Springtime in the Woods

Springtime in an ancient English wood is a place that's hard to equal for tranquility and beauty. One of my favourites is Kingswood, near Bedford, which dates back some 6000 years to the last ice age. Reputedly used as a hunting ground by Henry VIII, it's sadly now much smaller in extent compared to times gone by, but it's SSSI status will hopefully give the protection it needs to continue to bring pleasure to future generations.

The main attraction at this time of year is the carpet of bluebells which, in the warm morning sunshine, makes for a fantastic photo opportunity, aswell as a welcome food source for newly emerging butterflies.





Blue carpets

 

 



Greater Stitchwort



Lesser Celandine



Wood Anemone



Yellow Archangel



Orange-tip  (female)



Orange-tip  (male)



Speckled Wood



Green-veined White



Buzzing around?

Lovely day for a walk along the river. The warm afternoon sunshine created thermals which allowed the local buzzards to soar effortlessly.
There's obviously some nest building going on, as one bird took great trouble to select and carry a largish twig several hundred meters back to it's chosen nest site. I'm sure there must've been suitable material closer to hand, but then I don't have a buzzards superior eye for selecting these things...

Keeping an eye on things

That'll do nicely

New Garden Tick

I was surprised to spot these Redpolls feeding on one of my feeders yesterday. My closest views of these attractive birds, and a first for the garden list.

Winter Wonderland



With the rest of the country seemingly paralised due to the arctic conditions, Willington has escaped the media-hype. Until yesterday, that is.  Around 6-8" fell in the space of a few hours, to create a magical landscape.

Unfortunately, not so magical for our feathered friends, who must be finding it a real struggle to find enough food in the sub-zero conditions.

These were some of the more photogenic birds seen around the village this morning.



Seasons Greetings



Redwing

Fieldfare

Recent Images

A collection of images from the last week. The mix of sunlight and frost this morning made for some lovely landscape shots, despite the -6 degree temperature.

Woburn Waxwings

A hard time hunting for this Kestrel

Red-legged Partridge

Willington

Somewhere near Colmworth

Colmworth

Redpoll's at The Lodge

Robin

Coal Tit - one of my favourite birds

Great Spotted Woodie

On the hunt

Whilst enjoying the flocks of finches that are frequenting the garden feeders during the current cold spell, I was startled by the sudden appearance of a male Sparrowhawk which sent the passerines darting for cover. The hawk missed his lunch, but stayed just long enough to allow me to grab my camera and fire off a few quick shots through the room window. Not the best quality shot, but nice to capture this infrequent visitor to the garden.

Stopping by for some lunch

Colours of Autumn

It's been a while since I've posted any images so, encouraged by this morning's glorious sunshine, I decided to take a wander in the local woods. The autumnal colours are spectacular and so photogenic.

I've also been inspired recently by some of Nigel Blake's wonderful images of funghi, and so I thought I'd try and have a go myself. Whilst not up to Mr. Blake's standard, it's very satisfying to try and capture the fascinating micro-world they live in.





Leafy carpet









Tuzla Golu - Turkey

A composite image of Tuzla Golu, nestled between the hills near the coast on the Bodrum peninsula. The northern section of the lake - seen to the left of this image - is linked to the sea, making the water brackish in this area. A causeway, just visible behind the hill to the left of centre, separates the northern from the larger southern sections.

Another piece of Turkish Delight

Tuzla Golu must have seemed an endless watery world to this adventurous Black-winged Stilt chick .....


....whilst mum posed for some beautiful reflection shots.

Jay - a very common bird around this area.

Red-rumped Swallow.

Black-headed Bunting.

Black-eared Wheatear.

T'wit T'woo

A few more images of the ubiquitous Little Owl's around the Tuzla Golu region...