Yes, you did read the title correctly. That boring dull bird you see everywhere and only check just to make sure you are not missing a Shag or a Glossy Ibis. Where does the magnificent come from? Well you have to see them in breeding plumage.
 |
| Cormorant |
I had gone over to the sea cliffs at St Bees Head hoping to see Razorbills, Shag, Puffin, or even a Black Guillemot. It was all very disappointing. There were birds on show but they were Kittiwakes, Fulmar, and Common Guillemots. Nice to watch but not the birds that I was looking for. Then I came across a small group of Cormorants. They didn't look like the birds I see on the south coast and a quick check in Collins had me thinking about the subspecies sinensis. I am still not sure but sinensis is a bird of the east coast and it seems unlikely that I would find such a large group over on the west coast. I think this must just be breeding plumage.
 |
| Displaying |
 |
| Already a couple? - do the different colour patches below the eye differentiate between male and female? |
 |
| Cormorant |
Most other birds were too far away for a decent picture but there were lots of Meadow Pipits on the cliff tops and a single Buzzard over the fields.
 |
| Meadow Pipit |
 |
| Buzzard |
And finally my first shot of a Red Squirrel in the wild. I have taken pictures of them at feeding stations before but this is the first time I have managed to get a picture as one runs past in the woods. I had time for just a single shot and it was gone and I was amazed to find that I had it in focus.
 |
| Red Squirrel |
No comments:
Post a Comment