Showy Smew
Lagoon 4 at Rutland Water is generally a reliable place for Smew in winter. Luckily for me, back in March, a pair popped up right in front of one of the hides to allow my best ever views. Unfortunately, one of the local Great Crested Grebes soon ended the fun, chasing them both off into the centre of the lagoon!
A great morning at Grimbo
Grimsbury Res can be hard work, but the early morning of Tuesday 9th April was one of those rare occasions where it all happened at once, with 3 Little Gull, an Arctic Tern and a very unexpected patch tick Marsh Harrier. All in the space of half an hour!
Bird of the year!
That red letter day when the endless hours of patch birding pays off and you find something REALLY decent! The excitement of finding the Grimsbury Res Red-Rumped Swallow was undoubtedly THE wildlife highlight of my year. Nothing beats finding your own birds!
Whooper up close
This Whooper Swan lingered around the Borrow Pit and surrounding fields near Banbury, right into May. It spent a lot of time in the fields with several Mute Swans, although I got lucky on the evening of 1st May, enjoying some incredible views as it pretty much came to me as I sat on a rock by the Borrow Pit. Very cool!
Glanvilles!
It was one of those days where everything fell into place - the weather on the Isle of Wight was stunning, the timing was perfect with lots of hoped for Glanville Fritillaries on the wing and it was just generally an ace day out!
Black Hairstreaks galore!
I thought instead of venturing up to north Northants, I'd try somewhere new for Black Hairstreaks a little closer to home. I decided on Hewin's Wood between Bicester and Aylesbury which proved to be a seriously good decision, seeing s**t loads of them! The one below was the cherry on the cake, having seemingly just emerged, it actually flew into me and landed on my arm - very jammy!
DGF
A real surprise find - my first Northants Dark Green Fritillary, found just 10 minutes from home at Croughton quarry. Luckily for me, it landed on an oxe-eye daisy right in front of me! It had clearly not long emerged, but the question is, where on earth did it come from?!
Brilliant summer day in Dorset
A day full of highlights from start to finish - 5 out of the 6 UK reptiles, including my first ever UK Sand Lizards, my first ever Lulworth Skippers, plus a supporting cast of lots of Silver-Studded Blues, Dark Green Fritillaries, Woodlarks and Crossbills.
Long-Billed Dowitcher
As part of a typically wader-filled day at Frampton Marsh in July, this very smart returning bird, did the obliging thing, by flying in and landing right in front of me, affording some class views.
Tired Shortie
Dan, Gareth & I had a cool encounter with a very tired Short-Eared Owl on Kelling beach back in October. It had clearly not long arrived in off the sea and after accidentally flushing it, it was quite content having a snooze on the shingle!
Black-Throated Thrush
Seeing a new bird is great, but seeing it really well makes it even sweeter. In fact it was pretty ridiculous how well the Black Throated Thrush showed, in it's favourite berry tree, with the sun behind me, in the unusual surroundings of Whipsnade Zoo. A bird I could not turn down - magic!
Purple Sands
My first for about 5 years and a proper treat watching them potter around on the breakwater rocks, just feet away at Brixham in Devon. A cracking way to end 2019!
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