so close to id and such a wonderful looking bird and actually not to difficult to id when it was stood with a few Rock Pipits. By now the cold was seriously starting to hit me but just before I headed of home to see Liz and Briony, the final lifer (number 7) of the day was flushed from the reeds, 2 Grey Partridge followed by an amazingly close sighting of a beautiful male Sparrowhawk chasing the Reed Buntings and Pipits through the reeds.<o:p></o:p></span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #999999; font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="color: #999999; font-family: inherit;">DM decided he would head to Marton Mere, where I myself decided to head home, to see the wife and baby and to get a much deserved HOT cup of fresh coffee!!! I know a few people will turn their noses up and state that "WOW only just seeing those" but for me the majority of my watching is in passing of wherever I am or when I actually get free time, which is not as often as it used to be.<o:p></o:p></span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #999999; font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="color: #999999; font-family: inherit;">All in all a fantastic 3 hours, proving that you just need to get out and you will see ALOT that you have not seen before. And thanks to Mr DM for the company, hope to catch up again soon mate.<o:p></o:p></span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal"></div>Neil Spiershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15477070425639600029noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6514675420363597694.post-71508097715220544402011-02-21T20:19:00.000+00:002011-02-21T20:19:10.910+00:00My wife the comedian bought me a gift!!!Well this is what happens when my wife decides she is going to be a comedian for the day. She has obviously got used to the fact that alot of my life has been dedicated to a huge interest in wildlife, with birds being top of the list. The days of me saying "I saw a Great Tit today" and Liz then pointing out that I must of been looking at myself in the mirror are gone and she now no longer sniggers at the mere mention of the any bird called Tit.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>Then out of the blue the other day Liz walked into the living room to say she had bought me a gift. Knowing that she had been to Tesco I thought it could be only one thing, the one treat that I cannot get enough of, no not reduced priced beer but Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. To my shock it wasn't this wonderful treat but a pair of boxer shorts.<br />
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While doing the weekly shopping trip and walking past the clothing section these jumped at Liz, her eyes lit up and she knew instantly that they had to be purchased. Therefore with a smirk on her face I peered into the bag and instantly smirked myself, now I know they weren't designed for my hobby in mind but they definitely work in both context... what do you think?<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4vhjxFRIAiwqDR18H8NiZCzFM0H1VaNvaUfayZbyUCktLG9GiN090mHEDu_a5M0OHoNXRvk3fw6LtC1HZgnbyghjRNJf5bBE8WZRGivenihwhWGFuJin0h5SmWQDLi4dz5_mtH4QraxY/s1600/boxers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4vhjxFRIAiwqDR18H8NiZCzFM0H1VaNvaUfayZbyUCktLG9GiN090mHEDu_a5M0OHoNXRvk3fw6LtC1HZgnbyghjRNJf5bBE8WZRGivenihwhWGFuJin0h5SmWQDLi4dz5_mtH4QraxY/s320/boxers.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Liz's comedy gift<br />
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</div>Neil Spiershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15477070425639600029noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6514675420363597694.post-82829813506375241422011-01-20T08:41:00.000+00:002011-01-20T08:41:45.678+00:00Linnet, Twite, Linnet, Twite...what will it be.Well after a slow week at work (it's still slow even though it's now Thursday) and not much going on around the Preston area, the local wildlife had decided to come to me. So much so that even walking out into the works car part at 4pm to get in my car and drive home to see my 2 girls, I caught sight of a flock of finch sized birds. Problem now is identifying them, you see with a bird of such size maybe Robin sized or slightly smaller it's not particularly easy to ID when the light is fading. So with camera and binoculars in hand I creeped over to the trees were they had settled in.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>If anyone from work could of seen me it would of been a strange sight (warn you now fellow work colleagues, if you see me stalking the car park its for a reason!!), with myself hanging out of the car window and camera pointed to the trees I fired of a fair few shots. Looking on the rear screen I noticed it was going to be nigh impossible to ID due to the low light but could make out a forked tail. Easy you might think but no, you see the majority of finches have forked tails Chaffinch, Greenfinch, Bullfinch, aswell as hell of alot of other birds of this size, so I conceded defeat and headed off home. I was hoping they were Twite as cannot remember the last time I had seen one but realised that it could of also been Linnet's, so now you understand the title of this post.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_pyHsWg_3496IEzBhowazZE8gxkHiuuuzlN5pkJd0ENLF6hDIbXnlucr15LVdYA7UVnlf6vQEUU-PcmSbUAh-oj1_dTruX2F1peU6T9XWIQAkl2WIkaNyEe62V5CGr6oRfHSzRUAN7nk/s1600/linnet_twite.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="165" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_pyHsWg_3496IEzBhowazZE8gxkHiuuuzlN5pkJd0ENLF6hDIbXnlucr15LVdYA7UVnlf6vQEUU-PcmSbUAh-oj1_dTruX2F1peU6T9XWIQAkl2WIkaNyEe62V5CGr6oRfHSzRUAN7nk/s320/linnet_twite.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Linnet or Twite? Portway, Preston 19/01/2011</td></tr>
</tbody></table>I scoured the books plus online resources and decided I was on the button with them being either Twite or Linnet. The same as above continued until yesterday (Wednesday 19th Jan) when we had a gorgeous clear day. So with camera at the ready I headed out into the car park on my way home from work to be greated with a flock of around 60 birds flitting from tree to tree. After startling one of my work colleagues with me parked at a bizarre angle trying to get a reasonable shot to use as ID, I had nailed it and headed home to transfer the shots to my PC. After close scrutiny I realised what I was looking at was Linnets, so not the Twite I expected but not to worry as this was another bird I could add to my <a href="http://notyouraveragewildlifewatcher.blogspot.com/p/2010-year-list.html">2010 Bird List</a>.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiInfdbtpsJA79hVrVw0xkucc17q8ASqSmSYZT-bCnOsNA6mBnrVcwzv9ewpn_fWFIgwfEi4OQIwGE7yiyUrYpbXbHHU3IQnSKOys7lMbwL2_NpFHTKZsFNQdInu60KS7nUQ5nJqoCBHFA/s1600/linnet_twite2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="196" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiInfdbtpsJA79hVrVw0xkucc17q8ASqSmSYZT-bCnOsNA6mBnrVcwzv9ewpn_fWFIgwfEi4OQIwGE7yiyUrYpbXbHHU3IQnSKOys7lMbwL2_NpFHTKZsFNQdInu60KS7nUQ5nJqoCBHFA/s320/linnet_twite2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Linnet - Portway, Preston 19/01/2011</td></tr>
</tbody></table>For people that do not know about Linnets I was able to ID by knowing that they are a small, slim finch, compared to the Twite which is slight rounder. They are notoriously flighty with an undulating flight pattern with a light, twittering, chattering flight call, "tidit tidititit" with a nasal "tseeoo" song. Alot harder to ID in the winter months due to its brown mottling, as in the summer months the male has a wonderful pink red chest, with a light grey head and pale red forehead as shown below in a photo taken by once again Cliff!! They are widespread across the UK and mostly seen on commons, heathland, upland meadows and coastal marshes.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijJ6fup8VA1dpCwytK3L4n861066xJfP58wwClbZ9msAg7n8pY6RC8h39ccLXxkB15ndqyIOLSci-A98lCILtaBvWPXbQ15tojFMofXRO5S0BKR4q0ccPw_LwP2kimYgLcbjW-8WupYss/s1600/linnet_020508c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijJ6fup8VA1dpCwytK3L4n861066xJfP58wwClbZ9msAg7n8pY6RC8h39ccLXxkB15ndqyIOLSci-A98lCILtaBvWPXbQ15tojFMofXRO5S0BKR4q0ccPw_LwP2kimYgLcbjW-8WupYss/s320/linnet_020508c.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Linnet (Summer) - Taken by Cliff Raby</td></tr>
</tbody></table>So another post over and hope to be able to add more over the weekend as the forecast is good. So get out there and enjoy the weather, it maybe cold but it will be clear but then again the BBC's weather forecasts never seen to be right when I look.Neil Spiershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15477070425639600029noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6514675420363597694.post-46977532834386082222011-01-10T08:45:00.000+00:002011-01-10T08:45:22.406+00:00Baby Briony's first watch with her Dad... and what a good watch!!!After my first 3 days back at work since my paternity leave and Christmas, I decided that I must head out over the weekend and do a bit of wildlife watching but this time with my new baby daughter. Seeing that Liz had asked my Mum if she wanted to go to a card making demonstration (my wife is very creative!!!) it was down to me to have Briony on my own for a few hours. Therefore I decided to get her all wrapped up warm in her car seat, get the pram and all changing facilities into the car and head off around the Fylde Coast.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>Decided first to head to St. Annes and Fairhaven Lake, thinking that the sand dunes would be a great place to start and then head to Fairhaven Lake and see what I could add to my 2010 year list. The sand dunes were an instant no no as realised its not the best place for a pram!!! Therefore next time the carrier will be taken, so we headed off to Fairhaven Lake and what an unbelievably successful idea this was!!!<br />
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On arriving I wondered why the hell there was so many people sat pointing massive camera lenses at the edge of the lake. There are never this many people from the birding community around Fairhaven. So with Briony wrapped up in her pram and Dad with his thermos brew in hand, camera bag in pram basket and binoculars in pocket we headed down to see what the commotion was all about. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.nspiersphotography.com/wp-includes/images/redneckedgrebe.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="187" src="http://www.nspiersphotography.com/wp-includes/images/redneckedgrebe.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Red Necked Grebe - Fairhaven Lake 08/01/2010</td></tr>
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For those of you that don't know about Fairhaven, it is a salt water lake that is positioned directly on the coast next to Granny's Bay and Stanner Bank, at the mouth of the Ribble Estuary. And what a huge surprise to find that a Red Necked Grebe had blown onto Fairhaven Lake of all places and was causing quite a stir with a mass of bird watchers and locals jostling for a good view. Myself and Briony found the perfect view by just sitting on a bench to then have the little beauty floating on the lake no further than 4 metres away from where we were sat. I was able to fire off a few shots before a huge mass of avid photographers decided to stand directly in front of me without a care for being in my shot, once again proving my point that there are a fair few ignorant people in the birding community "A POLITE EXCUSE ME OR SORRY WOULD WORK!!!!"<br />
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It is surprising to see a Red Necked Grebe on the North West Coast as they prominently winter on the East and South coast of the UK from October to March and like all Grebes it is a great swimmer and diver. Shame that it only spends winter in the UK, as the winter plumage is usually dark grey with a silvery white tint to the feathers, whereas the summer plumage takes on its namesake with a wonderfully red neck and a bright white face with a black cap. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.nspiersphotography.com/wp-includes/images/redneckedgrebe2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="171" src="http://www.nspiersphotography.com/wp-includes/images/redneckedgrebe2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Red Necked Grebe - Fairhaven Lake 08/01/2010</td></tr>
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After 20 minutes of watching the Grebe, I took Briony for a walk around the lake to see if we could anything extra to our 2010 list and with Shoveler, Mallard, Coot, Moorhen and Canada Goose added we decided to get Briony back into the warmth as it was threatening rain. So our first joint watch was a highly successful one and am hoping my little daughter brings me more luck on our joint watches in the future!!!<br />
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Hope you all like the 2 shots I got as I am over the moon with them!!!Neil Spiershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15477070425639600029noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6514675420363597694.post-76509822130805851362011-01-06T08:55:00.002+00:002011-01-06T08:56:13.841+00:00Was it a Goldcrest!?Well seeing as since my beautiful baby has been born I have not had much chance to get out and about with a bit of spotting, watching or whatever you call it. Therefore garden watching has been the order of the past 4 weeks.<br />
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Therefore one morning while once again making a mass of tea and coffee for family and friends visiting, I was peering out of the kitchen window checking to see what was on the feeders when I saw something tiny flitting around on the small blossom tree we have in the garden. Was it a Blue Tit? nope not colourful enough or any blue tinge to the feathers, was it a Wren? nope as not that brown to look at. It definitely had a slight green tinge to the feathers, quickly I ran upstairs to grab my binoculars, while everyone waited for a piping hot brew and panic set in as I couldn't find them!!!! Therefore next to find was my camera, surely the 300mm lens would be able to assist in identifying what I was seeing.<br />
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With camera located I shot back downstairs hoping that what I was seeing was a first in my garden of a beautiful Goldcrest. No sooner had I arrived at my kitchen window when the little blighter shot off into my neighbours garden AAAARRRGGGHHHH!!!! Anger, frustration and pain then set in and I continued with my brew making duties. Since then I have spotted the bird once more and I am convinced it is a Goldcrest but seeing that I am now back in work and the evening starts to set in around 4pm I will have to keep an eye out over the weekends.<br />
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For anyone who would like to know a bit more about Goldcrests well, they are the UK's smallest songbird <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">and is dull green above and buff white below with a distinctive orange or yellow crown stripe. In the bleak winter it will join flocks of tits and other woodland birds, large numbers migrant in autumn to our shores, which can then be spotted in coastal bushes but mainly on the east and south coast. There have been a few spotted in my local park (Stanley Park, Blackpool) lately, therefore it is a high possibility that it is a Goldcrest as we only 2 minutes from said park.<br />
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Below is a wonderful image of a Goldcrest, taken in Stanley Park by excellent photographer Cliff Raby. Thanks to Cliff for allowing me to use his images as a reference when I am unable to get one. You can see more of Cliff's images on his site </span><a href="http://www.fyldecoastwildlife.co.uk/">http://www.fyldecoastwildlife.co.uk/</a><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7f5ic8OD0z0tId58bsTecSJiVuozV1qjwMFX0l1yn_RpJquWxLON2PeVSXLMSMgjPguv0CcSlEwl95ZG177SHAXJaV2qq0OZRChVTiFpDO0bv0nHQW_nMMTFv1rE4VOa1I2otQCD4dK4/s1600/goldcrest_2403b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7f5ic8OD0z0tId58bsTecSJiVuozV1qjwMFX0l1yn_RpJquWxLON2PeVSXLMSMgjPguv0CcSlEwl95ZG177SHAXJaV2qq0OZRChVTiFpDO0bv0nHQW_nMMTFv1rE4VOa1I2otQCD4dK4/s320/goldcrest_2403b.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Goldcrest - Stanley Park, Blackpool</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Neil Spiershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15477070425639600029noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6514675420363597694.post-67027458548922023662010-12-13T21:18:00.001+00:002010-12-13T21:19:24.504+00:00My first born is here and SHE is AMAZING!!!<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Yes, myself and Liz have had a baby girl and we are both absolutely over the moon!!!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is the obvious reason why I have not been out and about since my last post as we were booked in for a C section on December 6th at 7:15am but we did not go down to theatre till around 1pm and believe me the waiting around made Liz and myself even more anxious.</span><br />
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<a name='more'></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Eventually we were taken down to theatre and at 15:33 on December 6th, Briony was born. Now am not just saying this as I'm her Dad but even the women in the theatre were saying she was one of the most adorable babies they had seen (I didn't pay them to say that!!!) and to be honest I cant disagree with them, she is absolutely beautiful, just look below. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Liz and Briony</td></tr>
</tbody></table><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So as you can see I have a lot on my plate at the moment, plus with Liz having a C section there is not much she can do for the next 6 weeks. Therefore I have had to be off work until next year... GUTTED hahahaha!!! I will get some opportunities to get out and about and when I do I promise to post on my blog, or it will be a lot of garden wildlife watching with my baby daughter.</span><br />
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</span>Neil Spiershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15477070425639600029noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6514675420363597694.post-66904134693974017572010-12-02T22:42:00.000+00:002010-12-02T22:42:31.576+00:00Preston Redshanks and Mergansers<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Seeing that I'd spent the last 2 weeks on the River Ribble during my lunch, I thought I would have a change, so I went the other way down the River Ribble LOL. I'd been driving myself mad by returning to the same spot for the last 2 weeks just to capture a shot of the Kingfisher I keep catching sight of. So to take my mind off this I headed to the opposite end of the Ribble which took me to Holme Road Allotments which has a great vantage point over the River, plus numerous trees in small wooded areas that has obviously attracted a lot in the past, due to most of the berries being decimated.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On parking up and getting my camera kit altogether, I heard the distinctive high, thin "seee seee seee" call of a flock of Long Tailed Tits (no puns please, am sick of hearing them now). These small, gregarious and noisy birds usually flit from tree to tree in flocks of up to 20 birds. Easily recognisable by its distinctive colouring, black and pink back and a black band on a white head. Plus having a tail that is bigger than its body (hence the name). On this occasion not close enough for a photograph but below is one I took last year of a juvenile Long Tailed Tit to give you an idea.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Long Tailed Tit (Juvenile) - Preston Docklands</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After walking through the gate and heading closer to the river I noticed a group of Redshanks being their usual wary selves. No sooner had I approached the bank slowly to take a few shots they conspicuously flew off with there noisy, sharp, and annoyed "tyew-yu-yu" call. These wading birds are common on most coasts but becoming scarcer inland in areas where drainage has destroyed wet grassland. So they seem to be taking advantage of the low tides and heading further up the Ribble to feed on insects, worms and crustaceans that they probe and pick at within the mud. Not to difficult to identify, as it has a whitish belly with black spots, bright red legs and a long straight red-based bill but the calls nearly always give it away. And lucky for me I was eventually able to get one decent enough shot for you to see what I describe.</span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Redshank - River Ribble (Holme Road)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Continuing down the path and looking around for anything else of interest, I noticed two birds on the other side of the River. Looking through the camera lens I could make out that they were male and female Red-breasted Mergansers, how the hell could I tell you might ask, well for me this is the best time of year to see Red-breasted Mergansers as they usually winter at sea, on sheltered coasts and estuaries and the Ribble is perfect for this. A long, slim duck with a slender red sawbill used for catching fish. The male has a dark head and what I would describe as a punk style mohican, while the female has a ginger brown head. No shot of the Mergansers am afraid as they were to far in the distance to get a decent shot. Like I have mentioned before that 150-500mm lens will be added to my camera lens collection very soon, then long distance shots WILL happen.<br />
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After 40 minutes, I decided that I couldn't cope with the cold any longer and decided to bugger off back to work for a brew. Not a bad 40 minutes and may head back there tomorrow as not a bad little site at all and beats sitting in the office eating my lunch.<br />
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Other noticeable sightings: Grey Squirrel, 7 x Magpies, Teal and Blue Tits.<br />
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Hope people found this post a bit more informative than my usual posts. It's something that got mentioned to me and I hope people that don't know that much about wildlife start pick up on these things and in-turn it will assist them when they are out and about. <div><br />
</div><div>Neil</div><div><br />
</div><div>P.S.</div><div>Thanks Nath think am gonna enjoy this blogging alot more now. Great advice mate.<br />
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</div></div>Neil Spiershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15477070425639600029noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6514675420363597694.post-78470313789057095842010-11-30T08:37:00.002+00:002010-11-30T08:39:07.436+00:00Diazepam and attempting to watch.<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As per my previous entry regarding my injured back from moving a large couch into my house, it's no better. 4 days and counting and one visit to the walk in centre in Blackpool later, I am dosed on Diazepam and Ibuprofen. Doc informed me not to sit around but to keep my back in motion, even though he asked me to lie on the bed in the surgery, to which I found impossible I then thought how am I suppose to keep it in motion when my stomach is currently curved inwards towards my back and am still walking like I have had an accident in my jeans. 5 minutes later I was told "bruised muscle which is now in spasm" <b>SPASM!!! </b>is that what you call this unbearable pain.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So not one to sit about and moan (surprising I know) myself and Liz headed off to Fleetwood Boating Lake to see if I could catch sight of the juvenile Great Northern Diver that has been around for the past few weeks. Searching over both lakes it looks like it's decided to bugger off to a better site, once again proving to me not to leave it till the last minute to catch site of something that is not usually seen around my local area. Not one to be massively disappointed, I continued to search around each lake and was happy to see a flock of around 15-20 Redshanks shelter on the island (see below), 2 Goldeneyes (1 M, 1 F) and 5 Red Breasted Mergansers (2 M, 3 F).</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Redshanks - Fleetwood Boating Lake<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Moving to the next lake (this was all in the car by the way, I ignored Docs orders). We saw at least 8 Mute Swans and masses of Black Headed Gulls and also around 10 Turnstone's within the flock of Swans and Gulls pecking away on the grass. I could not resist the opportunity of getting a really close up image of these little waders and no sooner was I about to press the shutter button when some wench (excuse the explanation) decided it would be a great idea to through a LOAF OF BREAD at them!!! Great cheers love you may of just ruined my chance of Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2011 hahahaha I joke!!!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Anyway, to say I was in complete pain and still am, it was nice to get out the house into the clear but cold air. Hoping this clear weather stays around, the cold does not bother me when its clear but if we get this snow that's happening on the East coast I will not be impressed... WHY!? I hear you shout, well its babies due date this Friday and I do not want to be driving Liz to the hospital in treacherous conditions!!! Yep baby is getting closer each and every day!!!</span><br />
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</span>Neil Spiershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15477070425639600029noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6514675420363597694.post-37408581998059333662010-11-28T09:00:00.001+00:002010-11-28T09:02:44.982+00:00Back pain and garden wildlife<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well after a planned weekend of clearing the front bedroom, moving units and helping Liz continue her "nesting" prior to baby's arrival. It turned out to be one where I am currently walking like Dr Frankenstein's assistant Igor, due to moving a new couch into our living room with my brother. As I sit here typing on my laptop with pains in my lower back and tops of my thighs, I'm looking out the window wishing I was all wrapped up and walking round my local nature reserve, that being Marton Mere......... instead</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I am sat on the couch, with a hot brew beside me and gas fire on high while contemplating which pain relief to get down me, Anadin, Ibuprofen or Liz's Diazepam. Before I do that I have already braved the cold to pour some warm water over the frozen homemade bird bath, placed sunflower hearts, varied bird seed, suet balls, bread and cheese on the bird table, plus scattered the same over the ground. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It's that time of the year now where feeding and drinking is difficult for our hardy garden birds and within no time of me walking back in the house they proved me right but devouring what I had placed on the bird table. Yep the Starlings were out in force LOL. People seem to hate these birds and I have no idea why, they are a fantastic little thing to watch, so entertaining and feisty, like watching closing time at your local pub. While the doorman Robin just watched them argue, bicker and once they had moved along dropped down to the ground to have its fill of cheese and seed. Wren was also present, also solitary Dunnock and Great Tit, a few Blackbirds flitting around in the neighbours tree's but to be honest its pretty quiet in the garden, something that I have noticed quite alot lately, then again it has been a bumper year for berries. Maybe the main reason its quiet, we'll see as the winter goes on.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well best get these painkillers taken, may head out as need to keep this back in motion (why do they say that!?) and wouldn't mind seeing the Great Northern Diver that has been up at Fleetwood Boating Lake for the past few weeks. COME HERE DRUGS!!!!</span><br />
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</span>Neil Spiershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15477070425639600029noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6514675420363597694.post-20845377539013777632010-11-24T20:06:00.002+00:002010-11-24T20:07:32.201+00:00Strike two on the Kingfisher!!!<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After a hard slog of a morning in the office, (any work colleagues reading this don't try and be funny!!!) decided it would be best to once again get some good ole fresh air during my lunch break. Luckily for me there is a fair few areas around Preston Docklands to go for a decent enough walk and as from previous posts you will probably notice I spend a lot of these breaks on the River Ribble close to Nelson Way. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This time I did not forget the camera but with the sun glaring and not the correct sized polariser for my telephoto lens, it wasn't that easy to get any shots unless the subject was towards the docks and not towards the estuary.</span><br />
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<a name='more'></a>S<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">o with camera in hand and binoculars in pocket I headed down the Ribble. I was hoping to get some shots of the Bullfinches as the bright clear day would of been perfect if they were in the exact same spot as yesterday but no sign of them whatsoever. To be honest it was quiet all round, not much to see at all.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Therefore decided to head back but sat on the bank and chilled out for a while. It was no sooner than I'd put my camera bag down that I noticed something flying close to the bank and low over the water, it was the unmistakable silhouette of a Kingfisher. This is now the second time I have seen this bird (possibly not the same one) in exactly the same spot, well at least heading to the same spot. I headed down to where I saw it land to see if I could get a decent shot but could only hear it. So back to the area I was earlier to see if it flew back and then I could get a silhouette shot of it flying over the river. Nothing, I had to get back to work, so no chance of a shot today. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I will succeed in getting a decent shot of this Kingfisher... I WILL I TELL YOU!!!!</span>Neil Spiershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15477070425639600029noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6514675420363597694.post-35885332933428745092010-11-24T11:16:00.000+00:002010-11-24T11:16:50.127+00:00Conservation groups and magazines... a rant!!!Firstly just let me say two things, this is not a blatant slagging off of the RSPB and yes close friends I did have an RSPB membership so no need to laugh as its something I enjoy!!!<br />
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Anyway, onto my slight rant. Over 2-3 years ago I took out an RSPB membership because many moons ago as a child I was a member of the Young Ornithologists Club (YOC) and believed this helped me with where I am today with my interest in wildlife, especially birds. So I purchased the membership on a monthly payment scheme because at the time I could not afford the yearly payment. The pack arrived in the post a few days later with membership, magazine and numerous pieces of paper with masses of information... all good!!!<br />
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I used the membership to get into local RSPB reserves like the fantastic Leighton Moss reserve in Silverdale. This was great as the membership got me into these reserves for free and would spend numerous hours there with my Dad, getting absolutely soaked by rain but still loving every minute of it.<br />
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Then came the quarterly RSPB Birds magazine. Don't get me wrong, this magazine has a wealth of fantastic information about conservation and birds all over the world BUT why if an organisation is devoted to conservation do they have to fill this magazine with piles of crap... sorry JUNK MAIL. Each time I peeled open the plastic covering and opened the magazine endless amounts of advertising pamphlets and non interesting reading material would fall out. <br />
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Straight away I hear people say "Jeez stop moaning its only a few pamphlets" and I agree but this was each and every magazine. But like I said above this is not a blatant slagging off of the RSPB as I believe most magazines and other conservation groups do this. Surely the best option for these organisations is not to do this or why not use the power of email? I'd rather have junk e-mail than junk in my magazines. <br />
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In fact why not offer members the possibility of a digital copy instead of a paper copy. Letting people read these magazines on there PC's or laptops, great for the environment and possibly cheaper than printing and sending 1000's of magazines weekly, monthly or quarterly. <br />
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Conservation is close to my heart as would love my son/daughter (no idea yet hahaha) to experience and witness some of the things I have seen throughout my life watching wildlife. So this could lead on to the bigger story of waste!!<br />
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RANT OVER!! <br />
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Oh and before anyone says "just cancel your membership then" ........ I have.Neil Spiershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15477070425639600029noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6514675420363597694.post-73620286103268015852010-11-24T08:55:00.001+00:002010-11-24T08:56:28.528+00:00The lunch break pick me up!!<b>River Ribble (Nelson Way) - 23/11/2010</b><br />
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Once again headed down to the quiet spot near Nelson Way(river side) on my lunch break, this time with Eric a colleague from work to prove to him that there was some Bullfinches around there (see am not the only one who thinks they aren't common!!!).<br />
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Tide was going out but not much around the edges of the Ribble. Widgeon seem to have returned but to be honest I can't remember even seeing them around there last year. Ripples in the water were confusing the hell out of me as hey, you never know what could be causing them... could of been an Otter, Brown Rat... but no it was the Cormorants chasing fish under the water. I mean how the hell they swallow such huge fish, catch, swallow, dive down for more, numerous puns but not going down that road.<br />
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Further down the path behind the train works, as soon as I thought would the Bullfinches make an appearance they decided to bolt straight in front of us and fly off to a distant tree!! DAMN YOU!! But with a quick look we both noticed that instead of the two I saw the previous day, we had three Bullfinches, one male and two females. Giving thoughts to possible breeding pairs. May attempt to take some shots if they make a reappearance today (24/11/2010).<br />
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Anyway not much else to mention except for the flock of Canada Geese and a possible albino or domestic mixed in with them.Neil Spiershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15477070425639600029noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6514675420363597694.post-10701540826864234912010-11-22T22:15:00.003+00:002010-11-23T13:43:25.607+00:00Sunday fresh air and an interested wife!!!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Fairhaven Lake - 21/11/2010</b></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Just remembered at 22:00 tonight that I took a few photographs over the weekend while myself and my heavily pregnant wife Liz went out for a walk. We currently can't go far as Liz is ...well, basically due any day to be honest, so was surprised to hear her ask me to go show her the Waxwings while we were on our way to her Mum's for Sunday Roast (you gotta love a free home cooked roast haven't you!!!). On our way I decided we should head to Fairhaven Lake for a few reasons.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1. We needed a bloody good walk</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">2. Take some photographs of the coast</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">3. I hate being stuck indoors</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One thing made me smile, that was the female Goldeneye that was diving for food non stop and was luckily able to get a decent enough shot (below) and one thing made me annoyed. That being that in the discovery centre on Fairhaven Lake there was a photograph of Waxwings that wait for it.... had been taken right round the corner from my house.... I mean come on, why had I not checked this earlier and then I could of saved myself a 30 mile round trip to Preston to see them.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLVrldb_EhZ8ne-N_PZbQstO-VT_AEomOwKEmgGBdb-QMWr5fx5VpmPlhyphenhyphen0eWVJeqG-PskyLmye6wBzKx9GpwtMWW8hor_zvwuPFyuRZR2p373fKCnEz6-8H0DUIeG6TNUzfYrD_O3TZk/s1600/goldeneye.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="196" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLVrldb_EhZ8ne-N_PZbQstO-VT_AEomOwKEmgGBdb-QMWr5fx5VpmPlhyphenhyphen0eWVJeqG-PskyLmye6wBzKx9GpwtMWW8hor_zvwuPFyuRZR2p373fKCnEz6-8H0DUIeG6TNUzfYrD_O3TZk/s320/goldeneye.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Goldeneye @ Fairhaven Lake</td></tr>
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</span>Neil Spiershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15477070425639600029noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6514675420363597694.post-48211158903316715202010-11-22T20:15:00.002+00:002010-11-23T09:14:04.084+00:00Bullfinches...are they becoming commoners!?<div><b>Ribble Docklands - 22nd November 2010</b></div><div><br />
</div>Strange title I know but hey in all my time of having an interest in birds, I have seen Bullfinches only 4 times and that 4th time came today.<br />
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</div><div>While on a lunch break from work I decided to head towards Nelson Way at the top of the Docks in Preston. Spend most lunch breaks around there either having a kip or reading but on this occasion because it was quiet and the weather was decent I decided on a walk down the River Ribble. The usual suspects were about with migratory Redwings and Long Tailed Tits skitting around in the trees looking for as many bugs to stuff their little faces with. While watching the Long Tails I noticed what at first I thought was a Chaffinch and then thought no chance as there never that bright, quick look through the binoculars proved that there was both a male and female Bullfinch within the trees.</div><div><a name='more'></a><br />
</div><div>Now don't get me wrong I can imagine most people out there will say "Meh, its just a Bullfinch" but like I said in my 30 years of watching British Wildlife I have only seen these birds 4 times and this is only the 2nd time in Lancashire within a year. Maybe this is a resurgence or a takeover!!! An army of heavy headed Bullfinches to battle skittish quick Goldfinches... I'll stop there.</div><div><br />
</div><div>Other noticeable sightings: 10 Black Tailed Godwits, 2 Grey Herons.</div>Neil Spiershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15477070425639600029noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6514675420363597694.post-21145890622362464612010-11-22T15:14:00.000+00:002010-11-22T15:36:24.216+00:00The first post of many.... and WAXWINGS galore!!<span class="Apple-style-span" >Well here it is, the first post of hopefully many and one that I am quite happy about, all due to the fact that I have been into wildlife for god, must be nearly 30 years and last week I finally saw my first Waxwings. And not just a few but at least 150+, all thanks to some great info over at Birdforum.net and a mate at work telling me he had planted eyes on them. This then resulted in breaking the law by driving over the speed limit to fit them in before my lunch break ended at work.</span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" ><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" >Was happy as a pig in the brown stuff, when I saw Eric waving me over to a flock of around 50 Waxwings going hell for leather on a Rowan tree, taking their fill and then flying up high to another tree to digest. I fired off a few shots with the camera and 300mm lens and possibly got 1 or 2 shots to use (maybe below maybe not!). Was surprised not to see the usual masses of hardcore birders firing off endless shots with ridiculously large camera lenses but from what I read they were all there earlier than me LOL.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" ><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" >All in all for a 10 minute viewing it was a great chance to see these beautiful birds and hope to see them a lot more often over Autumn/Winter. In fact read my later posts and you will see that I have seen them quite a few more times, plus missed them closer to home!!!</span></div>Neil Spiershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15477070425639600029noreply@blogger.com0