Brown – Stephen's Wildlife

A gaggle of greylag geese

A gaggle of greylag geese gathered on the surface of the lake,
The honking, calling and squawking increased in intensity,
A crescendo of sound filled the air.
First one, then three, then seven and thirty birds took flight,
The air now filled with feathers, as well as sound.
They flew low over the water, getting louder and larger, straight toward me,
“Duck!” I thought.
“Don’t be silly!” I chided, as I enjoyed the intensity of sight and sound.
They flew so close, I could almost reach out and touch them.

Climbing trees

Within walking distance from home we have a woodland area. I was delighted on Saturday’s excursion to capture this image of a treecreeper, so named due to their behaviour of scaling a tree starting at the bottom and jerkily working their way up. Their colouring is so well camouflaged that it is only the movement that catches the eye.

We are permitted to leave the house once each day for exercise. There is no time limit, but there can only be one outing. The outing has to be local, which is a little subjective. Fines have been issued to people driving over 5 miles. Taking a flask of tea has been interpreted by some police forces as an intention to have a picnic – not permitted. There has been quite a media blitz to gain public support for the lockdown.

The rollout of the vaccine continues. At present about 10% of the UK population have received the jab. But it’s still going to take a few months before the current restrictions are lifted.

Buzzard taking to flight

Winter had denuded the deciduous tree of its foliage. Long, spindly branches reached toward the grey, cloud covered sky. On one of the uppermost branches sat a buzzard, still and silent, surveying the surrounding scene. The only movement was the head rotating, presenting a profile first one way then the other of its dangerous hooked beak. Suddenly with one powerful beat of its outstretched wings it was airborne. It circled overhead a couple of times and then was gone disappearing eastward over a hedgerow heading east toward a mix of woodland and open farmland.

Colours of change – autumn to winter

These images observe and record the colour of the Dorset countryside as the season transitions from autumn to winter. The sun shining low in the sky cast long shadows and either back-lit subjects photographed against it or created strong light when facing away from it. The overriding colour recorded here is brown, with one or two colourful exceptions, such as the blue tit with its blue, yellow and green plumage.

The animals and birds seemed curious. Not all dashed for safety at the first sign of a human, but a few were content to stop, stare and assess the danger. The deer particularly held my gaze for quite some time before being spooked. The female stonechat was bold perched on a teasel very close to me and was in no hurry to move on. Others were more skittish – the heron took to the skies at the first sign of human presence.