Stephen's Wildlife

The Great Spotted Woodpecker

I have had to wait a long time to get a photo of a great spotted woodpecker. I make no apology for the fact that this picture was taken at a public hide at Holton Lee. We have regularly driven past on our way to RSPB Arne, but had not ever visited. I was awoken this morning at 7:00 am by an excited 7 year old. He reminded me that I needed to get up and make bacon “butties” today for our first visit to Holton Lee.

We burst into the hide at about 9:00 am. It was raining and we were pleased to get under cover. There were two serious wildlife photographers already occupying the hide. They were so kind and patient as my two boys and I shattered the whispering atmosphere. They offered the boys the best seats for viewing the bird feeders and engaged them in conversation, encouraging their enthusiasm and sharing stories of the birds they had seen.

We managed to settle and were rewarded with many different woodland bird species landing on the feeders in close proximity, including this great spotted woodpecker.

There are 140,000 pairs in the UK and this population is growing. The bird itself is about the size of a blackbird (22-23 cm).

The Curlew

At between 50-60 cm, the curlew is the UK’s largest wader. It uses its long down-curved bill to probe into soft mud for food. The UK population of 68,000 pairs is after a 25% decline in recent years. Although it breeds in uplands on boggy, grassy and heather moorlands, it is also seen at coastal estuaries and marshes, particularly in winter months, where UK residents will be joined by migrants from Scandinavia, western Europe and Russia.

Yesterday morning I spent a couple of hours in the company of two or three other enthusiasts exploring the wildlife at Stanpit Marsh, Christchurch (UK). It was only my second visit to the site. The sun shone, but we still needed to wrap up to keep ourselves warm. We were rewarded with some stunning views across Christchurch Harbour as well as some quite diverse bird species, including several Curlew.

Stanpit Marsh – looking across Christchurch harbour toward Mudeford

Brent geese (foreground) against Christchurch harbour background

Full moon

It was another clear night, a degree or two warmer than a few nights ago when photographing the waxing gibbous moon. My set up is a DSLR camera body attached to a telescope. Everything is manual, rather than auto, so I had to take one or two test shots to get the exposure and focus right. I had the telescope on a tripod and to get the picture as sharp as possible I used the camera’s 10 second self timer to reduce any blurring from camera shake.

I am a child of the late 50’s and so remember the excitement of the various Apollo missions. I remember names such as the ‘sea of tranquillity’. In the picture above it is the darker patch half way from the centre to the edge between 2 o’clock and 3′ o’clock. Kid’s programmes such as Thunderbirds introduced us to the ideas of space stations and miniature communication devices and computers.

I never quite got to grips with the scale. I didn’t then know that the moon is on average 238,000 miles from earth. The Sun is, on average, 93 million miles from the earth. For anything further away people began to talk about light years and my eyes began to glaze over.

There is a mystery to the universe. I think it is great that science can unlock secrets and technological advances have made it possible for me to take photos of the moon from my back garden with such clarity. But I hope I never lose that sense of mystery…

The Woodpigeon

Easily overlooked, this is one of the UK’s most numerous birds. There are over 5 million pairs. Not to be confused with the slightly smaller Feral Pigeon seen in city centres.

The woodpigeon is predominantly blue-grey. It has a white patch on its neck, a white crescent on the wing and a dark grey/black band on its tail.

The Magpie

The collective noun for a group of Magpies is: a mischief of Magpies. Allegedly, the Magpie can recognise itself in a mirror. It has a reputation as a thief both in culture, e.g. The Thieving Magpie (Rossini), and with gamekeepers for taking eggs. Sightings of the bird are linked to superstition: “One for sorrow, two for joy…”. I have known people who actually have an antidote phrase they speak out whenever they see a group of Magpies.

The bare facts: There are 600,000 pairs in the UK and the population is growing as they adapt to more urban settings. The oldest ringed bird lived for more than 21 years. The bird appears as black and white, but when seen close up there is an iridescent blue/green sheen to the wings and tail. They will eat anything.

The Skylark

There are 1.5 million Skylark territories in the UK. My own sightings have been quite limited. During the summer I got a handful of shots at a local National Trust area of open heath and grassland: Badbury Rings. The bird is slightly bigger than a sparrow, but smaller than a starling.

The skylark usually sings in flight as it hangs in the air over its territory.

Waxing Gibbous

Last night was cold. Temperatures were close to freezing. The sky was more or less cloudless. The moon shone brightly and could be clearly seen despite the light pollution. We are in the 7 day phase between a half moon and full moon, the phase of the moon technically referred to as waxing gibbous. Sailors are aware that this is where the tides move from neap to spring. The gravitational pull of the moon moves from being at right angles to the sun’s force (half moon) to being in line (full moon).

The Pied Wagtail

There are 470,000 pairs of Pied Wagtails in the UK. We’ve seen them on open school playing fields, Stonehenge car park, Chesil Beach skate park and tennis courts and most recently at Stanpit Marsh. Bill Bailey refers to them as ‘car park’ wagtails in his book, “Remarkable Guide to British Birds”. Its flight is undulating, but very often it is seen walking or running. And, of course, when on the ground it will bob its long tail up and down exhibiting the behaviour that gives the bird its name.

The Blackbird

There are 5.1 million pairs of Blackbird in the UK. Most are resident, but some are migrants from northern and eastern Europe. The adult male is matt black, with a yellow-orange beak and ring around the eye. First year males, such as the ‘victorious’ one pictured above, have brown flight feathers.

Territorial fight between an adult and a first year male

The territorial fight pictured here occurred earlier this year and was between an adult male and a challenger, being a first year male. Both birds completely ignored me and my cat as we watched the fracas unfold. The younger bird appeared to win on points, but both birds continued to visit, albeit at different times.

During the summer we had a number juvenile birds in the garden, including this blackbird.

The Teal

Although fewer than 2,800 Teal nest in the UK, it is estimated this population increases to 220,000 in the winter due to migration. We saw these birds at Stanpit Marsh this afternoon, just north of Christchurch, UK, where the rivers Stour and Avon feed into Christchurch Harbour. These ducks are a little smaller than the Mallard. The male has a chestnut brown head, green eye-patch and yellow patch on the side of its black tail. The female is slightly duller.