A very "Nutty" Weekend

Well 5 days running and the pair of Nuthatchs are still here..... Great fun to watch. They have even been brave enough to feed close to the house on the patio.

however I have yet so capture the male & female in the same frame.... lets call it work in progress. I like the following image with the nicely caught blink of an eye!

Of course the other regulars are still in good numbers and busy during the day, especially with the slightly cooler nights

then there is this lady..... she has actually got a very poorly hind leg, looks like tree burns from the climbing.

She has been a bit of a nightmare recently with burying the largest acorns you can imagine all over the lawn, as soon as you turn your back she scurrys down, however peeking out of the tree here she does look cute.

New Visitor..... and about time too.

With the feeding station up for almost 3 years its about time this chap visited. The Nuthatch had become  the garden bogey bird.

After a short while and a lot of commotion its partner turned up. They spent the whole afternoon fighting off everything else that got in the way of the feeders, while stashing the rather expensive sunflower seeds into every nook and cranny of the adjacent trees.... so maybe just maybe they will return to retrieve the stash then.

another typical Nutty pose!

A matter of life and death

and thats just in the garden..... Early morning on the lawn shows a struggle..... of great proportion. Near the feeders are small feathers scattered, further along more feathers this time bigger, Damn! its the purple Feral Pigeon, one of my favs. Ferals come in all sorts of colours... purples, browns, whites but mostly grey. I had a soft spot for this feral pigeon only for the fact it was different... well purple, I have a soft spot for the brown one too. They roost on the middlewood way under the road bridges that criss cross the cycle track below. This one has met an end via one of the Local Sparrowhawks. A large female normally patrols in the area and often glides thorugh the garden and perches in a fir tree ready to spring a suprise attack, but recently a male and juvenile have made a few visits, especially early mornings. I wonder if this is one of those?.... meanwhile life goes on for the other garden regulars, and 5 more ferals patrol the lawn, maybe missing its pal, but probably still looking for a juicy morsal

***update***
Ok, it has been back to finish breakfast.... for over 2 hrs. It looks like a young female Sparrowhawk.

about the Incoherent Ramblers

Started off as a works walking club by myself and a colleague, it has expanded to family and friends.... and friends of friends. We plan a walk once a month for ten months of the year. The white and dark peaks are on our doorsteps and quite rightly we spend alot of time in either Staffs, Derbyshire or Cheshire..... sometimes venturing further afield to Lancashire and Cumbria. We dont have many hard and fast rules... all are welcome, but be prepared to walk around 12 - 14 miles....... I lied, we do have a few rules.... we try for a trig point and the mid way stop must be a real ale pub......hoorah!!
here is a linky thing http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/?sk=2361831622

The link should..... if it works, give you some indication of where we are going next on October 3rd..... so get yer walking boots on.

some images from our August walks in Ullswater & Shap

Gigrin Farm

While on the subject of Raptors, this is Gigrin Farm...... the Red Kite feeding station in mid Wales. 200+ Red Kites along with Ravens & Buzzards feed here mid afternoon everyday, and what a spectacle to witness, I have been lucky and visited a couple of times over the last few years.

Non stop action.... the Buzzards do manage to stand their ground whilst being bombarded from all angles by the Kites

Mirror image

in good numbers

Within touching distance

Matts Falcon day - a fast forward for WBW

I have dragged this post up from my archives for two reasons..

Firstly I have been lazy and not been out too much over the last week but secondly I have got a day out at the same Bird of Prey centre as a birthday present from the youngest. As you can see from the post below this was Matts day out and I was the photograher..... the roles will be reversed for my visit and Matt will be the photographer while I get up close and personal with the raptors.

Matts day out at the local raptor centre allowed him to handle some stunning birds while I took the pictures. This Bald Eagle was actually perched on the Gauntlet when I took this portrait of this handsome bird

Of course the real reason we were there was for this:

There is a point when you just cant look at each other any longer

Screeeech

How handsome am I?

Big bird......

concentration.....

The iconic Cat & Fiddle

this was taken while I was on Axe Edge Moor, the sun turned the cloud and sky orange and the silhouette of the long and winding road to the pub is awe-inspiring..... of course their is no mistaking the Cat & Fiddle

how different it can look with a change in the weather!

Tuesday 14th Sept 2010:

What! Sunshine.... well almost. Inbetween showers the sun did try to shine a little. This Greenfinch allowed me close enough to get this shot. Poor thing has a tick on its neck, it didnt seem to hinder it in any way, although the birdbath proved to be a tad tricky.