Welney Winter Landscapes etc

Final images from Welney showing the frozen water and frosted vegetation, and some of the birds around the centre.

RSPB Frampton Marsh Birds

Overcast but largely dry day for our RPS Nature Group visit to Frampton Marshes. Not ideal for distant photography, but I did enjoy the landscape (later blog post) and a few birds came close enough for portraits in habitat. Frampton is renown for its huge flocks of ducks and waders and also Raptors - we  enjoyed views of Peregrine, Merlin and, for one Member, Short-eared Owl.

Garden Birds

A lot of activity in the garden today with up to 6 goldfinches feeding on the various seed heads (so glad I haven't been tempted to clear these away yet). They were joined at the feeders by Longtailed Tits - now in pairs as breeding starts, Greenfinch, Starlings and, for the first time this year, a Siskin.

Rain Stopped Play at Lakenheath RSPB

The first part of the day was fine and very good for insects as virtually no wind so lots of damselflies (variable and azure shown here), Hairy Dragonfly, Crane flies and Emphid flies. The Hobbies were busy catching the insects but unfortunately too high and the sky too grey by the time I dragged myself away from the insects and spiders. The rain arrived around 1 pm as these wet Goldfinches show.

Frampton Marshes RSPB Reserve on a Wet Windy Day

The forecast promised dry weather by mid-day in the Boston area so we headed north. Instead it got steadily wetter and windier during the day. However, the bird life made up for it. Shown here are a cold Goldfinch, Egret, juvenile Ringed Plover, Common Sandpiper, Ruff, Pied Wagtail, Meadow Pipit, Blacktailed Godwit in flight and Dunlin

Wicken in the Snow

 It was very cold and snowy at Wicken this afternoon and the birds were very argumentitive on the feeders.