I don't really have a favourite season as each one can offer amazing beauty and sightings of special wildlife. Spring however offers opportunities to see some wonderful birds before the canopy of leaves grows and we are left with a beautiful but invisible chorus!
There are a few local sites where I visit with intense regularity at this time of year, fingers firmly crossed and a huge amount of expectation in mind. Strid Woods at Bolton Abbey is a firm favourite and has been for many years.
Many birds can be seen along the river and in the woods, the magnificent pied flycatchers find their way back from Africa every year, the amazing instinct that guides birds like these continues to fascinate me.
Male pied flycatcher...
Not great light on the day but a delight to welcome them back.
Nuthatch are common year round birds in the woods but are always photogenic...
Treecreepers are tricky to get near enough to photograph but with patience I get lucky now and again...
Roe deer roam the woodland, seldom seen on busy days but a bonus of regular midweek trips is the opportunity to see them close.
With dippers on the river there can be little wonder why I spend so much time here!
Not far from here there are ring ouzels nesting and I was fortunate to get a shot of a male in flight...
A trip to a local reservoir resulted in some photgraphs which created a lot of discussion amongst birding friends, what I presumed was a female sparrowhawk...it was certainly large...could well be a male goshawk, hard to tell apart but the thick body and large head certainly suggest goshawk. The bird was very high so the shots are heavily cropped which restricts detail.
A chance sighting on my way to my RSPB peregrine watch duty, a little owl...
Green woodpeckers are around at the peregrine watchpoint...
Redstarts are back from Africa too...
Of course we are there to watch peregrines!!!
Another walk in Strid Woods, this time the light is better and the pied flycatchers look stunning...
As do the redstarts!
Another visit to the ring ouzel site and a brief sight of the male...
Back into the woods as the season progresses, a nuthatch almost too close for my lens to focus!
More pied flycatchers...
And a real bonus, wood warblers are scarce, their song is beautiful as are their colours...
And another male redstart...
House martins are back at Malham, another thing to add delight to the peregrine sightings...
And to end on a real bonus... a yellow wagtail. Normally seen at higher altitudes this is a real beauty and to see close a privilege I shall never forget!
Exciting times in the last couple of weeks and hopefully many more good sightings to come. The peregrine chicks are hatched and I look forward to keeping you updated on their progress, with photographs, in the weeks to come. Meanwhile we are heading to Suffolk for a week's holiday, the forecast looks good and the wildlife sites look great!
Many thanks to all who read, please don't forget any comments come to me first for moderation.
