Standing up for Nature
Oscar writes: I spent many hours trying to photograph Stoats while I was up in Suffolk. On this afternoon they were crossing a grass path about 3m wide, so I needed quick reactions to be able to get any images. This was the only photo was an animal in it before it had shot…
Tim writes: the Ivory Gull is inextricably linked to the ecology of the Polar Bear. The majority of Ivory Gulls remain in the high Arctic throughout the year, even in deep winter when there is 24 hour darkness. They follow Polar Bears around waiting for them to make a seal kill, then they scavenge the…
Oscar writes: Following on from last week’s post where I talked about the Black-headed Gull colony and predation of their chicks, Marsh Harriers were another bird that would take the chicks to feed their young. Whenever they came over the scrape at Minsmere the birds would get very agitated, and for good reason, as…
Tim writes: These King Penguins were photographed just above the largest nesting colony on the planet with hundreds of thousands of nesting pairs. This was on the British Overseas Territory of South Georgia at Saint Andrews Bay. King Penguins are the only birds I have ever encountered that treat humans as if they are birds. …
Oscar writes: this was taken at Minsmere, where there are around 1500 pairs of Black-headed Gulls nesting on The Scrape this year. While I was there most pairs had chicks. These are the target of several predators, including big gulls and Marsh Harriers (see next week for this photo). Herring and Lesser Black-backed Gulls…
Tim writes: the Mountain Ringlet (Erebia epiphron) is our only truly Alpine butterfly, living high on mountains in Cumbria and Scotland. It must have been one of the first butterflies to colonise Britain as the ice retreated, but ironically it was one of the last to be discovered (25th June 1809 on hills above Ambleside,…
Oscar writes: I finished my second year university exams in Durham about a month ago, and was in Suffolk for 10 days soon after that to do some photography. One of the birds I spent most time photographing was Barn Owls which were hunting in some fields either side of a small road. Luckily they…
Oscar writes: Replace this egret with a Bittern and that is the photo I was aiming for during my week in Suffolk. Unfortunately it wasn’t to be, but this egret is much better than having a photo of just some reeds! It’s the same egret as a few weeks ago, and April last year, shown…
Oscar writes: Another bird that kept me busy while waiting for Bitterns in Suffolk was this Snipe, which was feeding in front of the hide for most of the afternoon. It was an effort to get an unobstructed view though, with reeds always seeming to obscure its face or beak! Nikon D800 | Nikon 400mm…
Oscar writes: I had been sat in North hide at Minsmere for an hour earlier on this day, then walked around to the sluice bushes to see if two Firecrests I’d found the previous day were still there. They were, but remained elusive so I got talking to someone who had been in the hide…