Back 0n'th Moor's

Ashworth Moor - 21.8.10

It's only a short drive from the village up on the moors around Ashworth Reservoir and again I'm out early hopefully improving on previous images of the pipits and wagtails that are often on passage through the area at this time of year.

I'm on the look out this morning for Meadow Pipits that sometimes can be found associating with groups of Piped wagtails constantly moving around between the reservoirs waters edge and adjacent fields, with luck get some images when they momentarily land on the surrounding stone walls.

What I like about photographing at this location is the moorland in the distance gives the image an uncluttered dark background, and if the weather is cloudy with some rain all the better as it can give a dramatic dark looking image

Work in progress

Meadow Pipit

Rainy Morning on Ashworth Moor

Ashworth Moor/Road - 3.9.18

Having driven along Ashworth Road recently I was surprised to see thirty or forty Wagtails amongst a lot of other passerines flying about feeding along the road wall, so as I had a morning free and it's only a short drive away I though I'd have a look if they were still there and if any images were on offer.

It's a little damp as I head up passed Nutters Restaurant but at the top of the hill it's low cloud and raining, I'm not too bothered as on occasions I enjoy a walk in the rain, not generally good for birding and certainly no good for getting the camera out, never the less I throw camera pack on my back, and set off.

I start my walk is along the south side of Ashworth Reservoir, the rain and the mist is making it difficult to identify birds at long range but I do tick off a couple of Goosander and five passage Ring Plover and maybe around two hundred or so Swallows. Now at the far end near Ashworth Nursery there's not much else on offer as the birds are doing what I should should be doing, keeping under cover so I decided to head back to the car.

Now back in the car I can see along the road wall loads of Pied Wagtails both adults and this year juveniles feeding on the grass bank and then returning to the road wall, at last a chance of some images. It's still raining and the lights not that great but using a slowish shutter speed it could produce some interesting images.

Photo opportunities are a bit hit and miss as the usually quite road has the local farm tractor trundling up and down bring in the newly cut grass, as soon as the tractor passes the wagtails and pipits all scatter back over the wall into the fields

An hour has passed and it's all gone quite so with some ok images on the card and still wet from my walk, I decide call it a day and head back the sort drive for a warm cupper.

Pied Wagtail

Soggy Pied Wagtail

Pied Wagtail - this years juvenile

Meadow Pipit

Rocking in Gwent

I’m back down in the Forest of Dean this weekend at one of my favourite times of the year. Autumn has taken its grip with the trees now a mixture of golden browns with some still hanging on to the last of their summer green. Whilst I’m in the FOD it's my intension to photograph the Rock Thrush that's taken up residence in Pwll-Du Quarry at the top of the Blorenge mountain just over the boarder in Gwent.

Rock Thrush a summer migrant to the high peaks of southern Europe making it a rare sighting in the UK, even stranger it should now be wintering south of the Sahara in Africa instead it's taken up residence in a quarry in Wales !

Having seen some splendid images over the last couple of weeks on various internet birding sites I was keen to have a look for myself, it's too far as a one off “twitch” for me these days but well worth a visit if I'm down in the FOD, and its only thirty minutes from the house.

I arrive at around 8.0 am just as its becoming light and already two two cars are parked up, I get the gear ready and make the one kilometre walk with another birder with stunning views over Abergavenny below to the quarry the reported location of the bird. One of the disadvantages of being in a small group is it takes a little longer to locate the bird. I search the quarry rock face and boulder fall and after about thirty minuets the bird is located on a grassed area in front of the quarry eating an early morning breakfast of meal worms put down earlier by birders and photographers.

Over the next three hours I enjoy close views of a very confiding Rock Thrush down to distances as little as five metres well within range of the “big white” for a some detailed images of the bird. 

Its now around midday and with some 1,500 images in the bag and the viewing gallery now around fifty birders enjoying some mega close views, I call it a day.

I’ve been told some last minuet shopping is on the agenda for this afternoon...doh !

Click image and view full screen

Common Rock Thrush (Rock Thrush)

Meadow Pipit

It's a Warm Day !

Well it’s last day of my spring migration “reci" trip which is turning out to be photo min break. Today being the warmest day very aptly I’m off to the beach, particularly the sand dunes at Playa La Torre where the previous day I had seen a pair of Stonechats between the broad walk and the beach, so camera at the ready I thought I'd try and photograph. 

On arrival I was surprised to see “squadrons” of Cormorants possibly up to 300 number in groups of twenty or so heading up the coast towards the Mar Menor, as I was concentrating on the Stonechats I kept missing the chance of a good light flight shot...so it's was back to the task in hand. 

Stonechats can be somewhat difficult to get near, so with a some patience sitting quietly eventually an opportunity will present its self, here are the images….

Male & Female Stonechat

Click image to view..

Meadow Pipit

On the way back to the car I noted two Audouin’s Gull with amazing red and orange tip bill sat a puddle in the middle of the carpark, so being a little obvious in the empty carpark stealth mode was required, on my front to get a little closer I managed to obtain these images

Note the ring on the right leg of the bird in the last image

Next location was to move up the coast to look for waders on the beach at Playa Merendero de las Salinas, you park up in the Park Natural carpark near the San Pedro salinas port and walk along a boardwalk to the beach…..what beach? it was covered from the waters edge to the high tide line in dead sea grass to a depth of at least 200-300mm washed up over the winter.

At the waters edge as expected were Turnstone, Little Ringed Plover, Sanderling, Dunlin, Redshank etc. Suffering the ever present blood sucking insects I grabbed the shots I needed and retreated to the safety of the car

Last stop for the day is the north side of San Pedro salinas at El Mojon which is mentioned in a guide i recently read, unfortunately access to the salinas is no longer possible but it was worth a visit to check the site out. 

In the overflow channel to the sea the usual species could be found including male and female Mallard and a very obliging Little Egret. 

All too quickly my time is over for this trip, its back to the accommodation for my mum’s dinner and my evening flight back to the UK. 

I will be back in April…