#i saw some lovely rocks and the oystercatchers were out as they usually are

[icouldhyperfixatehim]

monday: 22hr sensation of heart attack

tuesday: rest

wednesday: go to seaside for my health

[dansnaturepictures]

17th April 2021-Part 2 of 2: Glossy Ibis and more at Stanpit Marsh: The 10 pictures I took in this photoset are different to those I tweeted tonight 

As we have seemed to do often on my Mum’s birthday over the years today we delved into Dorset going slightly into it at the brilliant Stanpit Marsh in Christchurch. What had drawn us here was the long staying Glossy Ibis which we caught sight of here in November after a couple of times of trying. We looked over the marsh looking into the harbour towards Hengistbury Head and Mudeford past the car park and scout hut and my Mum thought she saw it flying. The area I mean shown in the first two pictures in this photoset. We then walked around on the path and to our delight we did see the Glossy Ibis stood there. This was a brilliant moment to see this exotic jet black curved beak beauty. It was very mobile and no sooner had we fixed binoculars on it and limbered for a picture - at this distance a bridge camera zoom in - had it gone behind a tuft of grass but we still managed a decent handful of sightings of it at the start of the walk. One of my best birds this year, a rarity we saw our first of these in Dorset at RSPB Radipole Lake in Weymouth in 2012, we have now seen it three years running both of the sightings here of it and one at Fishlake Meadows near Romsey back in Hampshire in 2019 a good little indicator that this is a bird becoming more common to see right now.

As we walked on we loved taking in ideal conditions of bright sunshine flowing through and sky and sea a divine shade of blue. I took the fourth-eighth pictures in this photoset of views here today. There was also a photo I took I tweeted tonight on Dans_Pictures looking down a channel in a reedbed towards the prominent church in Christchurch which featured in a lot of my landscapes like Hengistbury Head in the distance did as they so often do here today. I had wanted to take that picture and it be one of my proudest sort of in November and I think I did take a version in the end but the angle wasn’t there or the light wasn’t good or something if I remember rightly. So it was great being able to take this shot in gorgeous sunshine today. We had a great walk for seeing birds such as Little Egret, Shelduck and Curlew quite a few times, with many Mute Swans about in the harbour too as can be seen in the sixth picture. It was nice to see ponies with a foal too which I tweeted a picture showing. We got close and special views of a nice bronzed Black-tailed Godwit up close and saw lots in a group in the sea of the harbour too which was so lovely to see again. 

Also in this area we loved seeing a few Sandwich Terns, two of them with one flying then they settled for ages on the shallow water with a godwit I took the third picture in this photoset showing this. It was lovely to make our their neat plumage. We saw a couple or maybe it was the same one fishing over the harbour later on in the walk and at one point it had a battle with a gull which was spectacular to watch, we saw a good range of gulls today too. Sandwich Terns are very much the bird of weeks off work for me these days it seems with one seen at Farlington Marshes to start the similar to this one June week off last year and we saw our first of the year during my week off in January during the bird year list foundation building an overwinterting one in Hampshire which was a key moment of that week and my yea so far. We saw one well at Pennington on Easter Sunday too as I said.

We did also see two great different flowers at Stanpit today, some bright white scurvygrass adorning the marsh floor and some bright yellow marsh marigold emanating also from the grassy areas which looked stunning I had seen neither before. Daffodil and bluebell were around here too like Winchester this morning.

We doubled back along the tree line, where we got a brilliant view of a Great Spotted Woodpecker flying across and into a tree and came to the area where the Glossy Ibis had been. With no clear decent photo taken of the bird at that point I put my big lens on my DSLR as I was covering the same area I had already taken landscapes with my normal lens in so I knew I might not do so much again. We were then so happy to see the Glossy Ibis again in the air and as I snapped away with the appropriate tool my big lens on my DSLR camera it looked as though like last November my chance for a photo to remember the ibis by would be in the air. We just wondered where it would settle and as we watched it get lower after a great flying session where Lapwing and other birds were also in the air I anticipated something extraordinary. I thought it may well fly right over our heads, and that it did! It was an amazing few moments to both of our delight as I seemed to get the balance right between binocular views, trying for photos and simply watching it in aw of how close this quite rare bird truly was to us. Spectacular. I managed the ninth picture in this photoset of it flying among others. 

It flew on over towards another marshy area by a boat sculpture where it had been reported a lot last year. We wandered back through the wooded area to there in case we could see it again. On the way through we got a quick view of my first Redstart of the year a female, always a crucial bird to see every spring especially in or close to the New Forest a huge part of the year seeing this bird on my B list of favourites for another year. My year list reached 133, the joint sixth highest amount of birds I had ever seen on a year on this date alongside my 2014. Redstart and Glossy Ibis were year ticks in the same weekend for me in 2019 Redstart came first the day before the Fishlake Meadows Glossy Ibis sighting the Redstart at a strong area for them Pig Bush in the New Forest. 

We reached a little pool where we thought it might have gone and I was so happy to see the Glossy Ibis was there. We then spent a divine few minutes getting the honour to watch this bird move side to side across the pool mostly with its beak down hunting but it gave us flashes of brilliance as it looked up now and again. The soft early evening sunlight caressed the feathers of its back and head. It was one of the most beautiful and captivating natural moments I’d had this year, perhaps the greatest moment of wildlife for me since seeing the Tawny Owl and Lesser Spotted Woodpecker in the woods on one walk and so much more four weeks ago today. Such is this bird’s exotic nature that for a minute I could have been in an African swamp rather than a Dorset marsh. The greatest respect to the fantastic Dorset obviously I have always loved this county. What a way to celebrate that British wildlife is phenomenal and it’s been lovely day all round for discussing wildlife with lots of people at both Winchester and Stanpit Marsh. Everything was happening at once as when we arrived at this bit to look over the pool the ibis was on a Kestrel flew right in front of us a stunning view of a special bird.

On the way in and out we took in some beautiful New Forest vistas as you can do on journeys to Dorset and this included some nice bright red tulips with some daffodils which I took a picture of and tweeted and liked admiring on the way back. The perfect birthday for my Mum to kick off our time off, what a day for wildlife and photos! I hope you all had a good one.

Wildlife Sightings Summary: My first Glossy Ibis and Redstart of the year, three of my favourite birds the Shelduck, Little Egret and Great Crested Grebe, Grey Heron, Lapwing, Oystercatcher, Redshank, Black-tailed Godwit, Curlew, Mallard, a straggling Wigeon, Mute Swan, Herring Gull, what’s not so usual for us in a day both Lesser Black-backed Gull and Great Black-backed Gull, Sandwich Tern, Cormorant, Woodpigeon, Jackdaw, Carrion Crow, Magpie, Kestrel, House Sparrow, Wren, Dunnock, Great Tit, Linnet and Greenfinch in another nice day of finches, Robin, Blackbird, Rock Pipit and I heard Cetti’s Warbler and also Reed Warbler faintly I believe.

[skyjo]

Carmel-by-the-Sea

For two west coast newbies with wanderlust, Carmel-by-the-Sea is the perfect weekend destination. So for a weekend in September, we booked an airbnb in Carmel Highlands just south of Point Lobos. The space itself was lovely (outdoor shower aside), but the real star of the show was the view, which overlooked the forest and the Pacific Ocean.

Point Lobos is a great spot for some light hiking (the kind you can do wearing air force ones). It’s also special because you get the highest ratio of biomes experienced to miles hiked - there’s forest, beach, grassland, and coastal prairie all on a two mile hike. The walk along the coast to Sea Lion Point featured beautiful eroded rocks along the beach and coastal prairie along the hillside. The people-watching was even better. We saw quite a few people with ~powerful vibes~ along our way. One man was sitting alone on a rock, reading a book in silence (is he not cold?). Another group of middle aged plus people were hiking the trail with starbucks in hand. Another huge group of people, all with name tags, were gathered together to look intensely at the rocks on the beach. Are they part of a club? Guided tour? Undetermined.

However, Monterey Bay is more than the people who visit it. Northwest winds blow warm coastal waters away from the bay during the summer and fall months. This brings cooler waters from the deep sea that are filled with a variety of deep sea life. With the influx of food comewhales, sea lions, seals, and otters. Because of the abundance of marine life, Monterey Bay is designated as a National Marine Sanctuary. Sea lions are found sunbathing on rocks at sea, but you can usually hear them long before you see them. Sea otters, once on the verge of extinction, number about 3000 today. They spend their days resting on top of patches of bull kelp in the water, which means they usually require a pair of binoculars to observe. There is also a large variety of birds to observe in the Monterey Bay - from sandpipers and marbled godwits on the shore to black oystercatchers and commodores on rocks at sea. Smaller birds like dark-eyed juncos can be found in the coastal shrub while raptors soar overhead. 

Next, we hiked Cypress Grove Trail. This area is unique because it is the only place where the Monterey Cypress tree is naturally found in the world. These trees cling to the rocky shore created by the San Andreas fault line and the familiar fog helps water the trees. It condenses on the needles and drips down to the roots, creating a self-watering cycle that sustains the trees through droughts. The Monterey Pine trees, which grow further inland, are often covered in a green moss-like substance called lace lichen that drapes from their branches. Although it looks concerning, it actually helps the trees and provides food and shelter for animals. Another harmless moss-like substance that grows on the tree trunks is Trentepohlia, which makes the trees appear bright orange.

After Point Lobos we got a fancy luncheon at La Bicyclette. I convinced Josie to split a salad! An incredible moment (and an incredible salad). Other highlights of the meal were an amazing mushroom pizza and chocolate mousse that we were too full to finish - a delicious, fancy, and expensive lunch. By the time we got to 17 Mile Drive we were both a little worn out, but the views were worth it. Some highlights included Bird Rock, which once was covered in bird poop but now is a choice roosting spot for a gaggle of sea lions! We also stopped at a very cute beach called Spanish Bay, saw the world’s most photographed tree (the Lone Cypress) and a lot of other trees and ocean view points. 

The next day we walked around downtown, visited Carmel beach, and perused some art galleries. I don’t think art collecting is in either of our foreseeable futures - the cheapest piece we saw was still over $1000, but it was fun to look anyway. Afterwards we visited the Monterey Bay Aquarium, which was very child-infested but had a LOT of cool animals! We saw a lot of cool fish (including one that burrowed into the ground so that only it’s head sticks out like a rock?). I got to touch a stingray! 

Our last stop was for a fancy meal at Portabella, which had AMAZING risotto and pasta bolognese. We even ordered a creme brulee shared between us as a musician walked around the restaurant strumming his guitar. Then we were off to San Francisco. In conclusion, Carmel was a lovely place with beautiful sights, lovely quiet moments, and good food. The forces of nature, history, and culture come together to make Monterey Bay an idyllic place to visit for a weekend.

[albinohare]

Rolex Fastnet Race delivers wet, fast ride for early finishers

It’s been a wet and wild ride for the first finishers in IRC fleets and multihulls in the Rolex Fastnet Race

Wizard, Sail no: USA70000, Class: IRC Zero, Owner: David and Peter Askew, Sailed by: Charlie Enright, Type: Volvo Open 70

The first finishers in the IRC fleets of the Rolex Fastnet Race arriving last night and today have all had a hard, fast race. As crews piled in tired, wet, and very hungry, the Rolex Fastnet Race village bar and burger vans have been doing brisk trade since the early hours of this morning.

Even the professional IMOCA 60 teams have had a punishing, if mercifully short, race. Sam Davies reveals that they were simply hanging on at times on Initiatives Couer:

Sam Davies on racing IMOCA 60 Initiatives Coeur

We Sam Davies – she's such a pro, and so modest. Watch this for her good-humoured insight into what it's like racing with the 'foils on steroids' she's fitted to her IMOCA 60 Initiatives Cœur, life on board at speed (you have to stop eating or working at times), leaking a bow full of water (including fishes) during the Fastnet Race and more… Lovely stuff >>Full coverage of the Royal Ocean Racing Club Rolex Fastnet Race in association with #Musto #TheInsideEdge

Posted by Yachting World on Tuesday, August 6, 2019

The line honours winners may have been and gone, but David and Peter Askew’s Volvo 70 Wizard is looking unbeatable for the IRC overall prize, as well as taking 1st in IRC Zero. With a hugely experienced crew, including Charlie Enright, Mark Towill, Rob Greenhalgh and navigator Will Oxley, the American-flagged entry had a smooth race, finishing yesterday morning with an elapsed time of 1 day, 21 hours.

“We had a little bit of everything,” recalled Towill. “There was light airs at the beginning, upwind, reaching, and a fair bit of running then reaching down back from the Rock. We worked hard in the light stuff and managed to stay with the big boats in conditions where some of the other boats could really have pulled away.

“Around the Rock it was real lumpy, but the boat’s solid, so it was able to hold up well, and we didn’t have to take our foot of the throttle at any point.”

David and Peter Askew’s VO70 Wizard

Over yesterday evening and today more IRC Zero and IRC 1 boats have been arriving thick and fast into Plymouth. As well as designs that have been heavily optimised for offshore racing, there have been plenty of examples of fast classes that more usually race windward-leeward courses.

Volvo Ocean Race sailor Stu Bannatyne was on Outsider, 4th in IRC Zero behind Wizard. Outsider is a former Super Series 52 boat that had been swiftly adapted for the Fastnet with masthead locks and new reaching sails, plus a whisker pole for jib reaching.

“So it’s not really set up for offshore racing at all,” Bannatyne explained, “We were scrambling to get ready a bit, and we’re just happy that the boat made it round with no breakages. But the waterproofing as a long way to go!

“It still has a tiller, which was really hard work on all that pressed up sailing that we were doing. I think there was some enjoyment there… but there’s definitely a certain sense of satisfaction now it’s done!”

Rough seas for Richard Matthews’s Oystercatcher XXXIII as they start the return leg back from the Rock

IRC 1 saw Tonnerre de Glen and Ino XXX fighting hard for the top spot, before being displaced on the leaderboard by Jacques Pelletier on his prototype JPK10.10 L’Ange de Milon.

Ino XXX is an HH42 that normally races in the Fast 40+ inshore Solent races. Ben Cooper was trimming onboard: “It was very, very, very wet. There was a lot of bailing and bilge pumping, but we had enough pumps and arms and buckets so it wasn’t a problem at all. We didn’t hold back, that’s for sure.

Ino XXX at full speed on their return from Fastnet Rock

Going across the Irish Sea was quite straightforward, then we had about six hours of upwind before a very, very fast reach home. It was very entertaining – like being on a bucking bronco, you couldn’t cook, you couldn’t eat, sleep was quite hard. It wasn’t around the Scillies until we could relax at all, so everyone is rather broken.”

One of the most punishing rides was that experienced by Ross Hobson and his two crew on the diminutive blue Seacart 30 Buzz.

“It’s an extreme boat. Its physically and mentally abusive, because you’re sitting there getting beaten up, we’re all sore from getting hit by waves. You’re wet, you’re miserable.

The Seacart 30 Buzz leaving the Solent Photo: Rick Tomlinson

“We didn’t get passed by Charal until Portland Bill, we were sitting at 18-knots plus. That’s the performance level we’ve got. But then as soon as the wind swung and we got headed we get beaten to hell. The boat’s too light, so you slam-stop-slam-stop. You’re depowering all the time, we were on four reefs and a reef in the jib. And then when we came around the back of the Rock the sea state was too big for us to really open up because we were catching waves and nose diving.

“We played it a bit safe, because it was more important to get round safely. We knew that the organisers were taking a wee bit of a risk letting us out there.”

Buzz was taking so much water over the trampoline that the crew helmed in full survival suits and discovered two fish tucked next to the port beam. “It’s hard work, but it’s great fun.”

Together wtih Pelletier winning IRC 1, French teams are dominating the results overall in the IRC fleets. Didier Gaudoux is 2nd in IRC 1 on his JND 39 Lann Ael 2, having won the race overall two years ago. The hugely successful Gery Trentesaux is leading IRC 2 on the JPK 1080 Courrier Recommandé, while first to finish in IRC 3 was the impressive double-handed team of Jean Pierre Kelbert, designer of the successful JPKs, and Alexis Loison, overall winner of the 2013 race, in the JPK 1030 Léon.

The challenge for those boats which will be slowest to finish is a second weather cell approaching from the south-west which is expected to increase wind speeds to 30-35 knots, gusting higher, on Friday.

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[dansnaturepictures]

24th June 2021: Blog 2 of 2-Second looks at South Stack and Cemlyn and more wildlife and photos from the cottage 

Following on from my previous post, then today turned into an afternoon of revisits of key places this week as do often do on holidays as we firstly had one last look at one of my favourite places in the week RSPB South Stack. Here it was nice to see the sea and the lighthouse on a more misty day than on Sunday it was more misty here, our first full day here when we came looking quite moody but so nice to hear, see and smell the coast with seabirds wailing away nicely. The usual sweet sound of Guillemots and at one point I thought I heard a Kittiwake call it’s onomatopoeic call I hadn’t seen any here before so I’m not sure. As well as taking in views of the place looking really lovely I took the second and third pictures in this photoset of views here and taking in nice flowers here like Sunday especially sheep’s-bit and sea campion and dandelions too I really enjoyed seeing two Razorbills at the bottom of a bit of cliff but fairly close. A key bird this holiday which I’d not managed to succeed with a photo of yet this holiday so I got my bridge camera onto these and took the first picture in this photoset of one. Seeing Guillemots and Razorbills in their droves sailing onto and around the base of the cliff through the air was a delicious sight to enjoy and summed up what I love about this area so much.

Then we had some glorious moments as after seeing them briefly on the first full day of the holiday and working quite hard for them a key bird of this reserve we got astonishing views of some Choughs, a pair then a group of three which could have been the same pair with another added and some were possibly young the nice RSPB person we spoke to on Sunday here said there are young about. Coming down from high up towards the visitor centre it was amazing to see these super red and black crows so well flying and settling on the patch of heath and hear them perfectly too. Their sharp and high pitched onomatopoeic call is always so evocative of the rugged coast I adore and everything I love about the whole experience of the coast so much so this really filled me with much glee. What a stunning moment with one of my favourite birds, we had well and truly seen them very well at one of their hubs now Anglesey within the UK now. I was pleased to take the fourth and fifth pictures in this photoset of the Choughs. Such a big part of the coast I love is seeing Ravens and Choughs different to the crows I would see at home immediately around us. And it was nice to see a big bold Raven with its loud bark call for the first time this holiday here today. I like the Ravens at the coast as well as placed like the New Forest where I adore seeing them. I liked taking in this place I have known for ages after coming in 2016 one last time this year, including the lovely statues/carvings of Puffin, Peregrine and Sheep as well as the lovely flowers by the visitor centre which I really enjoyed seeing looking nice and colourful on Sunday. A photo I tweeted tonight involves the Puffin carving. 

We then came to one of the star places this week again, the brilliant Cemlyn which we all became so fond of after the tern colony and more experience on Monday. As we arrived once more we were embraced by the sweet and stunning noise of the tern colony in full swing. We walked out to the tip of the headland and did see definitely Sandwich Tern and Common Tern possibly Arctic Tern too flying sweetly and closely over our heads. Phenomenal to see again. Oystercatcher, Curlew seen and heard well, Shelduck and Ringed Plover made greet sights here of birds that we see a lot of at home on the coast. There were some great flowers here again in the form of the ones in the sixth picture in this photoset possibly wild radish that’s the best match I could find for it which I enjoyed seeing on Monday too, of course more white clover, bird’s-foot trefoil, more lovely thrift, the first vetch I’d seen this trip a common one at home and lots of foxgloves once more. I took the seventh picture in this photoset of a really beautiful view here.

At the tip of the headland when some rain had come on we looked for what we had come this evening for, Manx Shearwaters that the nice Wildlife Trust man we spoke to on Monday said could be seen here flying by about 6pm. We knew from seeing them at Pembrokeshire in the past - we’ve seen them in Cornwall the last two years in fine weather too - that adverse weather wind and rain can bring the Manx Shearwaters in nicely. And tonight they certainly did come in well. We saw dozens flying by and got fantastic views of these amazing seabirds drifting over the ocean. They came staggeringly close into a little bay area before flying on over the Irish Sea. I even got the eighth picture in this photoset of one. I was so thrilled to see these and really take them in as one last wildlife spectacle this holiday, it was a bird that unlike Puffin, Black Guillemot et al. didn’t really become a target for this week until we were here and heard about them so this felt like a huge bonus but a bird I might not have seen elsewhere this year. So this was crucial in securing one of the best birds we have for me probably the closest I’ve ever seen it to the island that gives it its name Isle of Man and one on my B list of favourite birds for 2021 one of my birds of the year taking my year list to 169 making it outright my seventh highest ever year list now overtaking my 2013 and 2015 totals and it sits only two behind how many birds I had seen at this stage of the year during my highest ever bird year list in 2019 which I find so amazing and is testament to the injection of year ticks this week has given us with every target seen. It became a true sea watch as Gannet flew by too which was smashing to see and as well as the terns and a lovely Swift flew over.

On our last trip to Wales, Pembrokeshire 2017 I spent the final night of it looking at masses of Manx Shearwaters on a rainy evening and other seabirds from the boat around Skomer Island. And just like four years ago doing this again tonight was the perfect way to end this adventure and it’s among the closest views I’ve got of them since that remarkable night this one another remarkable night and arguably some of my best ever views of this bird.

Wildlife Sightings Summary: (South Stack) Three of my favourite birds the Chough, Razorbill and Guillemot, Herring Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Raven and lovely Rock Pipit. (Cemlyn) My first Manx Shearwaters of the year, two of my favourite birds the Gannet and Shelduck, Sandwich Tern, Common Tern, Black-headed Gull, Great Black-backed Gull, Cormorant, Oystercatcher, Curlew, Ringed Plover, Stonechat, Swift, House Martin and a nice Argent and Sable moth flying around.

Favourite birds of mine Little Egret and Buzzard seen very well between the two locations was great again and we saw a Grey Heron after Cemlyn too. Seeing familiar birds at home which I hadn’t seen all week Starlings lined up on a wire at a petrol station tonight was a great moment too. And coming back to the cottage for our final night a bizarre sight of a Hedgehog in daylight was awaiting us this was a stunning moment I was able to get nicely safely close to what was my first Hedgehog seen this year and have an incredibly intimate moment with this precious and iconic mammal my third mammal year tick of the trip. This sighting deepened by appreciation for how wild the place we are staying in it. It allowed for my first ever photo of one too which I tweeted. And I also took the final two pictures in this photoset of the regular Song Thrush that’s been around singing its heart out one of my favourite bird calls I had been wanting to photograph one of the thrushes visiting the garden between this and Blackbird but not quite managed it so it was nice to have something to remember it by and a view as some cloud and mist lifted and allowed us to see the mountains we’ve become so fond of seeing potentially for the final time if its rainy/foggy in the morning.

The week away was simply incredible and one of my best times this year and I must say this about every part of the country we branch out to on holidays each year whether I know them or are new to me, most memorable holidays ever. For wildlife particularly birds and mammals it was a week of sweet reunions for species I hadn’t seen for years or some I did last year, dream moments and experiences, seeing species in a way I never had before and fantastic natural spectacles some of the best the UK has to offer. Landscape wise it was so typically Welsh with sensational views of vast mountains, dramatic coast and pretty river and woodland, and important marsh and lake habitat alike, right from the doorstep in the nicely wild and very comfy, homely and brilliant in all ways cottage we stayed in one of the best for me and further afield. Flowers, butterflies and dragonflies played a huge role in the holiday with foxgloves and red campion especially turning the place pink with some amazing moments with butterflies and dragonflies outside and other insects in the cottage such as the crane fly and moths. We had a lot of animals we got used to and loved seeing around and in the cottage just like the views with the Rabbits, Hedgehog, garden birds and even the sheep typically for Wales. The weather was varied we seemed to get a bit of most things but it added to and allowed the holiday to happen well we were lucky with it especially the sunny and warm days. Overall we obtained a strong sense of tranquility and ultimate relaxation and it was everything I’d want in a holiday. We saw all our targets wildlife wise which feels amazing, my Mum researched it all so well hours of work before coming away to know where all the species could be seen and how to get there which really paid dividends and we are so thankful for. I’m leaving feeling very endeared to Anglesey an area I loved from coming for one day before anyway I took it really to my heart and was reminded how much I love wider North Wales with a slice of Snowdonia in there and I definitely cannot wait to be back! Thanks for all your support for all my posts and photos which I am so pleased the cottage wi-fi allowed me to post on the nights. 

[dansnaturepictures]

31/10/2020-Lymington and photos in the garden before: The 5 landscapes pictures in this set are different to any I tweeted tonight 

There were three striking similarities with my day today and that of Saturday 21st March 2020. My Uncle came round for a visit (following current social distancing guidelines for meeting up indoors), I took a picture of a Starling in the garden (the second picture in this photoset) and we went to the Lymington-Keyhaven nature reserve. That day the Pennington marsh part of it, today the nearby Lymington (Normandy marsh) end. And of course two days after 21st March the first UK-wide coronavirus lockdown was announced and we came home to the announcement of the second English lockdown for most of November today. Appropriately on Halloween, whilst the possibility of this upcoming lockdown has really been hanging over us a while, the parallels felt spooky. 

I would like to say here that as I have done at every stage in the pandemic I of course back any move which is going to get the case numbers and prevalence of this cruel and horrid virus down, and I feel this lockdown had to happen. I know this is going to be an extremely difficult time for us all and I am fully aware that there are people sadly in employment terms a lot less lucky than me in terms of both job security and having work to focus on in the dark days of November and my heart, thoughts and prayers really do go out to you all and your families, but I do personally reflect on the fondness of the act of lockdown back in the spring (not the reason for it in any way) and especially things like having so much more time and really connecting to nature so I hope this as a consolation of this unfortunately necessary set of restrictions can be regained and the spirit of honouring our NHS heroes and coming together can also return. 

I would also like to use this as a chance to say what this means for my hobby. As expected like the lockdown that began in March daily exercise outdoors is a permitted reason to leave the house, but what I did not expect was for the Prime Minister to mention recreational activities outdoors alone, within households or on a one-to-one basis with another person from another household. So this does mean day to day for me right now not a lot will change. Social distancing is so easy to do when nature watching and I am incredibly thankful compared to people with other hobbies to have got to do so much of mine safely still since March. My walks alone in the week are just that, and a valuable and needed as long as I can activity to supplement or go some way to the usual walking and breathing in fresh air I would do in a day working from the office and Lakeside the country park on our doorstep is a refuge for me for that. 

But as we interpret the new regulations, I would just warn that I will reserve the right to omit locations of any of my photos and walks that I write about during the lockdown period. This is something I always reserve the right to do and I do it when rare or sensitive species are involved. I just feel that whilst I do not believe with the people I reach on social media hoards of people are suddenly going to turn up and look for a bird or something I have said I saw at or posted a picture of at a site, you just never know what a post could prompt. And the point is that I will have a camera with me and binoculars as long as weather and other factors permit, and during a lockdown I may not feel that it is always appropriate for the posting of something being at a location or where some nice views are to be a so public and the main point of posting is to show the species or views and remark on what I may have seen whilst taking a walk. If I feel it is safe to do so in terms of the species and I trust that the person will follow all restrictions to stay safe in order to try to see the species or place themselves, then I am happy to discuss with local (as there are restrictions on travel) people via private messaging means. Not something I imagine will come up during the coming month, but once again you just never know. 

Back onto today and alongside the Starlings I took the first pictures in this photoset of a House Sparrow on the still nicely yellow buddelia in the garden and more autumnal leaves scenes out the back including the third picture in this photoset of some autumnal looking leaves on a bush in the garden. 

Interestingly Lymington was the first place we went by the sea following the lifting of the first lockdown on the second May bank holiday Saturday, and I haven’t been back to that end of the reserve whilst I’ve been to Pennington a lot since. I took the fourth-eighth pictures in this photoset of beautiful views here today these all pictures I did not tweet to reduce the amount I did as I took 30 pictures today but I wanted some wildlife pictures in this blog of which I didn’t take a lot today so I didn’t do a full 10 exclusives in this like I often do. The photos all help show I hope what a great late autumn/early winter afternoon it became in the sun after another very rainy start to the day as we spent the time with my Uncle in the morning. Included in this was that quite nice light for this time of year and the novelty at this stage post-clocks going back the sun setting as the walk ended and heading down all afternoon making some nice scenes and enjoying sunsets outdoors and not from home for a change whilst I love them from my room too. 

There were some great bird moments too as I enjoyed seeing a lot of wader, duck and geese species, particularly nice Brent Geese flying in I love seeing these birds here at this time of year one of my favourites. There were so many Wigeons about too. We got chatting a social distance to a nice gentleman who was really into birds too which was great he was the one who let us know that there was an announcement from Downing Street this evening actually so after speaking to him we rather made the most of seeing certain water birds around not knowing at that stage when the lockdown would come in so thinkng we may not be back to the coastal habitats for quite a while. Earlier in the walk I took the ninth picture in this photoset of a lovely Oystercatcher and one of the species I made the most of seeing was another of my favourites the Little Egret which I took the tenth picture in this photoset of. I also enjoyed seeing a nice range of flowers here today; sea aster, broad-leaved clover and some common toadflax one of the prominent of many I have enjoyed learning this year.

On the way home we saw a spectacular and gigantic full moon over the beautiful New Forest landscape a great end to a great Saturday I hope you all had a good and safe one. 

Wildlife Sightings Summary at Lymington: Three of my favourite birds the Brent Goose, Great Crested Grebe and Little Egret, Spotted Redshank, Redshank, Ringed Plover, Turnstone, Dunlin, Oystercatcher, Curlew, Black-tailed Godwit, Black-headed Gull, Great Black Backed Gull, Herring Gull, Mallard, Wigeons, Little Grebe, Woodpigeon, Carrion Crow, Rock Pipit, Meadow Pipit and Stonechat. 

[dansnaturepictures]

16/08/2020-Earnley Triangle and Wheatear and more at the oysterbeds, Hayling Island: Photos I took in this set different to the ones I tweeted 

On another showery afternoon we headed to Earnley Triangle another new place for me this weekend on Hayling Island in response to a report of Pied Flycatchers there a bird I have still never seen. It seems like the year to see one with Black-throated Diver and Great Bustard my previous 2020 bird life ticks in January and February birds like the Pied Flycatcher ones I really ought to have seen or really tried to see over the years but hadn’t. We did not see one on a wander around the triangle grassy area here today with nice trees for them. I wonder if this is gonna be my Wryneck of 2020 - the bird in 2019 I still hadn’t seen but everything ramped up that late summer/into autumn we went for nearly every bird reported in Hampshire some unsuccessful then eventually we did manage to see one in a moment of magic at Hill Head in October. Pied Flycatcher cuts a similar stature of a bird I want to see in my life now. 

At Earnley Triangle we saw you could get great views of Chichester Harbour where I haven’t been since Boxing Day 2017. On a similar day to that bank holiday it was nice to take this in as the rain as forecast just about began to clear here. I took the first three pictures in this photoset of views at this place today. In this little triangle it’s a great bit of grassy habitat forming an oasis in an urban area and I saw some nice birds and butterflies as my wildlife sightings summary shows for toddy below. 

We then headed to the oyster beds/start of the billy line area one of our trusted and loved regular places on Hayling Island to watch birds etc and take photos where we hadn’t been since March, via a toilet stop at a car park that we looked for a Black Redstart (fruitless, but we saw one later on at Sturt Pond last year and Portland and we saw one again at Portland this year on New Year’s Day) at on a very wet and windy day last year. But by contrast when there today the clouds had cleared rather presenting a bit of sun and a fair bit of blue sky. There were some nice cloud formations in the air so I got some nice landscape photo opportunities looking towards the Isle of Wight on the other side of the water and down the coast into Portsmouth. Two of the pictures I took here I tweeted but the other is the fourth picture in this photoset. 

At the oysterbeds it was very nice to walk around seeing the sun truly come out and it turned into a lovely late afternoon into early evening. I took the fifth, sixth, eighth, ninth and tenth pictures in this photoset of some beautiful views at this lovely spot today. Some nice Common Terns were very visible from the near the billy line entrance and throughout the walk. 

We walked on a bit though the gate area near to the lagoon and through the mudflats and we had mostly come here to try and see what was now our bogey bird for 2020 the Wheatear so the one we had still not seen which usually we see quite easily. This was because one had been reported but also because I recalled seeing and photographing one on the rocks here a similar time of year in 2015. So it was worth a try. Walking along we were delighted as my Mum saw a little bird flying and we both got the binoculars on it and could see it was a beautiful female Wheatear. We really then saw it well and made out it’s distinctive features. We got extensive binoculars views of this bird as it fitted in and out of the grass and rocks. There were some stunning moments watching it look truly exotic on the white rocks with the sun shining right on it. Like something you’d see on a brochure advertising birding holidays in Africa. I got the record shot the seventh picture in this photoset with my bridge camera of it. 

I was so delighted to see this bird, 169th species of the year to mean my year list is outright my sixth highest ever only eight birds behind what I saw in all of 2014 now and very close to a 170 figure I always love to reach if I can in a year and whilst 30 behind what I finished on last year exactly I would have dreamt of as a total when the pandemic hit and the restrictions were required for the good of us all. Still gotta get there of course. It means I have seen my bogey bird for the year much earlier than last year when I saw my first Slavonian Grebe of 2019 on Christmas Day but somewhat later than the moment I finally saw them in 2016, 2017 and 2018 (The bogey birds Red Kite, Dartford Wabrler and Peregrine Falcon all favourites of mine now). I knew this was one I could only see over the summer or early autumn when they are around here so we had to rather get cracking with it and what a relief it was to finally see the Wheatear this year. And I was reminded what a stunning bird they really are. 

As we walked back and scanned the grass area shown in the eighth and ninth pictures where we had seen Whinchats before another of my targets this year now to no avail we were treated to glorious views of two young Buzzards flying around and in trees. Their wingspans looked massive as they flew over it really was quite a sight to behold and I loved seeing them in the sunshine. I produced a picture of only one and only one picture so I tweeted that on my Twitter Dans_Pictures if you’re interested. This brought to an end well another varied and interesting day. It’s been a fun and packed weekend with some lovely wildlife moments. Thanks for sharing it with me, I can’t wait to see what the wildlife/photography snippets of my week ahead brings and of course as I mentioned in my post earlier today a trip away to Devon for a long weekend beginning on Friday. I hope you all stay safe and well and have a great week. 

Wildlife Sightings Summary: Earnley Triangle: One of my favourite birds the Great Spotted Woodpecker, Starling, House Sparrow, Long-tailed Tit, Willow Warbler, Blackbird, Collared Dove, Herring Gull, Redshank, Peacock, Comma and a little moth. The oysterbeds: My first Wheatear of the year, two of my favourite birds the Buzzard and Great Crested Grebe, Redshank, Black-tailed Godwit, Oystercatcher, Cormorant, Mute Swan, Common Tern, Black-headed Gull, Herring Gull, Magpie, Woodpigeon, Starling, Robin, Stonechat, lots of nice Whitethroats, Rabbit, wasp and another butterfly I could not quite see what it flew so fast.

When home this evening I finally photographed the lovely Yellow Shell moth that has been in our house since Friday when it flew in and I tweeted that one too an amazing few days of moths for me.

[dansnaturepictures]

My 10 Wildlife/Photograph highlights of 2019 blogs-Post 6: Northumberland for the Farne Islands and more (and a quick trip to Scotland)

This year we came to Northumberland in June, which turned out to be one of the weeks of my life. The main point of course was to achieve a really big dream of mine to visit the Farne Islands, which allowed me to see many of my favourite animals, and new ones for me very close up which gave me fantastic memories. The whole area in general was one I found very beautiful and welcoming, and we packed so many wildlife and landscape encounters in. The weather compared to back home I am told that week was brilliant too. There were a lot of good landmark photo opportunities with the castles and islands too. It possibly was my greatest ever week of photography, fitting just a month before I marked 10 years of me taking photos, with an unimaginable amount produced for me really and so many I was proud of lots of times of creatures that made my heart swell. With 8 bird year ticks on the trip 2 of them life ticks my year list soared to my earliest ever 170 reached in a year and ended the week on 171, my butterfly and mammal year lists both grew too with actually a new butterfly for our life list for that seen too as we squeezed in a day trip to Scotland too!

On day 1 after a long journey, taking in such sights as the beautiful Angel of the North, we arrived and were greeted in Seahouses by the sound of seabirds fairly close by to the cottage we stayed in and a wonderful sea view from my bedroom within it. We took a memorable walk in the rain that evening, seeing Eider Ducks better and closer than ever before for us like the ones in the 1st picture in this photoset which was a really early high point in the holiday and exceptional natural moment as I went towards them and a group of them walked towards me! A bird we usually see far away out to sea. On a cliff on the way here pretty close to the cottage there were many Kittiwakes nesting and we saw them, my first of this one of my favourite birds this year. So it was possibly what I had heard earlier on which thrilled me and we walked closer and got to hear their really nice call too. It was fantastic to see Kittiwake so early on in the trip just like our Yorkshire seabird trip last year too.

Day 2 started with a greater look at the fantastic and very close to where we stayed Kittiwake colony and views over the area in the sun, with House Martin starring too. I took the 2nd picture in this photoset of one of the Kittiwakes. I also saw a Song Thrush in the garden of the cottage one rich in wildlife which was really nice.

We then went on a brilliant trip around Coquet Island where I saw my first ever Arctic Terns which was amazing, only my second ever Roseate Terns, first Puffins of the trip another star of it and a Common Seal. Guillemot and Fulmar starred too. On the coast at Amble before we boarded and after, as we did in Yorkshire I saw my first Painted Lady of the year and a few too. I took the 3rd picture in this photoset looking down Coquet river here. Overall I was very impressed with Coquet. I am blessed with Terns at home on a flat coast but I had never seen a massive nesting colony that included terns. Seeing four species of them together with Puffins and Kittiwakes mixed in was a wonderful new experience for me in a week where I think I saw different habitats for birds mixed together in a way I never have before which made it such a fresh and brilliant holiday.

We then headed to nearby Bamburgh getting great views of the impressive castle, the Farnes and down the beach and coast in now sunny conditions. It was also great to see Painted Ladies and Sandwich Terns here as well as Sand Martin.

I was living the dream on the Monday as I went on a Serenity boat trip around the Farne Islands, landing on Inner Fanre for an hour. Everything about the boat trip was so brilliant Serenity really do such an outstanding job with such great knowledge about the place and animals. On the boat trip I got for some of these my closest ever views of amazing species such as Puffin, Guillemot, Razorbill, Fulmar, Gannet, Kittiwake, Shag and Grey Seal, many of them among my favourite birds and mammals. It was also great to see Longstone lighthouse as shown by the 4th picture in this photoset where Grace Darling lived. We then landed on Inner Farne and it was one of my greatest ever experiences walking through the famous Arctic Tern colony. I really did appreciate seeing these iconic birds so much and very close. I took the 5th picture in this photoset of one. That was the thing about the Farnes for me was just the closeness all the amazing wildlife was to you. Roseate and Sandwich Tern as well as Eider Duck and Painted Ladies also starred on the day. This was simply one of my greatest days in my life and a real standout wildlife and photography moment of this year.

Tuesday arrived and I looked after the dogs that day to allow my Mum and her husband to do what I’d done the day before. I still had remarkable seabird experiences though, seeing the Kittiwakes on the coastal path once more in a morning walk and noticing Fulmars in the colony too. I photographed the latter in the 6th picture in this photoset and was reflective of my development journey with the former over the last couple of years. Kittiwakes were massive stars of my week off in June, as was Painted Lady butterflies which I saw on the walk as well definitely my main butterfly of my time in Northumberland. Sand Martin was one I saw on this walk as well, one of the unsung heroes of this coastal adventure. We repeated this walk later in the day and it was nice to see many Painted Ladies on this walk. I remarked how also that week I saw more of these than I usually would and got such precious chances to see this beautiful species up close, one on this walk landed on my shoe for a second or two. Common Tern, lots of Oystercatcher on the rocks, Meadow Pipit and again Kittiwake and Fulmar were great birds to see on this walk and it was nice to spend a bit of time on the beach with the dogs really relaxing. Day 4 ended in a brilliant way when I saw some bats flying over the cottage garden at dusk, my Mum had seen some the night before so I made sure I got out at that time. This felt amazing, I had a weird winter afternoon sighting of one in 2017 but I’d not seen bats at dusk on a summer night for a few years really so it felt magical.

Day 5 began with some appreciation of the variety of garden birds we could see from the cottage, many different from at home. Then we headed to Druridge where seeing a Barn Owl by the pools was a huge bonus for the holiday. We came back there later on but in between headed to my tenth national park, Northumberland National Park and found some really nice wildlife rich stretches of river along the Breamish Valley. A beautiful view shown along this in the 7th picture in this photoset. There I saw my first Dipper, Willow Warbler and Spotted Flycatcher of the year to take my year list to a milestone 170 way earlier than in any other year which was brilliant. It was nice to get another favourite bird of mine into the trip with Dipper. Wall Brown butterfly, Oystercatcher and Common Sandpiper were great species to see here also.

Thursday was a key point in the week too as we did an all day cruise around the Farne Islands, landing on both Staple Island and Inner Farne. Staple was probably the more picturesque of the two islands and way more rugged than Inner Farne. I was stunned on both islands and on the boat to be so close to Puffin, Razorbill, Kittiwake, Fulmar, Shag, Grey Seal and more again, but on and around Staple I really got to connect so much to my original favourite bird the Guillemots with so many seen and really close too. I was in aw of them. Inner Farne shared many stars to Staple but also what an awesome chance I grasped to have the Arctic Tern experience a second time, I really savoured it as my last day actually on the Farnes. Sandwich and Roseate Tern were wonderful to see here again on this day too. On Inner Farne I also took the 8th picture in this photoset of a Puffin with sandeels in its mouth on the wall one of my best photos this year.

On my last full day there I started it by taking a farewell walk over the coastal area and looking over the harbour. It was magical to see the sun making the sea glisten, lots of important sights of this holiday and many birds and a butterfly showing what a really wild and biodiverse area I was lucky to be in for this week. I savoured this. This included Sand Martin, House Martin, Swift, Sandwich Tern, Redshank, Oystercatcher, Eiders, Linnet and Red Admiral. Also magic was that I Iooked and saw from a little way away the Kittiwakes which I had marvelled at so much on this cliff and Fulmars too two of my favourite birds and stars of the trip. I thought I wanted to hear them once more so should I walk closer. But at that moment the wind possibly just carried the sound a little and I could hear their stunning call from where I was.

We then on the Friday got a brilliant bonus of travelling into nearby Scotland for my second time! It was the beautiful St. Abb’s Head near to Eyemouth we went to and it looked stunning on a lovely day. I took the 9th picture in this photoset of Mire Loch here. We saw some of the seabirds again, Fulmar, Guillemot, Razorbill, Kittiwake and Shag. Ladybirds and Painted Ladies also starred. I also got a really nice Gannet fix for this holiday with many flying seen. No surprise as Bass Rock was visible in the distance, a famous Gannetry which made it quite a seabird location pilgrimage this week. But arguably the standout Scottish moment was catching sight of some Northern Brown Argus butterflies, a very rare butterfly for me to see and a new species. I was so happy to see it and it gave me belief as butterfly 31 in my year that with enough I still thought I could see I could compete with my then personal record 42 butterflies seen in 2018, as my Painted Lady year tick at Bempton Cliffs did last June. I was right about that in the end as in July I surpassed the 42 total making 2019 my new record butterfly year list and ended seeing 45 species this year I have only seen 46 in my life.

I had a little dog walk on the Saturday morning when we came back seeing the Kittiwakes once more. We then called back into Druridge before the long journey but this time saw the Baikal Teal we had looked for there on the Wednesday. What a beautiful and really well marked and coloured duck it was to see. Such an honour to get this moment seeing my third new bird of 2019 so close to going home. I saw another favourite bird of mine for this week Sedge Warbler too which was nice and I took the 10th picture in this photoset of the beautiful beach there. This brought to an end perhaps the standout week of my year if I had to choose, and one that will stay with me forever.