Hi Neil
Thank you for taking the time to comment. I used to have a (cheap) camera running all night, connected to the PC. It is astonishing what goes on that you might never imagine. Here are a few 'stills' taken from the videos (sorry for the poor quality).
November notes
12 November – was uncharacteristically mild but the persistent rain put paid to any outings. Thankfully the following day was dry (albeit grey) and with a return to the recent low temperatures I had now all but given up looking for anything lep. related. Having seen reports recently of a Great Grey Shrike on Thursley Common, whilst not having quite the same status as the Red Shrike found by Buggy, it nevertheless sounded interesting enough to tempt me out. Apart from the Roller I came across accidentally a few years ago, and a few Waxwings even further back, I have never been out looking for birds, so I was a little surprised at the number of folk looking for the Shrike, mostly unsuccessfully. After about 30 mins the Shrike was spotted at the top of a dead tree – a long, long way off. With my camera on full zoom I could just about make out the bird which was only there for about 15 seconds. I only had time to click the shutter once before it was off but I got a record shot. It didn’t return whilst I was there but several Dartford Warblers kept us all entertained. On the return journey I did in fact spot a dragonfly – this impressive structure which apparently was erected after the dreadful fire some years ago
Have I got the bug? Time will tell, but I have wanted to see a Snow Bunting for several years now, so the next day it was down to Southsea where a male and female were showing well for a prolonged period (getting the jargon too y’see?!). They were a delight to watch and brightened up another grey, cold, damp and drizzly day and good to bump into Mark too.
These cracking little birds come all the way from the Arctic. When in breeding condition their plumage is white with black tips (not the result of a moult but of an erosion of the feathers) which I imagine blends well with their snowy environment, but even now, whilst searching for small seeds and insects, they were remarkably well camouflaged. It was great to see the two of them together and be able to record (photographically) their behaviour, how they related to each other, found food etc. I took full advantage of their proximity to take as many photos as possible, believing I might never see them again, but surprised myself to realise I had taken over 500 shots ! Kindly birders pointed out to me other subjects of interest including a couple of Purple Sandpipers and some Rock Pipits.
Well, I have never seen an owl in the wild so next on the list it was back down the A3 to Farlington Marshes where 3 Short-eared Owls had been reported. I do not think my camera is up to this new type of photography even allowing for its good zoom and the lack of binoculars was certainly a hindrance but that would be something else to carry! I wasn’t sure if I would be able to find and photograph the owls but based on my recent experience I was sure that there would be others looking for them and hoped they would be as helpful as the Southsea birders.
In the event I was the only person around but it really wasn’t difficult to spot these magnificent birds. I was over the moon just to be able to stand and watch them. They were much more active than I had anticipated and naively I had imagined they would be found in trees whereas the ground and low bushes seemed to be favoured in between swooping and gliding low over the marshes. My camera definitely couldn’t cope with the distance and speed of the birds but I managed a couple of record shots along with a nice image of a Kestrel.
Well, what a week – Great Grey Shrike, Dartford Warbler, Short-eared Owl, Purple Sandpiper, Rock Pipits to name a few. It was a great interlude between searching for larva and the few butterflies still on the wing.
The poor weather continued and with strong winds a fair few branches were blown down from my Oaks. I have a colony of Purple Hairstreaks in these trees so I thought it was worth checking as I swept them up and sure enough I found several eggs:
I've reared these before, found on twigs blown down in the Straits, and hadn't intended to do it again but in the circumstances ............
I did capture an Owl once, swooping through, presumably looking for mice.
