...shows promise but needs to try harder

[Soukous]

13 hours ago, xelas said:

@Soukous lovely Swans. Are they already done with fw 2.0?

 

Yes. The bird detection is actually pretty amazing as it identifies the bird - and often find s the eye - even before I press the focus button

[Soukous]

If I had any foresight I would have put a pair of waders on my Christmas list. We've had so much rain over the past few months that the ground is completely saturated and all footpaths are a muddy hazard that involves slipping and sliding along, trying to make sure that if I do fall over I protect my camera.

I thought that maybe if I stuck close to the coast it might not be so muddy. Silly me.

 

There is one particular spot which is pretty reliable for Purple Sandpipers and so I thought I'd give it a try. I was in luck, there were 3 of them, picking amongst the weed on the sea defences.

 

# 16 - Purple Sandpiper - Calidris maritima

East Lane, Bawdsey, Suffolk. Feb 2024

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There was not much else to photograph in the area, some Reed Buntings and a Robin, but I am pretty sure I'll get better opportunities to add these later on.

 

The Tufted Ducks stayed well away from me, but a group photo will suffice.

 

#17 - Tufted Duck - Aythya fuligula

East Lane, Bawdsey, Suffolk. Feb 2024

 

 

[Peter Connan]

Beautiful sharp shots throughout!

[TonyQ]

A lovely sequence of Purple Sandpipers @Soukous

[Soukous]

On February 9, 2024, longtime ABA member and frequent Birding magazine contributor Peter Kaestner reached 10,000 birds on his life list.

 

https://www.aba.org/peter-kaestner-breaks-the-10000-bird-barrier/

 

That may be just 10 years of BY for @michael-ibkbut it is most definitely out of reach for me even if I do 'try harder'. 

[PeterHG]

22 hours ago, Soukous said:

On February 9, 2024, longtime ABA member and frequent Birding magazine contributor Peter Kaestner reached 10,000 birds on his life list.

 

https://www.aba.org/peter-kaestner-breaks-the-10000-bird-barrier/

A truly incredible number !

[Soukous]

Other commitments have prevented me from taking advantage of the occasional bursts of good weather in recent days though, to be fair, there have not been many of them.

 

With Spring in the air I thought it worth a look to see if the Chiffchaffs had arrived yet, it would also be an opportunity to photograph some Coal Tits.

Well, the Chiffchaffs are not in residence yet and the Coal Tits, whilst very vocal, were very camera shy.

 

It was not a completely wasted trip though as a Yellowhammer posed beautifully - nice perch, good light - for me.

 

# 18 - Yellowhammer- Emberiza citrinella

Sutton Common, Suffolk. March 2024

 

 

 

 

having failed with the Coal Tits I decided to go in search of Dartford Warblers. I saw one almost as soon as I arrived but even though there were clearly plenty of them in the heather, they refused to pose for photos. 

 

I had to make do with a distant Stonechat. The pale plumage and the greyish heather created quite a pleasing image.

 

#19 - Stonechat -  Saxicola torquatus

Sutton Common, Suffolk. March 2024

 

 

at this rate it is going to be a long slog to achieve a decent total. 

Edited March 6 by Soukous
fixed typo

[PeterHG]

Beautiful shots of the yellowhammer !

[Soukous]

15 hours ago, PeterHG said:

Beautiful shots of the yellowhammer !

 

it was certainly the most accommodating Yellowhammer I have photographed, and the light was good too. Usually they are perched with a pale sky as background.

[TonyQ]

Agree on the Yellowhammer, stunning

[Peter Connan]

Beautiful!

[Zim Girl]

Stunning Yellowhammer pictures and I really like the muted, understated Stonechat.

[Soukous]

a weekend of contrasts.

Saturday was a glorious day; sunny with light winds and we went to one of my favourite reserves, Carlton Marshes, near Lowestoft. The reserve has undergone major work in recent years and has a wonderful arrangement of lagoons which attract a lot of birds. Unfortunately, like in so many reserves, the birds have managed to locate themselves in the furthest possible spot from the pathways and so are not easily visible except with a telescope. So we had a lovely walk with not much to show for it.

 

# 20 - Barnacle Goose - Branta leucopsis

Carlton Marshes, Suffolk. March 2024

 

 

# 21 - Canada Goose - Branta canadensis

Carlton Marshes. Suffolk. March 2024

 

 

Not my favourite goose, but once again I was very impressed by the way the subject detection picked the bird out from among the reeds and held on to it as they swam amongst the reeds.

 

By contrast, Sunday was a grey and miserable day with pretty much constant light rain. Which was a pain as it was the day for our monthly Wetland Bird Survey (WeBS), a monthly count of wetland birds in specific locations for the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO).

I'd hoped the rain would stop for a couple of hours but it did not.

I left my camera in the car while I did the count as I'd be using a telescope, but on the way out I passed a field with 40 Greylag Geese and 11 White-fronted Geese.  Once the count was completed, I grabbed my camera and went back to get some photos of of the White-fronted Geese. The field was now occupied by around 140 Greylags but it looked as though the White-fronted Geese had flown off. Eventually I located just 3 of them, skulking right at the back. Once again they seemed to have positioned themselves to make photography as awkward as possible.

 

# 22 - White-fronted Goose - Anser albifrons

RSPB Hollesley Marshes, Suffolk. March 2024

 

 

Edited March 11 by Soukous

[Soukous]

Another rainy day and I had no intention of venturing out in search of birds, instead using the time to continue building my ark.

 

But  as I gazed out of the kitchen window I saw a bird fly by that I have never seen in the garden before. It was a Treecreeper. I watched it for a while as it ran around and up a pear tree we'd recently pollarded before it occurred to me to get my camera. I'd normally have been a bit quicker off the mark but I was just enjoying the moment.

Anyhow, I did go for my camera and, fortunately for me, there was clearly enough of interest in the tree for the birds to make a couple more runs. As always, most of the time the only shot a Treecreeper presents is its back as it scurries up & around but there were a few moments when it gave me a bit more.

 

# 23 - Treecreeper - Certhia familiaris

Ufford, Suffolk. March 2024

 

 

 

 

 

 

[TonyQ]

@Soukouswhat a wonderful sighting to have in you garden, and beautiful photos 

[Peter Connan]

10 hours ago, TonyQ said:

@Soukouswhat a wonderful sighting to have in you garden, and beautiful photos 

 

Completely agree!

[Soukous]

12 hours ago, TonyQ said:

@Soukouswhat a wonderful sighting to have in you garden, and beautiful photos 

 

Absolutely. Very exciting. and now I wonder how many times it has been there before and I've not seen it

[Zim Girl]

Great spot and well done on being quick enough to get a photo.

We saw one in our garden for the first time, late last year, but it wasn't hanging around, so no picture.  We also wondered how many times it may have been there before.

[Soukous]

After a couple of weeks when the only birds that have visited our feeders were Blue Tits, Great Tits, Jays and a Great Spotted Woodpecker, there is suddenly a lot more activity. It must be Spring.

 

I don't like posting feeder shots but I've had little luck finding these birds elsewhere.

 

# 24 - Siskin - Spinus spinus

Ufford, Suffolk. March 2024

 

 

 

[PeterHG]

That is certainly a nice species to have on your feeder!

[Soukous]

16 hours ago, PeterHG said:

That is certainly a nice species to have on your feeder!

 

Yes. I have spent many hours trudging through woodland looking for them without success and I have not seen them at the feeder in previous years. They appeared about 3 days ago and have pretty much taken up residence. Even the bossy Blue Tits don't faze them

Edited March 14 by Soukous
typo

[TonyQ]

@Soukousthat is interesting. Typically we see Siskin at our feeders 2 or 3 times a year. The past few days we have had a flock of 8 or 10 visiting. A little treat for us!

[Soukous]

20 hours ago, TonyQ said:

Typically we see Siskin at our feeders 2 or 3 times a year. The past few days we have had a flock of 8 or 10 visiting.

 

Gee those Siskins are really aggressive. They chase away any other bird that tries to come to the feeder. 

Edited March 15 by Soukous

[Soukous]

One of the things about booking a weekend away several months in advance (in the UK at least) is that you really have no idea what the weather will be like when it comes time to travel. Of course you hope for the best but never have great confidence that you'll get what you hope for.

 

A weekend in North Norfolk was a good compromise for us; just over 2 hours drive so if the weather was not in our favour we could head home early. Actually it turned out pretty much as forecast; rain on Friday, a sunny Saturday then rain all day on Sunday.

 

At this time of year, one of the most numerous visitors are the Brent Geese. They love the marshes and can be found all the way along the north Norfolk coast.  So close, but they rarely visit Suffolk.

 

# 25 - Brent Goose - Branta bernicla

North Norfolk, UK. March 2024

 

 

 

 

# 26 - Oystercatcher - Haematopus ostralegus

North Norfolk, UK. March 2024

 

 

# 27 - Avocet - Recurvirostra avosetta

North Norfolk, UK. March 2024

 

 

 

# 28 - Chaffinch - Fringella coelebs

North Norfolk, UK. March 2024

 

 

 

This next one is a huge crop. i was waiting for a pair of Brent Geese to give me a decent pose when I saw something shuffling around in the grass behind them. Even with binoculars they were well camouflaged.

 

# 29 - Common Snipe - Gallinago gallinago

North Norfolk, UK. March 2024

 

 

and then there were 2

 

not great pictures, but very satisfying and, as they say, 

 

My tally for the day was not very impressive, but the sunshine and the surroundings more than compensated.

I did get a really nice sighting of my favourite duck though, which really pleased me.

 

#30 - Pintail - Anas acuta

North Norfolk, UK. March 2024

 

 

 

 

 

Edited March 18 by Soukous

[Soukous]

I did get some better shots of a couple that I've already posted.

 

# 11 - Redshank

 

 

 

#17 - Tufted Duck