Keith speaking. I have been the subject of some criticism because I publish a blog reference some stunning birds and do not back them up with pictures. Lets be clear, one, I do not have the equipment to the take images. Two, I lack the technical expertise to add these images, imported from elsewhere, to add to the [...]
Red kites, common Buzzards, ( I hope you have been watching spring watch)? The camp site in Switzerland is located in a fertile valley,the ideal habitat for raptors. Buzzards are common and presented some very good close quarters views. It was also visited by red kites on a regular basis. The buzzards must have a [...]
Yes its a bird, don’t groan. As it’s name suggest it is a type of finch, a little bigger than a sparrow, about the size of a green finch. The male is a very handsome feller with a golden crown and an awesome beak. That beak, apparently, is capable of exerting a pressure equal to [...]
It is nice to see birds behaving in a way which Keith had nearly forgotten. Swallows feeding low, less than a metre above the ground. Others that are not alarmed by your presence. Whilst walking along the road a group of jackdaws were feeding on the verge, as I approached they gave me a cursory [...]
In a field next to the site are a couple of ponies, one of which looks rather shaggy as it is shedding its winter coat. A jackdaw was perched on the ponies back pulling out hair, the pony did not seem at all concerned and carried on grazing. The jackdaw flew off with its beak crammed [...]
We heard and saw our first cuckoo of 2010 at Kinderdjick. A male, it was sat on the sail of a windmill.
Most bird watchers, not twitchers please, have a bogey bird. It tends to be a species that is neither rare or difficult to see but, for some reason evades all the efforts of the birder. It can be frustrating, when as an active conservationist, by choice, you work in habitats in which the bird is known [...]
We were on a site near Tiverton in Devon, as usual Jan wanted to feed the birds. One morning we put some food out on the grass, along came Dyson the mallard, we know it was Dyson, it hoovered up the lot.
Talking to people who know the area, both locals and those who have been visiting on a regular basis for a number of years, it is obvious that numbers are down or non existent. One can only assume that the bad weather as kept them away. White storks, normally counted in hundreds down to double [...]
The area around Santa Pola/GranAlacant is, in my opinion, an area much under-watched. In the short time I was there I compiled a list of 35 species, such as, Osprey, Marsh Harrier, Great grey shrike, Black winged stilt and Pink flamingo. Add to that a few more that, for various reasons, I could not identify. [...]
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