Cannop After The Snow

Over the last few days theres been quite a lot of snow in the forest but today its blue sky and sun so I'm spending an hour round Cannop Ponds to try and get images of the Little Grebe which are in residence

Its quite, the carpark has been closed by the forestry commission as its full of snow, the ponds are also frozen apart from the top end where all the wild fowl have congregated, mandarin, tufted and mallard in the main, little grebe constantly calling with that high pitched trill squabbling for territory, the sun is a little harsh for photography but still I'm happy to be out in this wonderful part of the country.

Sitting on one of the fishing platforms with the sun behind I'm quite near to the only area of water thats not frozen, an elderly couple throw bread for the wildfowl and the shy tufted ducks come close, in the sunlight the male's head with that beacon like yellow eye show iridescent green and purple colours not usually seen from this black and white duck.

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Tufted Duck (male)

Tufted Duck (female)

Return to Lunt

On my last trip to Sefton I was hoping to photograph the Snow Bunting on Crosby Beach before then moving on to Lunt Meadows for the Short-eared Owls late afternoon. On that occasion I was successful with the Short-eared Owls but dipped on the Snow Bunting. You can read a review of the trip on my previous post.

Today its a return to Crosby Beach to complete some unfinished business and get images of the Snow Bunting which is still present in the area, if time allows include another visit to Lunt Meadows for SEO as its only some five miles away. 

After the not so good weather over the last couple of days, the weather forecast is for a cold, sun and blue sky day, so with another sighting of the Snow Bunting yesterday I'm again off to Crosby Beach optimistic for another grand day out. 

Parking up in my usual spot I make my way to the now familiar location, walkers with dogs of various shapes and sizes are heading for the beach to enjoy the sunshine but birders are few and far between always good to help locate the bird so it looks like a solo effort. After about an hour I decide to walk the beach high tide line hoping for a sighting, heading north with the sun behind the light is prefect, but walking back its impossible to see with the blinding sunlight. 

Its now some two hours since my arrival with no sign of the bunting I don’t waist the opportunity and take some images of the one hundred or so life size statues scattered up and down the beach by the artist Antony Gormley. The sight of so many statues sticking out of the sand is some what surreal, in one image someone have dressed a statue in a leather jacket.

I’m now back at the reported location where the bunting is seen more frequently, then overhead I can hear the budgie like call of a Skylark, I look up and see four or five birds, one light brown with a wide white wing bar…..its a Snow Bunting, the birds disappear over the dunes in a southernly direction towards the docks thinking thats it I'm never going to find them again, with nothing to loose I though what the heck and head off in that direction to try my luck.

I’m walking directly into the sun light which makes it difficult to see, in front a couple of Skylarks are scuttling about in the tide line picking out food morsels from the rubbish, then…bingo, its the Snow Bunting. Continuing along the beach some two hundred metres I manage to get the sun behind and slowly move a little closer to the SB, the bird dose the rest moving towards me. Over the next thirty minuets or so I mange some three hundred images before dog walkers spook the bird further down the beach. Relocating the bird I manage a brief last session before the bird finally disappears over the dunes. A quick review of the back of the camera and I’m confident I have some useable images and head back to the car for a hot coffee before heading to Lunt Meadows

Lunt’s carpark is full, perhaps it’s something to do with the sunny blue sky with great light and the fact that seven Short-eared Owls were seen the day before !. Making my way round to the location of my last visit I set up and wait….and wait…and wait…..the owls fail to show. 

Its now 3.30 pm and the light is poor pushing the ISO way up I decide to call it a day. On my way back to the car I do have the bonus of seeing the resident pump house Barn Owl making a brief excursion down the river bank before returning with meal, a nice tick to finish off the day.

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"Another Place"......by Antony Gormley

An army of iron statues look out to sea from Crosby Beach, a must visit to see this surreal, haunting artwork by Antony Gormley, and maybe even explore its unique coastline.

About six miles north of central Liverpool is located Crosby Beach, here you'll find the striking public artwork "Another Place" by the world-famous British artist Antony Gormley.

The work consists of one hundred cast, life sized figures spread over two miles of coastline. They reach approximately half a mile out to sea, being increasingly submerged and revealed as the tide come in and out. Each figure weighs just over half a tonne and is made from casts made of the artist's own body. To see them all together is an impressive sight.

Initially the plan was for the work to keep moving to different locations around the world, it has already lived in Germany, Norway and Belgium, but upon arriving on Crosby Beach it was quickly agreed with the artist and the local authority that the iron men had found their true home