tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29906486959508082862024-02-19T15:12:17.446+00:00Neil Pont - Nature PhotographyNeil Ponthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17972266072118776982noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2990648695950808286.post-74419827377872350992024-02-19T15:11:00.000+00:002024-02-19T15:11:44.927+00:00Howick Hall<p><span style="font-size: medium;">Howick Hall is just a few miles from Alnwick and is the ancestral home of the Earls Grey - of 'tea' fame and the monument in Newcastle. <br /><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1bl4KedhprTtCilG3VdpNUutRslb1w1dHxa-J-hxLQ1Sqd4YCRSXL1lE5w2YBJo_YLmXHxHRn4SyXtOczm0OxVLn5kq1u5EAmrU_ijQMuSyB9OPoZjFho3KPrZnnAglRP1IX3GlINOShML98G6fmNujBMvs6ObgjMiKcS5mqBp6eGK0gPIuTfFLaGA5SY/s6435/DSCF9345.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4610" data-original-width="6435" height="458" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1bl4KedhprTtCilG3VdpNUutRslb1w1dHxa-J-hxLQ1Sqd4YCRSXL1lE5w2YBJo_YLmXHxHRn4SyXtOczm0OxVLn5kq1u5EAmrU_ijQMuSyB9OPoZjFho3KPrZnnAglRP1IX3GlINOShML98G6fmNujBMvs6ObgjMiKcS5mqBp6eGK0gPIuTfFLaGA5SY/w640-h458/DSCF9345.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;">The grounds are well worth a visit at many different times of the year as it is a truy seasonal site. And, at the moment, it is Snowdrop season. Along with about 500 others it seemed, by the length of the queues in the tea shop, we took advantage of what appeared to be the only sunny Sunday in February.</span><p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz837Mh-SNAPIRl_2JfJUh_RjwNNDyIlcPbgy33Xuj5xbd5eElRE4OU2NDoHHgCh2oyJCqOMV5liAK_LKKwaXa5vPFUtMVk6U4vp51oITGjd4ijF9qmhqfsZ7g5lCSAsY1co_jyTWTLJyqw0WNpbav9t3_GS6mF4pzQ1BffSZ_7j8h8uJNqqNY1Bf2CsAG/s5203/DSCF9311.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="5203" data-original-width="4374" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz837Mh-SNAPIRl_2JfJUh_RjwNNDyIlcPbgy33Xuj5xbd5eElRE4OU2NDoHHgCh2oyJCqOMV5liAK_LKKwaXa5vPFUtMVk6U4vp51oITGjd4ijF9qmhqfsZ7g5lCSAsY1co_jyTWTLJyqw0WNpbav9t3_GS6mF4pzQ1BffSZ_7j8h8uJNqqNY1Bf2CsAG/w336-h400/DSCF9311.jpg" width="336" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;">There are many different Snowdrops, including a 'double' variety and the scarce yellow-topped flower (Galanthus navalis sansersii).<br /><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfqzJHlfKL_GkQKPhPfl1xo2WBwGs7GojawGvwNHCp9or-IHIUtanaQsaO5pX26nbm59UsKrNyBYdTbBKVuGtzmTlcc2H1VkIZ8vxyPXEq1tAHfYaacRrh2VZj6hktHSfJJzGCSyDT3zOosz0wVuxo842FXRWSb4ZE039mVJgIfk1MP_Hbpv46dykqUV68/s3876/DSCF9298.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3390" data-original-width="3876" height="280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfqzJHlfKL_GkQKPhPfl1xo2WBwGs7GojawGvwNHCp9or-IHIUtanaQsaO5pX26nbm59UsKrNyBYdTbBKVuGtzmTlcc2H1VkIZ8vxyPXEq1tAHfYaacRrh2VZj6hktHSfJJzGCSyDT3zOosz0wVuxo842FXRWSb4ZE039mVJgIfk1MP_Hbpv46dykqUV68/s320/DSCF9298.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjph6NcpOHeWCSpMuRmj52XNy3Mt7jLrOJvvcW_gZD99wiyclkSRJBsaSOuZzh3SvFe1emYqsjKbbZtHD52ZAhiC05VP6nzLtFsrWwuZevQAqzfyDc7UN9aMg6v22qfaiKkqDWi-vDd1TnrUol01pVXpv7SFcvlpEYtxmQu68_A52MPcvDp-Gy4hsMcC7Xu/s4287/DSCF9320.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4287" data-original-width="3656" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjph6NcpOHeWCSpMuRmj52XNy3Mt7jLrOJvvcW_gZD99wiyclkSRJBsaSOuZzh3SvFe1emYqsjKbbZtHD52ZAhiC05VP6nzLtFsrWwuZevQAqzfyDc7UN9aMg6v22qfaiKkqDWi-vDd1TnrUol01pVXpv7SFcvlpEYtxmQu68_A52MPcvDp-Gy4hsMcC7Xu/s320/DSCF9320.jpg" width="273" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgfTM-en8d2ewPFyUvSOPpzWDNy0S3Rl8b2dLmOu4AoN6hkKAYP21Pi5Dk3c5aLCGQcb9QddwmFgcnWKetghsQQO-Iw3F-A3W6AQ12H0mO_1b4Kwwu2eA4uIifcOTqyFU69d-x4SefDqn4LHlH5TVDsJZ7Hrj8o0UGaUWtEk686c3UTi55v8ICxw_YXZPd/s4114/DSCF9324.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4114" data-original-width="3719" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgfTM-en8d2ewPFyUvSOPpzWDNy0S3Rl8b2dLmOu4AoN6hkKAYP21Pi5Dk3c5aLCGQcb9QddwmFgcnWKetghsQQO-Iw3F-A3W6AQ12H0mO_1b4Kwwu2eA4uIifcOTqyFU69d-x4SefDqn4LHlH5TVDsJZ7Hrj8o0UGaUWtEk686c3UTi55v8ICxw_YXZPd/s320/DSCF9324.jpg" width="289" /></a></div><span style="font-size: large;"><br />There was plenty of other colour too; rhododendrons and azaleas; crocuses...</span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIUf5WrFBjn0JPPT9Cy6Ik7OoXCAc6LweYrfKyqtuaBb9qgCUGgxw1sNx2Y8tf27IOlwKmxZpeHkyqffTiP00y58DhWV5PbOnf7X5wLSRkXdDTGSzJkjv4NHo2hrOka0daLXodXPeEq7Nb834RvyRBlNSci9ZS48137egkAuwktHghQu0jMNBxZO30D0fO/s4704/DSCF9308.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3602" data-original-width="4704" height="306" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIUf5WrFBjn0JPPT9Cy6Ik7OoXCAc6LweYrfKyqtuaBb9qgCUGgxw1sNx2Y8tf27IOlwKmxZpeHkyqffTiP00y58DhWV5PbOnf7X5wLSRkXdDTGSzJkjv4NHo2hrOka0daLXodXPeEq7Nb834RvyRBlNSci9ZS48137egkAuwktHghQu0jMNBxZO30D0fO/w400-h306/DSCF9308.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIqllHwG8O4mJL_ZxawQ2Ar0EE58bqtjnszcMWq5slXcB3Ah0MeLJ06krPBHALYX4tb74lcbqGD3oudywBZb_Fou-iox21succHs2eDV_dVqfrwEFIWZNznKJ5gQk7Ld6f-zRCJldazp6aetWTn58iyNH1U3PeK6bryOjiEOHeeiLr8QjDx3WPsEb0H20i/s4851/DSCF9356.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3516" data-original-width="4851" height="290" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIqllHwG8O4mJL_ZxawQ2Ar0EE58bqtjnszcMWq5slXcB3Ah0MeLJ06krPBHALYX4tb74lcbqGD3oudywBZb_Fou-iox21succHs2eDV_dVqfrwEFIWZNznKJ5gQk7Ld6f-zRCJldazp6aetWTn58iyNH1U3PeK6bryOjiEOHeeiLr8QjDx3WPsEb0H20i/w400-h290/DSCF9356.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfVszx7Rz6JAVKWYWkF4_DBUZyJf6CMgHLKz36zP1cjnVBDv13hic6OpyMx1rmDRDaZOfkvNiO3qiUAEFGtX7j-CcPy8XTi88O-E4GOfBzoOetwDOXTihpdetsKUy_5w6J9X2jGRrA0OFiMmwzXghEefeWhtJ-tvF0tZuBisKwI6-KfEjAh8T35hVJX-kn/s3766/DSCF9349.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3123" data-original-width="3766" height="331" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfVszx7Rz6JAVKWYWkF4_DBUZyJf6CMgHLKz36zP1cjnVBDv13hic6OpyMx1rmDRDaZOfkvNiO3qiUAEFGtX7j-CcPy8XTi88O-E4GOfBzoOetwDOXTihpdetsKUy_5w6J9X2jGRrA0OFiMmwzXghEefeWhtJ-tvF0tZuBisKwI6-KfEjAh8T35hVJX-kn/w400-h331/DSCF9349.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyOXml0JGCNqBYT0zi9XkgYjcp4xJZnuaoEQ7wwz_M8O0rfu31UyX14zayITiguer6r2Jywfny0WVJzR8C_wKapSp7jQdWgJ_vBZADjE8fPwsXbjwP9TR11Hexod__AN97nuvMu9B_LyNWZNRkm_XrGobhijG8iJek9ZRRzg5QvbBnGtNWMgv0Cd93vyDe/s3988/DSCF9350.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3988" data-original-width="3797" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyOXml0JGCNqBYT0zi9XkgYjcp4xJZnuaoEQ7wwz_M8O0rfu31UyX14zayITiguer6r2Jywfny0WVJzR8C_wKapSp7jQdWgJ_vBZADjE8fPwsXbjwP9TR11Hexod__AN97nuvMu9B_LyNWZNRkm_XrGobhijG8iJek9ZRRzg5QvbBnGtNWMgv0Cd93vyDe/w381-h400/DSCF9350.jpg" width="381" /></a></div><br /><div><span style="font-size: medium;">And bright yellow provided by Mahonia, Coltsfoot and Winter Aconites...<br /><br /><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVRQGmbZpz6LOeDemYnCHns33BOnDBJq5BMd8uASWbFzO_smTLtKZ1PkzVI6Q5EhDJ0QFm-2CJ6MBc2myqK-q91_oRDrcrzdNAiBBQxcwWc5t60rjChSLJ1lN9nznERQm5F5tHaP36Dy-E-4oT8xvsiDkC-99M8kFcECqrqrZgeGeh3P-JhXRewwgRCHXe/s4424/DSCF9309.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4424" data-original-width="3784" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVRQGmbZpz6LOeDemYnCHns33BOnDBJq5BMd8uASWbFzO_smTLtKZ1PkzVI6Q5EhDJ0QFm-2CJ6MBc2myqK-q91_oRDrcrzdNAiBBQxcwWc5t60rjChSLJ1lN9nznERQm5F5tHaP36Dy-E-4oT8xvsiDkC-99M8kFcECqrqrZgeGeh3P-JhXRewwgRCHXe/s320/DSCF9309.jpg" width="274" /></a></div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyYACHBGjH5rzGGCrQrgloVgIMyk_Kk_G3jmp6JuUB2XZ4g3ms-JsWI724Uw-R1fdCwE8Iv4iXcqL1LwimzMNhfqXNyDlNbmacBOHu_50BOc1-umtG_3gjSRWqyc4t4zlSn29IA-24bqYI5jgR8LsbnNF6AbgzEjsS6zfVJ3E3B9TzD6DreexaDpYqV0kX/s3781/DSCF9285.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2619" data-original-width="3781" height="222" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyYACHBGjH5rzGGCrQrgloVgIMyk_Kk_G3jmp6JuUB2XZ4g3ms-JsWI724Uw-R1fdCwE8Iv4iXcqL1LwimzMNhfqXNyDlNbmacBOHu_50BOc1-umtG_3gjSRWqyc4t4zlSn29IA-24bqYI5jgR8LsbnNF6AbgzEjsS6zfVJ3E3B9TzD6DreexaDpYqV0kX/s320/DSCF9285.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirioil53FwJ8ieP5tcMHXPNEzFovISHk0YuHbF5B_8QGeyJP3UClUUiBJhP4cwRRMq-Ir_Jtqq0Snq4rb5yaDiyLuVq0sDtS48DM5dm2LEhWwmWTjC8F2oK1K5X4S7DzUHn8wOj5V-YTFeend4UqtKkmYeFaL-_DX_OVdI9Lxy8TMgrgIjlwc9vYYbhLqP/s4253/DSCF9301.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3390" data-original-width="4253" height="255" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirioil53FwJ8ieP5tcMHXPNEzFovISHk0YuHbF5B_8QGeyJP3UClUUiBJhP4cwRRMq-Ir_Jtqq0Snq4rb5yaDiyLuVq0sDtS48DM5dm2LEhWwmWTjC8F2oK1K5X4S7DzUHn8wOj5V-YTFeend4UqtKkmYeFaL-_DX_OVdI9Lxy8TMgrgIjlwc9vYYbhLqP/s320/DSCF9301.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKVXsgZhPRqCcYiqKAiUn7pGaV3ETlR94Nq3PbRwwIkuSzN6TJZoOrg3auD9fOtlk9Ph60Kz3KLOVBCL44Vr81GeyPq5l3oMRO9OOz3qjp7dCJLi16vQtGQIREs8ymiDDePf4hBUOJgdrAR-rKBiicYnWJGP4fzfD8bLqK_KNBHq6Du6RaCeyYDjDVRlx3/s4568/DSCF9302.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3516" data-original-width="4568" height="246" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKVXsgZhPRqCcYiqKAiUn7pGaV3ETlR94Nq3PbRwwIkuSzN6TJZoOrg3auD9fOtlk9Ph60Kz3KLOVBCL44Vr81GeyPq5l3oMRO9OOz3qjp7dCJLi16vQtGQIREs8ymiDDePf4hBUOJgdrAR-rKBiicYnWJGP4fzfD8bLqK_KNBHq6Du6RaCeyYDjDVRlx3/s320/DSCF9302.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;">And it was even sunny enough to bring out bees - including this Honey Bee...<br /><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVnrlD98a2vC_TprNT4mO4mfDvGwRUmrhw8ZIucGq55MxHwv1YSRzllkkRTkWUMgufIiUtNVoz8Ruy5PopWk6VTKQ36SkTIXhkPgG39DK_BVEH5YyYmy-3Z2Rjt5iC7AB-AoWX19cyiIPak32WPv2yRDtFytXHS5-t-bc7wnZJYnxSw-oi2-dFp_IWEvMw/s2461/DSCF9336.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1990" data-original-width="2461" height="324" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVnrlD98a2vC_TprNT4mO4mfDvGwRUmrhw8ZIucGq55MxHwv1YSRzllkkRTkWUMgufIiUtNVoz8Ruy5PopWk6VTKQ36SkTIXhkPgG39DK_BVEH5YyYmy-3Z2Rjt5iC7AB-AoWX19cyiIPak32WPv2yRDtFytXHS5-t-bc7wnZJYnxSw-oi2-dFp_IWEvMw/w400-h324/DSCF9336.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;">After tea and cake we took the short ride down to Howick Haven. There are lovely views of Dunstanburgh Castle as you look north...<br /><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggSUO29eYHnV1WlTolHuprg25RdERps2kKQKRrssgKZdxBF3qWlvUW4DQwl-hYn-Qw4PJBEKdZ6M4izkElGTJMqoV0UVHXuKEBL_YGN79HqNKOkCHIwNklATTcjABsgPDIPF3D4xBzjXcJQ26GpqtdA7m9vPF1vXX9Tthk-TUzy-avJE4htKl8O56rcHl-/s7477/DSCF9363.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4985" data-original-width="7477" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggSUO29eYHnV1WlTolHuprg25RdERps2kKQKRrssgKZdxBF3qWlvUW4DQwl-hYn-Qw4PJBEKdZ6M4izkElGTJMqoV0UVHXuKEBL_YGN79HqNKOkCHIwNklATTcjABsgPDIPF3D4xBzjXcJQ26GpqtdA7m9vPF1vXX9Tthk-TUzy-avJE4htKl8O56rcHl-/w640-h426/DSCF9363.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">We saw Stonechats, pretending to by flycatchers, and Linnets; Oystercatchers and Eiders and three distant juvenile Red-throated Divers - all caught in the lovely golden light of the setting sun.</span><br /><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0em97ar_EZnYqM5CU3Q9m7LaRg9yEfjnkFEWQR2L2M8aD6lT3c8faslzPTc_8O9pMYaAepvUG410NJsAAMDkiITZN43UZKxkYd3SKpvFe2U_R9Ge15z5bfgtRXmFLwb51be6AZrTnp_JtwKDdBvzkzEJCIHx2l5Za0xLAoW3Qk_uGeNGge7YjxiRqBBHA/s2288/DSCF9391.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1628" data-original-width="2288" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0em97ar_EZnYqM5CU3Q9m7LaRg9yEfjnkFEWQR2L2M8aD6lT3c8faslzPTc_8O9pMYaAepvUG410NJsAAMDkiITZN43UZKxkYd3SKpvFe2U_R9Ge15z5bfgtRXmFLwb51be6AZrTnp_JtwKDdBvzkzEJCIHx2l5Za0xLAoW3Qk_uGeNGge7YjxiRqBBHA/w400-h285/DSCF9391.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Stonechat</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br /><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4-M1ZIZFrYN0dsZa3EFCTfA5FhDkp1SF4jNCbWLMi-w0XwdvepRyGGF5bj_WIuKnvy1ZSuRs1uMCXKJH1sErP9IWDgKnVdrYFnA_B-LPvh5XpEatKjuDH4RrdDDqPg_a7rhiVf3aqy4zI1s9PvphWj9ksj-ihdHNnh6W-7b5aR-zhZsaKlWSPsD-OnaYw/s2649/DSCF9376.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2178" data-original-width="2649" height="526" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4-M1ZIZFrYN0dsZa3EFCTfA5FhDkp1SF4jNCbWLMi-w0XwdvepRyGGF5bj_WIuKnvy1ZSuRs1uMCXKJH1sErP9IWDgKnVdrYFnA_B-LPvh5XpEatKjuDH4RrdDDqPg_a7rhiVf3aqy4zI1s9PvphWj9ksj-ihdHNnh6W-7b5aR-zhZsaKlWSPsD-OnaYw/w640-h526/DSCF9376.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />Neil Ponthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17972266072118776982noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2990648695950808286.post-3872422177413083052024-02-05T15:14:00.003+00:002024-02-05T15:23:23.258+00:00Woodpeckers<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd2bk9m9xFUjehJf5Ncs8Ij7Iyxpx3F853HfqIciMMtfVk-n-Xy7vzz9pruK37CGBOkIN7W_LyEFiUQ8G-m33ucaxQ-F8WOwTp4d6NYMYHM5T9ydNfwiHF8jD8Lkd4cQkPaPJMWWzuqPePuawaQo0-V9oh7FVlzP_hKqcYScHLgikmVIJTOJtMSHRvH8ja/s3325/G%20GSpW1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2918" data-original-width="3325" height="562" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd2bk9m9xFUjehJf5Ncs8Ij7Iyxpx3F853HfqIciMMtfVk-n-Xy7vzz9pruK37CGBOkIN7W_LyEFiUQ8G-m33ucaxQ-F8WOwTp4d6NYMYHM5T9ydNfwiHF8jD8Lkd4cQkPaPJMWWzuqPePuawaQo0-V9oh7FVlzP_hKqcYScHLgikmVIJTOJtMSHRvH8ja/w640-h562/G%20GSpW1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">The Great Spotted Woodpecker is the woodpecker you are most likely to see in the UK. It is probably easiest to find by visiting established woodland feeding stations (in the North East, at Washington WWT for example) but it is reasonably common in most of our woodlands.<br />Much harder to find are the other two UK species - the Lesser Spotted Woodpecker (only the size of a Starling) and the Green Woodpecker. You are VERY unlikely to find the Lesser Spot in the North East (though some are rumoured to exist in deepest, darkest Durham) and the Green is pretty elusive too.<br /><br />You can distnguish the sexes on the Great Spot by the red on the back of the neck - this one is a male...<br /><br /><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCvpP_T0OUcnE8HVtF1vVuyZoRu9FN2icHdhFNS9FYfzqaYcZylhfcRWDBqqH3DzLWPuhQJBuCiYFC8Pu_D_f7_ByItoOWIq9FmlSfTZl2dDJtcJIQdIJcRT0_8KaCEXMSaThiEDu1sZG96uVIs6a2w61z30-FBYul84P0IVBk7LXxKwEapEDvzC4Gs23W/s3972/DSCF8260.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3972" data-original-width="3467" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCvpP_T0OUcnE8HVtF1vVuyZoRu9FN2icHdhFNS9FYfzqaYcZylhfcRWDBqqH3DzLWPuhQJBuCiYFC8Pu_D_f7_ByItoOWIq9FmlSfTZl2dDJtcJIQdIJcRT0_8KaCEXMSaThiEDu1sZG96uVIs6a2w61z30-FBYul84P0IVBk7LXxKwEapEDvzC4Gs23W/w349-h400/DSCF8260.jpg" width="349" /></a></div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I only have very poor photos of a Green; but at least you can see the colour...</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj36DRG4io7Np79tJIC14Yil0kOPvd12wJJqDHf02o-Ab6EyleAz6TrnzFu0o5DK80KP2VIMPM6lENDcPrjfbcJLmr1RL_rgP0dP1dxWYPcfLBaFAcdhgwHQ2k1zZArw74MxWAUzrJWd48yaPZ-EcHUX3kuBx2UhI8KNWNZ-rzemTP8KHxgnV195wP4VgMx/s612/green%20woodp2%20(1%20of%201).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="612" data-original-width="506" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj36DRG4io7Np79tJIC14Yil0kOPvd12wJJqDHf02o-Ab6EyleAz6TrnzFu0o5DK80KP2VIMPM6lENDcPrjfbcJLmr1RL_rgP0dP1dxWYPcfLBaFAcdhgwHQ2k1zZArw74MxWAUzrJWd48yaPZ-EcHUX3kuBx2UhI8KNWNZ-rzemTP8KHxgnV195wP4VgMx/w331-h400/green%20woodp2%20(1%20of%201).jpg" width="331" /></a></div><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The rest of the photos here are from trips we have taken to Hungary. where we have seen Lesser Spotted, Midde Spotted (yes - half way between Lesser and Greater), Syrian, White-backed and Black Woodpeckers. The 'spotted' ones need a bit of care in identifying - though the Lesser is really small of course. The White-backed and Black aren't too bad - the clue is in the name! The Black is by far the biggest of this group.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirJ0eI1F90DbUIS_3YCFoDqs668vD6i7hL7RceKs-zelGjH0qYyaRYWyZpTQUJ5WKLHDU22ClKDyalAa6qxmXs2raD37JXOjfEaBvjX4_HPqxIuHtdvUWrur_738cquiLZM5mVvn54D2Tr7PL2RV6KS4D5dLwI7wcO5ER5UMvLS_jthT0eC1dedDcu9qxG/s1199/_Q1A8298.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1199" data-original-width="1188" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirJ0eI1F90DbUIS_3YCFoDqs668vD6i7hL7RceKs-zelGjH0qYyaRYWyZpTQUJ5WKLHDU22ClKDyalAa6qxmXs2raD37JXOjfEaBvjX4_HPqxIuHtdvUWrur_738cquiLZM5mVvn54D2Tr7PL2RV6KS4D5dLwI7wcO5ER5UMvLS_jthT0eC1dedDcu9qxG/s320/_Q1A8298.jpg" width="317" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0KNYtMxa0oRodZ_4ISwBL9wleJbGf8RPhYKqm4pDODsivuccLljy9Mbd1A9oHOtKCrlGGQN-SERVIwvav388Kwl96U0atRw-nx2UkDHX6ZnqtK-DsFN_UzxcfjlpgoiklcCIRz-vQkXD414kcQMESCtFhgs6pNSJ4uqB7mgOAzmuV02zjZ7ieG3gu3jXQ/s1188/_Q1A8340.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1188" data-original-width="1188" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0KNYtMxa0oRodZ_4ISwBL9wleJbGf8RPhYKqm4pDODsivuccLljy9Mbd1A9oHOtKCrlGGQN-SERVIwvav388Kwl96U0atRw-nx2UkDHX6ZnqtK-DsFN_UzxcfjlpgoiklcCIRz-vQkXD414kcQMESCtFhgs6pNSJ4uqB7mgOAzmuV02zjZ7ieG3gu3jXQ/s320/_Q1A8340.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL6-zcHd1XSY7Ww4ZYZfyBGe2lioZKWGpZvefIaOHJ-VupslSEnZgHJSous4jlcw3w333dVsC4BNYVtGGJ61Gtc9kA7C0ERI8OOoXzb9zBbi68Xq2dqYEGJHgi61Qe56JYTDmS3ImfzgSo0uoSoN3Y_XLg9LzGuCK5Kby_2fbtAA8UG6jQTNOVGBSSYJU-/s1154/_Q1A8358.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="999" data-original-width="1154" height="277" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL6-zcHd1XSY7Ww4ZYZfyBGe2lioZKWGpZvefIaOHJ-VupslSEnZgHJSous4jlcw3w333dVsC4BNYVtGGJ61Gtc9kA7C0ERI8OOoXzb9zBbi68Xq2dqYEGJHgi61Qe56JYTDmS3ImfzgSo0uoSoN3Y_XLg9LzGuCK5Kby_2fbtAA8UG6jQTNOVGBSSYJU-/s320/_Q1A8358.jpg" width="320" /></a></div> <br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">White-backed Woodpecker at its nest hole<br /><br /><br /></span><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJhdJvWDEpWJ584V1l32ZY1xKqRBgnYhI9ZeaaKK_Gaprk3ARyM7h5pQ9IG-uXdiWfoZdXLf9pTA21CnDzBGRFRhqLH1INolMq7X9nAvci73Ue6IjcF8Cq7x5jHvDEzqsBfZQmoPUbi99XAsbTmhpVmEBa-OjHKLZm2MrU0ZgdT_3igQIbVdD-ZKSgV4Uc/s846/white%20backed%20wpeck5%20(1%20of%201).jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="846" data-original-width="651" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJhdJvWDEpWJ584V1l32ZY1xKqRBgnYhI9ZeaaKK_Gaprk3ARyM7h5pQ9IG-uXdiWfoZdXLf9pTA21CnDzBGRFRhqLH1INolMq7X9nAvci73Ue6IjcF8Cq7x5jHvDEzqsBfZQmoPUbi99XAsbTmhpVmEBa-OjHKLZm2MrU0ZgdT_3igQIbVdD-ZKSgV4Uc/w308-h400/white%20backed%20wpeck5%20(1%20of%201).jpg" width="308" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another White-backed</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA3XTtDe9WHtoF9ZD2e9jbrSYBDX6_N847CWCHLj43xd7j5AuNKjpX4L2Fr5-JtNgHV2AeynACC2w5-6d-Bjshjdx08ucTylSOcDAEllgTMSq64ez94VT84YXvHHNivfnv5F30Nelhyphenhyphenv_Ihyphenhyphen7J7wgkbjNtfynqa1kFT1UUq4F2g-biOQKGgzoccYuRVMXd/s701/syrian%20wood%20p%20female2%20(1%20of%201).jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="701" data-original-width="562" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA3XTtDe9WHtoF9ZD2e9jbrSYBDX6_N847CWCHLj43xd7j5AuNKjpX4L2Fr5-JtNgHV2AeynACC2w5-6d-Bjshjdx08ucTylSOcDAEllgTMSq64ez94VT84YXvHHNivfnv5F30Nelhyphenhyphenv_Ihyphenhyphen7J7wgkbjNtfynqa1kFT1UUq4F2g-biOQKGgzoccYuRVMXd/s320/syrian%20wood%20p%20female2%20(1%20of%201).jpg" width="257" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Syrian Woodpecker</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhid3h1-rHZz7aNqgmqv6JpxbO9DD6BJ261sUKF0Zg4sBx50TjRCQN63Ip93hM-L08IDWhuuKiQ5p1m6qIs3sMzAO8Ta6HhfEfbovfvE5p4_-EpK694rm9RMd2s6jnW9FX_4ZJ5GAAaFYtYLZRjeHQDwi-_dHWRKlu8f6S0KpBG9OCFb1j6fKlG0mXhmlbK/s957/syrian%20woodp5%20(1%20of%201).jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="957" data-original-width="896" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhid3h1-rHZz7aNqgmqv6JpxbO9DD6BJ261sUKF0Zg4sBx50TjRCQN63Ip93hM-L08IDWhuuKiQ5p1m6qIs3sMzAO8Ta6HhfEfbovfvE5p4_-EpK694rm9RMd2s6jnW9FX_4ZJ5GAAaFYtYLZRjeHQDwi-_dHWRKlu8f6S0KpBG9OCFb1j6fKlG0mXhmlbK/s320/syrian%20woodp5%20(1%20of%201).jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Syrian Woodpecker</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKJQT6Z7ym3P_UqcHKHo3TePb0FgW05WH5PQz3VZxRhXqyTuOIkxTK3zfom5PuOm-2C_Zq1qgIjT1cRslOEbkx36g2OxKxJiyVJbYIHxwdlOqWPPKnCv0EPeOlO2QH8Pg0-CXI9voLJadBtnVU5PdSh8kQo1l6oqx1Vzm8svu9bpSdXeb2k7kRCf8M3DcJ/s851/black%20woodpecker6%20(1%20of%201).jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="845" data-original-width="851" height="398" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKJQT6Z7ym3P_UqcHKHo3TePb0FgW05WH5PQz3VZxRhXqyTuOIkxTK3zfom5PuOm-2C_Zq1qgIjT1cRslOEbkx36g2OxKxJiyVJbYIHxwdlOqWPPKnCv0EPeOlO2QH8Pg0-CXI9voLJadBtnVU5PdSh8kQo1l6oqx1Vzm8svu9bpSdXeb2k7kRCf8M3DcJ/w400-h398/black%20woodpecker6%20(1%20of%201).jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Black Woodpecker<br /><br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx8f2RoZHOBLort036rR8ZVB8cbV3heqsm3QqwvadqPN19c-Aq697_j4TxKzITa3QXFFuyNZ5HtBWodvoQlcWdd05QAYrn42PXvyoE3mVy2JFWlQuwQtYUSeMgmg83RX5VfFgf8vuTJjP0WE0bTyVxOyF5sjOtMb7KctJSMM77VkbL1cRiEXE45PZqE2I7/s1173/lesser%20spot1%20(1%20of%201).jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="912" data-original-width="1173" height="311" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx8f2RoZHOBLort036rR8ZVB8cbV3heqsm3QqwvadqPN19c-Aq697_j4TxKzITa3QXFFuyNZ5HtBWodvoQlcWdd05QAYrn42PXvyoE3mVy2JFWlQuwQtYUSeMgmg83RX5VfFgf8vuTJjP0WE0bTyVxOyF5sjOtMb7KctJSMM77VkbL1cRiEXE45PZqE2I7/w400-h311/lesser%20spot1%20(1%20of%201).jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lesser Spotted Woodpecker</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><span style="font-size: medium;">Apart from seeing these birds, you are also likely to HEAR them - and it is their drumming you will hear.</span><br /><br /><p></p><div><span style="font-size: medium;">There is a good explanation of woodpecker drumming here:</span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><a href="https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/blog/tom-hibbert/woodland-drummers">The woodland drummers | The Wildlife Trusts</a></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">Their flight is quite distinctive too - if you see a bird flying with clear undulating and dipping flight it could well be a woodpecker.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn4afzqrCS9Zk2LjhO-Q2roIYuGrBi8qhKSCk_0KEFV5P6ObQ0K-_EwLv1HYghAuC1RF3MCs9oLdODiRUtKCQ2K7KtzI45ThR78tpjGQFRdPwlCv2uK1WbV3tISuVi0qezkykVau6IQVfWIyoB7mFRsN0aHlgZGQQttUR5LvzTqcMugbLNWXXZSf-K9F9q/s2523/G%20GspW2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2120" data-original-width="2523" height="538" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn4afzqrCS9Zk2LjhO-Q2roIYuGrBi8qhKSCk_0KEFV5P6ObQ0K-_EwLv1HYghAuC1RF3MCs9oLdODiRUtKCQ2K7KtzI45ThR78tpjGQFRdPwlCv2uK1WbV3tISuVi0qezkykVau6IQVfWIyoB7mFRsN0aHlgZGQQttUR5LvzTqcMugbLNWXXZSf-K9F9q/w640-h538/G%20GspW2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>Neil Ponthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17972266072118776982noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2990648695950808286.post-81207425906340457082024-01-29T12:28:00.000+00:002024-01-29T12:28:26.329+00:00Starlings<p><span style="font-size: medium;">Before Christmas 2023 there were some good gatherings of Starlings at Gosforth Nature Reserve and I was able to watch them when I was finishing my afternoon stint as a Volunteer Warden. Of course, it was getting quite dark...<br /><br />The Starling seems like a very 'common' bird but their numbers have crashed by 87% since the 1960s. There is an article here about this decline:<br /><br /><a href="https://www.birdguides.com/articles/conservation/the-decline-of-british-starlings/">The decline of British starlings - BirdGuides</a><br /><br />When you get a close up view they are a very beautiful bird. I took this portrait shot at Seahouses several years ago...<br /><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdiOJUHhGfCCmxUN_-F67DN78GFa3gaxxF4hAPqQrda6B2RRdJ1cn9_OiiYFaQXDOxnvMrBUmAH-9YsBfj7QgUXL0D-HKB4-PkXR7cCJzRlFYQgo_EE9oUojxNr64cJF3Z4voQSdtRwtLcYdq4NjSJVrBpvick5UCIYxmLlFO_wFR0Xd43rCaw8YF2xROI/s640/1%20Jan%20Starling.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="449" data-original-width="640" height="449" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdiOJUHhGfCCmxUN_-F67DN78GFa3gaxxF4hAPqQrda6B2RRdJ1cn9_OiiYFaQXDOxnvMrBUmAH-9YsBfj7QgUXL0D-HKB4-PkXR7cCJzRlFYQgo_EE9oUojxNr64cJF3Z4voQSdtRwtLcYdq4NjSJVrBpvick5UCIYxmLlFO_wFR0Xd43rCaw8YF2xROI/w640-h449/1%20Jan%20Starling.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The murmuration at GNR in November did not make many spectacular shapes but I was in the midst of the birds as they swooped down to roost in the reeds close to where I was standing.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOi953-To25t2aLFwKpv78KOpAwAxW4YWi-n2eBlxKhrOlcAuHKrQKKeVvw9iGLDfT6DlDLCepbCWEjItxpR0phSrtvbaxkwrvFmMfwTyCoqlIu8KIFY_nzzhDyzhd643WE9tiEo3BBHZ2A_l2lIQK6uxIhAHcI_H_BA2HlQy8qtYZ7kDFaPl8zievd9X3/s7728/DSCF4285.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="5152" data-original-width="7728" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOi953-To25t2aLFwKpv78KOpAwAxW4YWi-n2eBlxKhrOlcAuHKrQKKeVvw9iGLDfT6DlDLCepbCWEjItxpR0phSrtvbaxkwrvFmMfwTyCoqlIu8KIFY_nzzhDyzhd643WE9tiEo3BBHZ2A_l2lIQK6uxIhAHcI_H_BA2HlQy8qtYZ7kDFaPl8zievd9X3/w640-h425/DSCF4285.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj6ccOHCFjTlk8FUTFIt8e7TrCkGFiIoObtLCF-NvASOIhhqCYSaNMNRxdNSnCKTvpEf3JpxFtvbPFV5ZpNX4N55fpaKM0W7vw113IuIe3nEFCWK_TSXtHoHv-3ZgIz78FLBd_Wo8aCVS1pCnJqshC9fK55U6AIlBqfEzHMa9uaHdcf3UwXTG92CEILpX5/s7728/DSCF4280.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="5152" data-original-width="7728" height="412" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj6ccOHCFjTlk8FUTFIt8e7TrCkGFiIoObtLCF-NvASOIhhqCYSaNMNRxdNSnCKTvpEf3JpxFtvbPFV5ZpNX4N55fpaKM0W7vw113IuIe3nEFCWK_TSXtHoHv-3ZgIz78FLBd_Wo8aCVS1pCnJqshC9fK55U6AIlBqfEzHMa9uaHdcf3UwXTG92CEILpX5/w640-h412/DSCF4280.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOi953-To25t2aLFwKpv78KOpAwAxW4YWi-n2eBlxKhrOlcAuHKrQKKeVvw9iGLDfT6DlDLCepbCWEjItxpR0phSrtvbaxkwrvFmMfwTyCoqlIu8KIFY_nzzhDyzhd643WE9tiEo3BBHZ2A_l2lIQK6uxIhAHcI_H_BA2HlQy8qtYZ7kDFaPl8zievd9X3/s7728/DSCF4285.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="5152" data-original-width="7728" height="412" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOi953-To25t2aLFwKpv78KOpAwAxW4YWi-n2eBlxKhrOlcAuHKrQKKeVvw9iGLDfT6DlDLCepbCWEjItxpR0phSrtvbaxkwrvFmMfwTyCoqlIu8KIFY_nzzhDyzhd643WE9tiEo3BBHZ2A_l2lIQK6uxIhAHcI_H_BA2HlQy8qtYZ7kDFaPl8zievd9X3/w640-h412/DSCF4285.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;">There was a Sparrowhawk lurking, but as it was nearly pitch dark when I spotted him the picture is a bit murky.</span></div><br /><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdsW1bNnI6gPzB6poVB1oecoIJe3Go_sUDxBxpFXqsnpNfyWiyE2NvgXOTWxaK00bu8v3mwkVmPCvi69w9t5rNIf1KvUvpK2SOXpWB33GIjdNGebV0xD_jjP-QgZxwo4x591l-x9nbjfmhans43uUjeobyaEoBbIB3AQZjsIxBsPXjDG4jLQf1lDCK5j6V/s4783/DSCF4468.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3615" data-original-width="4783" height="261" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdsW1bNnI6gPzB6poVB1oecoIJe3Go_sUDxBxpFXqsnpNfyWiyE2NvgXOTWxaK00bu8v3mwkVmPCvi69w9t5rNIf1KvUvpK2SOXpWB33GIjdNGebV0xD_jjP-QgZxwo4x591l-x9nbjfmhans43uUjeobyaEoBbIB3AQZjsIxBsPXjDG4jLQf1lDCK5j6V/w400-h261/DSCF4468.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sparrowhawk</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p><span style="font-size: medium;">The murmuration in December was against a gorgeous sky with some interesting shapes. I especially liked the 'brain' and the 'heart'....</span></p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYuBFZs6bWWJMyybwuQdryyCYWAFZmoeFhjt5Lex_kKmcuBwl7-V88AkRVyfWsIGB-yr13xUSCnjrAA7RnIRF5uN8ppuG7gA1P3MQ1lpsuGy2qBVodbwARnsewCbxSShE4n69KVdhqYrN9g58q5J9omiyfNmqaXoGfoZVxjjO6vpX_orE9aasNAGJUX1Ow/s4783/DSCF7458.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3277" data-original-width="4783" height="411" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYuBFZs6bWWJMyybwuQdryyCYWAFZmoeFhjt5Lex_kKmcuBwl7-V88AkRVyfWsIGB-yr13xUSCnjrAA7RnIRF5uN8ppuG7gA1P3MQ1lpsuGy2qBVodbwARnsewCbxSShE4n69KVdhqYrN9g58q5J9omiyfNmqaXoGfoZVxjjO6vpX_orE9aasNAGJUX1Ow/w640-h411/DSCF7458.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhshCDDtFpB2uLzd5yVmBK0xpSmhhTZ01KRtoCBJRT5ekK_nctg9Qi-goX7H3kIvu_NXld9gPieIFxNW4VXV4XrRkIQ1v3X-6l4Qw9kOyU7SSINuj-f-gdKKSIZ00Ur7SCKsJdnxGnPXZWBBTZp3Ugf7wwu_wZgHgyYKqpJ7zy0wsDhUp7zDhA9pPeOe2tN/s4051/DSCF7476.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3433" data-original-width="4051" height="403" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhshCDDtFpB2uLzd5yVmBK0xpSmhhTZ01KRtoCBJRT5ekK_nctg9Qi-goX7H3kIvu_NXld9gPieIFxNW4VXV4XrRkIQ1v3X-6l4Qw9kOyU7SSINuj-f-gdKKSIZ00Ur7SCKsJdnxGnPXZWBBTZp3Ugf7wwu_wZgHgyYKqpJ7zy0wsDhUp7zDhA9pPeOe2tN/w640-h403/DSCF7476.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div><br /></div><br /><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMpxmK_UXLVLRbQj6qOwxdnp10HM8Vx0O6zkdeDfaHwNNnutaLs1zf6myKn1dVgEqqsT01ifAoRg9f_7s7cPfnkKUTH6JD3qQcvsLNWRdgLehFVaF55iVypoKQ9ELzEy8CVzxphnYHx8CxOQtoWmGAvogKqwsyIkOW2D2krpggXZGR9sxMlKbn3g1BPVjA/s7728/DSCF7372.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="5152" data-original-width="7728" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMpxmK_UXLVLRbQj6qOwxdnp10HM8Vx0O6zkdeDfaHwNNnutaLs1zf6myKn1dVgEqqsT01ifAoRg9f_7s7cPfnkKUTH6JD3qQcvsLNWRdgLehFVaF55iVypoKQ9ELzEy8CVzxphnYHx8CxOQtoWmGAvogKqwsyIkOW2D2krpggXZGR9sxMlKbn3g1BPVjA/w400-h266/DSCF7372.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-ZxhZjG2d52pQpjkcc49NOZbfYXj1ftJ6lLQRAdBRftQ8z6UFJP54qM8gAY0bkuOyECczDh96YESqN-4SMDTjT2W_KoeRUbpp1NU0QhH43afLqmUi27cZMOZgWSooN6U_W3ONdT9qFOOhPbtUhvaUmPwH1i6Ggp3VSiPYOMfqzXFyouC8HTTwnOWDmHD7/s6559/DSCF7415.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4039" data-original-width="6559" height="246" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-ZxhZjG2d52pQpjkcc49NOZbfYXj1ftJ6lLQRAdBRftQ8z6UFJP54qM8gAY0bkuOyECczDh96YESqN-4SMDTjT2W_KoeRUbpp1NU0QhH43afLqmUi27cZMOZgWSooN6U_W3ONdT9qFOOhPbtUhvaUmPwH1i6Ggp3VSiPYOMfqzXFyouC8HTTwnOWDmHD7/w400-h246/DSCF7415.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHmLxvW9ldmcN6KhES5XI4HoXIY2SmWC1mK7Q3WLX0jV-TnVrJ0zbRSgD-p8YNpXQULiAVCwuH1_awj-IrhwzprRwLpazPo_sqpygIJoqg1PU_g47rlyUj0Zrs14VeH6RTl3GueREHbV99Pda_d33SMhcvVX_hq66CE9AlJNific3Xpmf4hV8OCoHLiphl/s5150/DSCF7455.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3433" data-original-width="5150" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHmLxvW9ldmcN6KhES5XI4HoXIY2SmWC1mK7Q3WLX0jV-TnVrJ0zbRSgD-p8YNpXQULiAVCwuH1_awj-IrhwzprRwLpazPo_sqpygIJoqg1PU_g47rlyUj0Zrs14VeH6RTl3GueREHbV99Pda_d33SMhcvVX_hq66CE9AlJNific3Xpmf4hV8OCoHLiphl/w400-h266/DSCF7455.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ_lGGkUPrTGIvQaXRXxj-7AU3yZKhBRkaz1hIxDtvEHAsHJe0m73MWvowz9lbWBdK1aW1GOoQhFI9BzkRr9ydweP4ZqkHjqbfFrXJYKmmDgLDx4N8cwStyw_tSe8UExf1PCiPaA3oIKgc6ujQPOJfBg1xAd-fJGZZrc6qMxDTeAsMhji9LSbwKAOXdE5P/s4938/DSCF7456.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2896" data-original-width="4938" height="235" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ_lGGkUPrTGIvQaXRXxj-7AU3yZKhBRkaz1hIxDtvEHAsHJe0m73MWvowz9lbWBdK1aW1GOoQhFI9BzkRr9ydweP4ZqkHjqbfFrXJYKmmDgLDx4N8cwStyw_tSe8UExf1PCiPaA3oIKgc6ujQPOJfBg1xAd-fJGZZrc6qMxDTeAsMhji9LSbwKAOXdE5P/w400-h235/DSCF7456.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">There is also a cormorant 'fly by' in the last of those pictures...</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYDXBqu5bI-xHZ80HjBGrJFD_UPYMfCbKImTXDNtjIAmvq-nEOP_eqnIcW4zL0onpRpC0aWBGTsRY_5PklUQ7kRWZZ5i3z2Z0c-TknFfY4IS0ePyB04d4BPapo-x0Q2WN5IDsCjUrpOnAE2ObAWupdAGG5xpO017tievajaIIpQLOnBDa-8qqXM5tE0LGc/s6643/DSCF7486.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4673" data-original-width="6643" height="281" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYDXBqu5bI-xHZ80HjBGrJFD_UPYMfCbKImTXDNtjIAmvq-nEOP_eqnIcW4zL0onpRpC0aWBGTsRY_5PklUQ7kRWZZ5i3z2Z0c-TknFfY4IS0ePyB04d4BPapo-x0Q2WN5IDsCjUrpOnAE2ObAWupdAGG5xpO017tievajaIIpQLOnBDa-8qqXM5tE0LGc/w400-h281/DSCF7486.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">And the birds descend into the reeds<br /><br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size: large;">And, lastly, you may wish to view a video I made 9 years ago (yes...nine!) of a fantastic murmuration at Rigg near Gretna - all set to some stirring music by Handel. Here is the link...<br /></span><br /><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dszuxXqlX8E&t=101s"><span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Starling Murmuration at Rigg near Gretna (youtube.com)</span></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div>Neil Ponthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17972266072118776982noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2990648695950808286.post-56354369283685439382024-01-24T13:55:00.000+00:002024-01-24T13:55:56.653+00:00Return to the BLOG via Fuerteventura, 2024<p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">I created this blog during COVID times...and then forgot about it.<br />I have had problems with my "pontartphotos" website so was considering setting up a new website. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">But that seemed rather intimidating, as all I want to do is share my photos beyond what I put on Facebook. So, I thought, why not resurrect the Blog?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Good idea - but I have forgotten what to do!</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">So this is a first attempt to post something to see if I can work the technology.<br /><br />This post shows some of my recent pictures taken on Fuerteventura. We have been there twice: in November 23 with Naturetrek and in January 24 as part of a Jet2 package holiday.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">The island is our favourite 'Canary' and we know it quite well. We hoped to find some new birding locations with the Naturetrek guides and this worked to some extent. In January we stayed in our usual hotel in Jandia and hired a car for a couple of days to get about. I didn't take my normal photography gear in January, just carrying a lightweight bridge camera instead - it showed in the results, but there were a couple of shots of a Spectacled Warbler that is worth sharing.<br /><br /><br /></span><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs-kkDFYZexP3xwqHywavXZgPGvfGzYTSTaJLa6OM9axdqwBvWX1nIRC7R8F1lII_aYbf30O8ZDPFIFcS_Fk_hbciJiEHuKGo0t_3YyWZu7C80upwkyjZqpjf6vtX07LbuyGLXDS8Ff8uAZjTxP58YBIS6bCGaC4fOZEVv6exSSF7_m9aGy1Au11hzMhmP/s2261/DSCF6790.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1642" data-original-width="2261" height="465" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs-kkDFYZexP3xwqHywavXZgPGvfGzYTSTaJLa6OM9axdqwBvWX1nIRC7R8F1lII_aYbf30O8ZDPFIFcS_Fk_hbciJiEHuKGo0t_3YyWZu7C80upwkyjZqpjf6vtX07LbuyGLXDS8Ff8uAZjTxP58YBIS6bCGaC4fOZEVv6exSSF7_m9aGy1Au11hzMhmP/w640-h465/DSCF6790.jpg" title="Houbara Bustard" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Houbara Bustard - one of the main target species</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE3Xv5rGBUgjwNSWSFkvnyAJ2mgxdzFPHhNgq9yzpEUeGQR4EtiEqF0AXDex4wdA5o2fBtX81ZTGn8bq6g4ZLAwUiVnJviVt34-gY5WGyBvlgNFcJOHxCLncCM3gq7tR6pUzF83Sh28CkclmZdIgmuAfhdYOsHx64RdD9RVsMqeULusvk_PgtgoFqibygw/s3975/IMG_1844.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2971" data-original-width="3975" height="478" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE3Xv5rGBUgjwNSWSFkvnyAJ2mgxdzFPHhNgq9yzpEUeGQR4EtiEqF0AXDex4wdA5o2fBtX81ZTGn8bq6g4ZLAwUiVnJviVt34-gY5WGyBvlgNFcJOHxCLncCM3gq7tR6pUzF83Sh28CkclmZdIgmuAfhdYOsHx64RdD9RVsMqeULusvk_PgtgoFqibygw/w640-h478/IMG_1844.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Spectacled Warbler - taken with a Bridge Camera<br /><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">These following photos have all featured on my Facebook page...<br /><br /></span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGzy8gDWx_aMwPoCBCWiCzuG-KbCzjaBHwl01M4YSwQF3oRP9FsCAK4i0-UoFz26QoW18L54-ctA8huKQjsHVt_8r4kJbfT2lSnQ70wvgUQ_hyphenhyphenXUUs9g6TRH0I9iK0pY_hcl2ojrYdWe_UCXFWZaw_NW1SHAvE77m_GmpB6cPUd997s2eC05anPQZKOaaj/s4163/DSCF6267.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2713" data-original-width="4163" height="418" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGzy8gDWx_aMwPoCBCWiCzuG-KbCzjaBHwl01M4YSwQF3oRP9FsCAK4i0-UoFz26QoW18L54-ctA8huKQjsHVt_8r4kJbfT2lSnQ70wvgUQ_hyphenhyphenXUUs9g6TRH0I9iK0pY_hcl2ojrYdWe_UCXFWZaw_NW1SHAvE77m_GmpB6cPUd997s2eC05anPQZKOaaj/w640-h418/DSCF6267.jpg" title="Spanish Sparrow" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"> Spanish Sparrow</span><br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLVSK8Y6Ughub52mFK86wGliWRozXL_XTX-KHN29ZHcF2L3m5iXlD2GP9B0xiyX-xSR9SnO9ltSPySGhyphenhyphenVQhNXaF4XfytqKUKFxlspXpTLrCiy4tpYpra5sgKByZZoEkvXdPDtIvEPz2VepW8D1zcxv25-eu96QRuBjJoo14RSuLnhHVKUaAJ8j04LgXmo/s6685/DSCF6286.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4560" data-original-width="6685" height="436" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLVSK8Y6Ughub52mFK86wGliWRozXL_XTX-KHN29ZHcF2L3m5iXlD2GP9B0xiyX-xSR9SnO9ltSPySGhyphenhyphenVQhNXaF4XfytqKUKFxlspXpTLrCiy4tpYpra5sgKByZZoEkvXdPDtIvEPz2VepW8D1zcxv25-eu96QRuBjJoo14RSuLnhHVKUaAJ8j04LgXmo/w640-h436/DSCF6286.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Berthelot's Pipit</span><br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJatnphEDLFFqByUudzzKZNbZHkl1-XKcTqsRPSfH1meGnfa-8elfMutruH50a7AZA2hpbBM47rAfVI5br3hBsS_QdU2pg3DfwqvlRRe37yQPhfrtYcaGnjMS5dCB_XJlO0IGokEI-LEsdvKJllQotrkOuuSKYnMgFofhv2OnEH0pODvurTlj5GxZD9jGb/s2416/DSCF6057.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2416" data-original-width="2416" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJatnphEDLFFqByUudzzKZNbZHkl1-XKcTqsRPSfH1meGnfa-8elfMutruH50a7AZA2hpbBM47rAfVI5br3hBsS_QdU2pg3DfwqvlRRe37yQPhfrtYcaGnjMS5dCB_XJlO0IGokEI-LEsdvKJllQotrkOuuSKYnMgFofhv2OnEH0pODvurTlj5GxZD9jGb/w640-h640/DSCF6057.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Fuerteventura Chats</span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkF7HO1QcinaW2LIhpQaSRqhQDgy-ZN4JcQwsyDOpUcJfZq6HrHGINcLZnqMTBEnVbP69oxUMucGMdEO64x7Mohg4XGEtfqdtvKCBLVPKANiS4OV6vSrs9xxaEavolKXqKeBsRPoKz3laULaNdSjythN9n8zKEVaEQk5JLNgZvFPTJWrmdesWAcMwiUjV0/s3755/DSCF4965.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2573" data-original-width="3755" height="438" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkF7HO1QcinaW2LIhpQaSRqhQDgy-ZN4JcQwsyDOpUcJfZq6HrHGINcLZnqMTBEnVbP69oxUMucGMdEO64x7Mohg4XGEtfqdtvKCBLVPKANiS4OV6vSrs9xxaEavolKXqKeBsRPoKz3laULaNdSjythN9n8zKEVaEQk5JLNgZvFPTJWrmdesWAcMwiUjV0/w640-h438/DSCF4965.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Egyptian Vulture</span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaI3q7NE5SeQbVmb4EEx5zGx5Uv9_wa7lNOgHnYoKfGerjYLB_XrHeP3SPsI8li35g_5qMOtgaBT5UMQ0RNpif1VBpaUbkwuXHORcaZblcYgJjM6iz2yEFz2dnL6r1R06jxlJLo_HtQIzoKAhSCgO7oEjdSmwK_QNKWusxJ6JoRmYvSNgnzE4-DIASf3sy/s3473/DSCF4757.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1995" data-original-width="3473" height="368" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaI3q7NE5SeQbVmb4EEx5zGx5Uv9_wa7lNOgHnYoKfGerjYLB_XrHeP3SPsI8li35g_5qMOtgaBT5UMQ0RNpif1VBpaUbkwuXHORcaZblcYgJjM6iz2yEFz2dnL6r1R06jxlJLo_HtQIzoKAhSCgO7oEjdSmwK_QNKWusxJ6JoRmYvSNgnzE4-DIASf3sy/w640-h368/DSCF4757.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Great Grey Shrike</span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP5MVcBSYAZdhUztRDfFuXAK9PTG8SMQp_TiozI6QlwNK1C6JTU_ggJcg6fFevB8sp2GPHAYZSdRuGaHys0zpxq7U4To9M3wtsGX0yQvNR7SokrWb8kzAQ19eUKmSeXmFyxE6gtAxdXIriELoFQpdYiQktuTdR_pdZr2cfSxpRz3wlHRuBdzuALtAxevhyphenhyphen/s3825/DSCF6001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2600" data-original-width="3825" height="436" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP5MVcBSYAZdhUztRDfFuXAK9PTG8SMQp_TiozI6QlwNK1C6JTU_ggJcg6fFevB8sp2GPHAYZSdRuGaHys0zpxq7U4To9M3wtsGX0yQvNR7SokrWb8kzAQ19eUKmSeXmFyxE6gtAxdXIriELoFQpdYiQktuTdR_pdZr2cfSxpRz3wlHRuBdzuALtAxevhyphenhyphen/w640-h436/DSCF6001.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Sardinian Warbler</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p><br /></p>Neil Ponthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17972266072118776982noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2990648695950808286.post-4154607739335022672020-08-18T08:51:00.002+00:002020-10-30T10:03:53.595+00:00All (Quite) Quiet on the August Front<p><span style="font-family: arial;">August is a very quiet month for birds - and, for me, this August has been even quieter as I haven't really been out and about. So I thought I would trawl my archives and see what this month has brought in the past. Well, 2019 - nothing. Not one photograph.<br /><br />I've gone back to 2018 and a trip to Washington WWT. There were some good waders on show (so that's two wader blogs in a row...)<br /><br />A smart Redshank...<br /><br /></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzKDymkeTcS05rJ_XglsrCYjcPxD6BmNv0Zahlyxq6T978HWI9ng6MsshcOD8xzo7KrJtOowyNaHSOorvr05SmPmHFXLGXD25ytcTCY_6GSYUeQsjDms5JtXsol6M8Y3pFx34FUdk4bIwz/s1000/redshank2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="923" data-original-width="1000" height="591" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzKDymkeTcS05rJ_XglsrCYjcPxD6BmNv0Zahlyxq6T978HWI9ng6MsshcOD8xzo7KrJtOowyNaHSOorvr05SmPmHFXLGXD25ytcTCY_6GSYUeQsjDms5JtXsol6M8Y3pFx34FUdk4bIwz/w640-h591/redshank2.jpg" title="Redshank" width="640" /></a><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Greenshank...<br /><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1G43m1qBZVYccViJTdTj0ViQKFpFHWmp_YnUy5paBvTj3LUYEAgi-gc68Ch9pU7ZWcg1kteEA3a94p59gp-hgWW4cE1PZGvIhhNwu3o7QLFsMoOyQeZoABSD1gA1V6R9ZfOo1zv_8enZq/s1000/greenshank1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="669" data-original-width="1000" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1G43m1qBZVYccViJTdTj0ViQKFpFHWmp_YnUy5paBvTj3LUYEAgi-gc68Ch9pU7ZWcg1kteEA3a94p59gp-hgWW4cE1PZGvIhhNwu3o7QLFsMoOyQeZoABSD1gA1V6R9ZfOo1zv_8enZq/s640/greenshank1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">A bit further away - and so not such a clear photograph - a much rarer Green Sandpiper...<br /><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNJxHnDsfL1d9o6fu5kImdcNkR56iSvHtIjfaFanJS5ia0GFxKVwLRoj9G61qWExHAunjParIYZ27N7PtJFcfEokF5pQTWMKDXS8JJmmoWvYq6SbqpK2JpFCC0vwQ_cs3hFobPLN4zfXHA/s1091/greensandpiper.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="830" data-original-width="1091" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNJxHnDsfL1d9o6fu5kImdcNkR56iSvHtIjfaFanJS5ia0GFxKVwLRoj9G61qWExHAunjParIYZ27N7PtJFcfEokF5pQTWMKDXS8JJmmoWvYq6SbqpK2JpFCC0vwQ_cs3hFobPLN4zfXHA/s640/greensandpiper.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">On the same main pool, but from a different hide, a Snipe was very confiding...<br /><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDcT0XzKY60uAs0jbRqggq7sYrOOAR5zXHaNJT-fP85pOdirO_FdHKqy2vPNQpfdxAsWnn34K54guLczOOL3hA5LBlQ0fkWqMcOsxeZXVl5d-AsgpKEfqqE0QjDukMfHSlgTcYJTXGUAhK/s1000/snipe1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="764" data-original-width="1000" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDcT0XzKY60uAs0jbRqggq7sYrOOAR5zXHaNJT-fP85pOdirO_FdHKqy2vPNQpfdxAsWnn34K54guLczOOL3hA5LBlQ0fkWqMcOsxeZXVl5d-AsgpKEfqqE0QjDukMfHSlgTcYJTXGUAhK/s640/snipe1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">I remember that I did a complete lap of the site. At the pools which are designed to attract dragonflies I spotted two Emerald Damselflies, egg laying. I've read that the male stays attached, above the female, to stop other males encroaching.<br /><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7Rq6rGjuPK-8qpY5twsHM3fe2V75zNXYurxm8ZJi2_Rj0yfruqQVSE36I68VM0oxQ2PRHDk4VWRW8xkjX1xQNYJAcLD9C7uwl3dU9OeN2rYFMJVPGLcNNMxbXuNQxeXccPaYcaFUHoiHD/s1000/em+damselflies.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="969" data-original-width="1000" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7Rq6rGjuPK-8qpY5twsHM3fe2V75zNXYurxm8ZJi2_Rj0yfruqQVSE36I68VM0oxQ2PRHDk4VWRW8xkjX1xQNYJAcLD9C7uwl3dU9OeN2rYFMJVPGLcNNMxbXuNQxeXccPaYcaFUHoiHD/s640/em+damselflies.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Let's hope I can have some new photos before August 2020 is finished - check back to find out!<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p></p>Neil Ponthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17972266072118776982noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2990648695950808286.post-31124980614397139482020-08-10T13:55:00.000+00:002020-08-10T13:55:27.100+00:00Wade in the Water<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Waders are part of the staple diet of bird-watching in Northumberland. Our wonderful beaches and several nearby ponds always give us access to these charming little birds. <br /><br />And one of the joys is, of course, that they do not hide in trees! <br /><br />On the other hand, identifying them is not always straightforward. We mostly see them in winter, in non-breeding plumage, and they can look a bit similar to each other (well..to me anyway!)<br /><br />A trip to Cresswell Ponds last week brought me a "lifer"... the first time I had seen a Curlew Sandpiper. To avoid disturbing the bird I took my photos at the extreme range of the camera lens - so the pictures were not that sharp. But hopefully you can see the smoothly curved bill, the long white eye-stripe and 'scaled' look to the back and wings.<br /></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_SMHVyzvmUfdaXH6oAQU9jqR74WrZc3mN6zUjhr9G4Fd7x1GAP1ULKt5svX8SOe23Mgy6lIu3h8HDmkm4RG3FOtG3atK7fyVR8xjKRikSpHTCeMm0gw1XcucW3z75t-J0UbK4tPGxCzV8/s1600/CS1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="598" data-original-width="1000" height="382" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_SMHVyzvmUfdaXH6oAQU9jqR74WrZc3mN6zUjhr9G4Fd7x1GAP1ULKt5svX8SOe23Mgy6lIu3h8HDmkm4RG3FOtG3atK7fyVR8xjKRikSpHTCeMm0gw1XcucW3z75t-J0UbK4tPGxCzV8/s640/CS1.jpg" width="640" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />It is about the same size as a Dunlin - of which there were several around the pond - and therefore smaller than the Redshank, here seen next to it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">W<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">hen the Dunlin were sitting on the muddy bank, they were quite difficult to spot...</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #0000ee;">Here you can see the Dunlin, moving from summer into winter plumage, quite clearly..</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /><br /><br />The other wader we see regularly is the Sanderling - one of my favourites - as it scampers up and down our pristine sandy beaches... <br /><br /></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></span>Neil Ponthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17972266072118776982noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2990648695950808286.post-74442918276549606862020-08-04T11:53:00.001+00:002020-08-04T12:10:27.806+00:00Return to the Reserve<br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Yesterday I made my first visit to Gosforth Nature Reserve since the 'lockdown' began. First of all I need to express thanks to the body of NHSN member volunteers who man the gate, so making the re-opening possible. The arrangements that are in place are easy to understand and follow and so the whole experience felt very safe.<br /> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">I made my way to the Ridley Hide - only 2 people in there, so plenty of room (the maximum is 5). There was a Grey Heron right beside the hide...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Quite a few photographers have been posting pictures of Kingfishers and I was delighted that I only had to wait a few minutes before he made an appearance.<br /></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Before I left the hide I managed to capture the Grey heron in a balletic pose...</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOrmZyqrjxLJdT_NkvmGjiaJoIdY15c2nVVagjyRhIr1kNMHnT_ygCOSOrgpYZBaTvKftbWUyIbT8hf9wXhOwtbzIdqGDuPN8nFjVWQ1gJgfrCJ1nVJO-5QHEyZ3nzJDgcAU91vf5thMbJ/s1600/heron2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="743" data-original-width="1000" height="473" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOrmZyqrjxLJdT_NkvmGjiaJoIdY15c2nVVagjyRhIr1kNMHnT_ygCOSOrgpYZBaTvKftbWUyIbT8hf9wXhOwtbzIdqGDuPN8nFjVWQ1gJgfrCJ1nVJO-5QHEyZ3nzJDgcAU91vf5thMbJ/s640/heron2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">From the hide I made a complete circuit of the Reserve. All was tranquil and it was a pleasure to 'get away from it all'. I had the company of Small White butterfly for part of the way...</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHmWWXBS1QoJrs7KFyhnrA4ytC9Kj5AvUiMMXpVNeqFq1zm6G2t2H3_V-7mUnKp7pgFxzdjFDHv5ZFj4piq_rjyF33XoddzsagDpEoNqNxxC7WLqsZxJWe4Hgrlmp97vIhC9HoVdKLX_HG/s1600/small+white.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="791" data-original-width="1000" height="316" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHmWWXBS1QoJrs7KFyhnrA4ytC9Kj5AvUiMMXpVNeqFq1zm6G2t2H3_V-7mUnKp7pgFxzdjFDHv5ZFj4piq_rjyF33XoddzsagDpEoNqNxxC7WLqsZxJWe4Hgrlmp97vIhC9HoVdKLX_HG/s400/small+white.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There is no doubt that I'll be back...</span><br />
<br />Neil Ponthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17972266072118776982noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2990648695950808286.post-38901704644742296562020-07-31T08:55:00.000+00:002020-07-31T08:55:10.438+00:00An eye on the garden<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ6agGV5i-6zTU7fDH2pNE-74dQYCxwDmd5ArGZL-QsNRENyk4YkCGfJns_DRcph15HcSTGIQJwGLNJd7hvZHxsrQ0afWxrlJ73AjG1IlcR-0Z-m94jXPOR91V0wUTQFVGpz_RY1hPmBWc/s1600/colletes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1000" height="306" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ6agGV5i-6zTU7fDH2pNE-74dQYCxwDmd5ArGZL-QsNRENyk4YkCGfJns_DRcph15HcSTGIQJwGLNJd7hvZHxsrQ0afWxrlJ73AjG1IlcR-0Z-m94jXPOR91V0wUTQFVGpz_RY1hPmBWc/s400/colletes.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">During my daily perambulation around the Pont-Black Towers estate I came upon a bee I hadn't spotted before.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />After some book research and consultation with Charlotte at the <a href="https://www.nhsn.ncl.ac.uk/" target="_blank">Natural History Society of Northumbria</a> it was identified as a Plasterer Bee (Colletes sp.)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Plasterer bees get their name from their method of smoothing the walls of their nest cells with
secretions applied with their mouthparts; these secretions dry into a
cellophane-like lining. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My first thought was that it was an Andrena species (Mining bees) but Charlotte put me right:<br /></span><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"These bees are what I call ‘humbug bees’ because of their stripes
like that of humbug sweets - it’s a Colletes, and most likely
daviesanus.They look very similar to Andrenas but the strong pale creamy bands
on their abdomens and heart-shaped faces help to identify them. They
are also a big fan of Ox-eye daisies because they collect pollen almost
exclusively from plants of the Daisy family.
So if you see a small stripey gingery bee on Ox-eye - it’s very likely a
Colletes!"</span></i><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNMK_5muHb5uoNIWIfK1S-cF-LVpvG0_696BJLc9Ht8GkRYQUS93_o090RFmyQN-nLQcgTgxp7VSl6phGxL-79sl7CEw5p-BIEdq_v5oIFViezD-CQg7MYTBZKgqBptJ5T8aq8n2Q3qrQZ/s1600/colletes1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="833" data-original-width="1000" height="531" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNMK_5muHb5uoNIWIfK1S-cF-LVpvG0_696BJLc9Ht8GkRYQUS93_o090RFmyQN-nLQcgTgxp7VSl6phGxL-79sl7CEw5p-BIEdq_v5oIFViezD-CQg7MYTBZKgqBptJ5T8aq8n2Q3qrQZ/s640/colletes1.jpg" width="640" /></a><i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></i><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Ox-eye Daisies are right next to a few Poppies and a vagrant Sunflower - which has been seeded by the birds that come to feed. They seem to chuck more seeds on the ground than they eat! The colours were bright and forms of the flowers and seed heads particularly attractive - so I couldn't resist some photos:<br /></span><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWvUWx6Rs9T0j9WNo_aLx84CXtyxl5QFTsclKNVFvXqLUT3c19IumlRwkLJyTepHCVjTrLNgJ4vmf0eVDoz4l6WA_4-T1-XYKu1aqaYhuACsJalKtT9YRZQkZAwkrsH2Q9yDzG1VAToCWh/s1600/poppy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="872" data-original-width="1000" height="556" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWvUWx6Rs9T0j9WNo_aLx84CXtyxl5QFTsclKNVFvXqLUT3c19IumlRwkLJyTepHCVjTrLNgJ4vmf0eVDoz4l6WA_4-T1-XYKu1aqaYhuACsJalKtT9YRZQkZAwkrsH2Q9yDzG1VAToCWh/s640/poppy.jpg" width="640" /></a><i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></i><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0GWeFJqN5rtcbgyyNhD3XxaaHg54CoDqITQZW65s8ryOIyCHfsTqg48TKQY6VMIdmcVd2wLReZ465jcq46UUjXxv03Qor_STY8Q2WzDxXilbepSlc2t7s-Ud4gz6D1M20-XUdQeCzKlQ7/s1600/sunflower.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="825" data-original-width="1000" height="526" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0GWeFJqN5rtcbgyyNhD3XxaaHg54CoDqITQZW65s8ryOIyCHfsTqg48TKQY6VMIdmcVd2wLReZ465jcq46UUjXxv03Qor_STY8Q2WzDxXilbepSlc2t7s-Ud4gz6D1M20-XUdQeCzKlQ7/s640/sunflower.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Call back on Tuesday for more Forest Hall musings...</span><i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></i>Neil Ponthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17972266072118776982noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2990648695950808286.post-25705841910823981692020-07-30T14:31:00.009+00:002020-07-31T06:44:00.335+00:00First entry in new blog format! It's warm Oop North now....<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5ssXkPsqLks_QmNHZY-tV6-Gt7NtUYOG7Nqk_WhyUSKGQp1K6DOlSUOpN_K9oYdGynZuwehZ-muvfYWh5ceEKC4JT9PW4jq2sqxhJ0r93mVvlH0iv2qE0zL3OLhyK9L6gQ4XcLZK0SJvO/s1600/egret+avocets.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="536" data-original-width="800" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5ssXkPsqLks_QmNHZY-tV6-Gt7NtUYOG7Nqk_WhyUSKGQp1K6DOlSUOpN_K9oYdGynZuwehZ-muvfYWh5ceEKC4JT9PW4jq2sqxhJ0r93mVvlH0iv2qE0zL3OLhyK9L6gQ4XcLZK0SJvO/s640/egret+avocets.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial";"><br />When I visited Cresswell Pond on Sunday I was able to take this picture that would have caused quite a stir until very recently.<br /></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">Avocets did not breed this far north until 2011 - and then not very successfully. Here there are 4 juveniles on show. Little Egrets were an occasional vagrant but are now regularly seen - in fact 16 were counted at this location this year. I've seen them throughout the North East and photographed this one at RSPB, Saltholme...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">Their cousins the Great White Egret are now seen more regularly too. My best photographic opportunity with one was in India...</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht2udQILv2C_UslVTSAi_FQyUP6GYM2Qha3J2I2eee2M0Wgh2ziXGY47O3M59UM6hN85iYazU1wR8PlpjAOmO4dP1fF_m81KbgM2m91qXVI-mPs2W6GzlDperWGS2quSG_LiGTHcJJuTjg/s800/great+w.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="548" data-original-width="800" height="343" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht2udQILv2C_UslVTSAi_FQyUP6GYM2Qha3J2I2eee2M0Wgh2ziXGY47O3M59UM6hN85iYazU1wR8PlpjAOmO4dP1fF_m81KbgM2m91qXVI-mPs2W6GzlDperWGS2quSG_LiGTHcJJuTjg/w500-h343/great+w.jpg" width="500" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">A Cattle Egret has been reported at Cresswell too. I haven't managed to track it down as yet. This small egret is usually found (believe it or not!) around cattle - as was this one in India...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">The Squacco Heron is a much rarer visitor altogether. But this stunning bird was very common on the Danube Delta when we visited Romania...</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioZktCR3VJn_VTpvWAPRyunDW2iNEUn-OCwwLtRfArbv0NzUSuvgd_t9ngLV0Gmpt_c9VYv6jFwDVSOA3obGXkMcI1KanCaouXD1r0UD_V9KV-YSbhBfirikCfkhw6x2PExCFvLAnx4pV8/s800/squacco.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="646" data-original-width="800" height="404" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioZktCR3VJn_VTpvWAPRyunDW2iNEUn-OCwwLtRfArbv0NzUSuvgd_t9ngLV0Gmpt_c9VYv6jFwDVSOA3obGXkMcI1KanCaouXD1r0UD_V9KV-YSbhBfirikCfkhw6x2PExCFvLAnx4pV8/w500-h404/squacco.jpg" width="500" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">Of course our most common bird in this family is the ubiquitous Grey Heron, often seen standing sentinel waiting for lunch to swim by...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">And lastly, those Avocets again - this time with a Curlew, the symbol of the Northumberland National Park.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">A wide range of my photographs can be found on my website: <a href="http://www.pontartphotos.co.uk/">www.pontartphotos.co.uk</a></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "arial";">Comments on this new format and ease of finding this blog gratefully received...</span></b></div>
Neil Ponthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17972266072118776982noreply@blogger.com1Newcastle upon Tyne, UK54.978252 -1.6177826.668018163821152 -36.77403 83.288485836178836 33.53847