UKC

It didn’t rain on Saturday !  Male and female kestrel, and a magnificent peregrine which flushed hundreds and birds into the skies. 

Huge numbers of egrets, must have seen 10 great white egrets, countless little egrets, grey herons and goosanders. At one point, little egrets, cormorants and gulls were going ballistic, feeding frenzy I reckon. Sometimes, little egrets don’t tolerate each other so well, with much flapping and shouting and bits of feathers flying everywhere (the smudges in the photo).   Also saw a snow goose but it was miles off. grey plover, spotted redshank and greenshank, kingfisher and a redpoll flew over. Massive numbers of pink feet (1000s) and wigeon and teal. 

We've had thousands of pink foots flying down the east coast these last few weeks.

Saw a skein this morning on my dog walk, and this lovely female stonechat (photo from last week, this bird has seven hanging around for a few weeks now). And the noisiest ‘anti Tawny owl’ group of blackbirds I’ve ever heard. They were going crazy.  

Is that Marshside (can't get to until Friday week) or Martin Mere - need to see Spotted Redshank (properly) and Greenshank.

Hesketh Out Marsh, scope views. 

Nice photos and particularly those using the scope. Impressive quality of scope photos nowadays. 

Weather poor with me so not been out lately. Seen in the passing that Fieldfare and Redwing are still about, though fewer numbers.

A photo from a couple of weeks ago of my latest first sighting.

Nice photo, and looks like you had good views rather than the usual ‘miles away’ views I usually get. 

Years ago when I worked in the Shetlands I owned a 35mm Pentax zoom etc., etc.,

I went off to some of the remote but small lochs/lochans.  Much to my surprise there was a Red Throated on the opposite side.  Desperate to get a photo before it cleared off I used up my last couple of frames.  Then it started to move.  It slowly came over to within a few yards of where I was sitting.  Good memory but I'd wished I'd a spare 35m roll!!.

When we lived in Eire on the Mizzen Peninsular they'd winter in the sounds between some of the small islands and the land.  Much to my surprise they were quite vocal and I loved listening to them -  something I've not heard in the British Isles before.
 

One of those lucky moments 😎. It surfaced close to where I was scanning the water and took me by surprise somehow just appearing from nowhere a mere 20m or so away! 

I guess it hadn’t seen me at first - I was next to bushes - as it swam towards me. I knew it was a new species to me so fired off a few shots quickly. Once it spotted me it dived quick, but didn’t stay close getting further and further away with each dive.