Black Redstart

Just a few pictures from earlier in the week. Best picture opportunity was the Black Redstart at Shoreham Fort. It has been around for a few weeks now but it's such a good looking bird that we always drop in for another look when passing. 

Black Redstart

It is not easy to get a good picture but the results are well worth the effort. I am sure that I will be going back for another go.


A walk out on Chantry Hill gave us Ravens, Buzzards, Grey and Red-legged Partridges, Fieldfares, lots of small birds including Mipits, Skylarks and 30 to 40 Yellowhammers but no sign of the usual Corn Buntings. I am keeping my fingers crossed for the Partridges with just one week to go before the close of the shooting season.

Yellowhammer

At Waltham Sewage Works a Grey Wagtail, probably a dozen or more Chiffchaffs, and a Goldcrest on the access road.

Chiffchaff

Goldcrest

A Rock Pipit at Seaford Head but no Kittiwakes and another visit to the Newhaven Hume's Warbler but still no picture.

Rock Pipit

Perhaps best of all my garden birding has picked up. I don't get a lot of variety but this morning I had a Blackcap on the feeders and later I was able to photograph it, tucking into a pear that I had put out. Whilst I was trying to photograph that a Redwing dropped in and finished off the last of the holly berries.

Blackcap

Redwing

It was very misty in the garden this morning but there was just enough light to be able to get the pictures.

2012 Review

Poor weather and Christmas commitments have meant that the camera has not been taken out for its regular walk for a week or so. Instead I have been reviewing my first year of serious bird watching and looking back over some of the pictures I have taken.

I was very clear when I started the year that I was interested in taking pictures of birds and  not in twitching or in maintaining tick lists. The twitching I can still do without but the tick list I found impossible to resist.

I have taken pictures of 156 different species this year. I have seen a few more than this but not managed to take pictures of them all. These misses range from the easy, Mute Swan, through to a Hume's Leaf Warbler which I could see but just could not get into the viewfinder. Very frustrating.

So here are a few of the pictures I enjoyed taking this year.

Black Redstart

Kestrel with prey

Kingfisher

Linnet

Redwings always manage to look blurred, as in this picture, but it is clear that the berries in front and
 twigs behind are all sharp so this is marking and colouration on the bird.

Spotted Flycatcher 

A rather washed out looking female Stonechat.  She was feeding a nest of young but seemed keen to have   
her picture taken and flew back regularly to show me what she had caught.

Wren

And finally I had to include a picture of the Warnham/Adur Osprey. I spent a long time trying to get a picture of this bird until one day it came swimming past pretending to be a duck.

Later on I managed to get a few pictures of it trying to lift a large fish out of the Warnham Mill Pond.

I hope you enjoyed the picture. Good luck with your birding in 2013.