Oyster catcher

The camera hasn't been very rewarding lately. The field where I usually watch a barn owl was used as an overspill car park for a local museum, the grass was flattened and therefor the voles scarpered and left nothing for the owls. The foxes still visit the garden but I don't fancy sitting up till 3 in the morning on the off-chance of a shot. I did pop down to the wetlands for coffee one day and got this shot from one of the hides of an oyster catcher hiding in amongst the daisies. It now sits on one of my birthday cards, hoping that it sells well.

Still keeping busy

With my age is creeping up on me and I am not so avtive as I would like to be. Nevertheless some of my wildlife visits me in my garden. With my infra-red cameras I can go to bed at night and let my visitors photograph themselves and I can study the results in the morning. This is Beatie the fox a regular caller for his supper..

I get out in the car on some nice evenings and I have a favourite spot where I can sit in the car and photograph through the drivers window and you would be surprised at some of the creatures I get. This barn owl is one of a pair. I think they have young nearby, so I have my fingers crossed.

From the same spot as the barn owl I look out the other side and I and I have this steep chalk cliff the remains of a quarry and high up near the top is the nest site of a pair of peregrines. I am not sure whether they have been successful this year so my fingers are crossed for that one too.

This is the male, he's getting quite used to me, although he is a long way off.

I got both male and female in this shot and I didn't notice the wood pidgeon fly across but the male peregrine certainly did. Lucky wood pidgeon.

Still looking

I am being tormented at the moment. EE and BT cannot make up their minds on whose fault it was when I was cut off for over a week because of a loose wire in a box down the road from me. I lost my internet, my home phone and safe-link which is very important for Jacque's welfare. On top of that I have to drive a couple of miles from my home to get a signal on my mobile. Not even a letter of apology. On top of this the hedgehogs have been driven away by the people next door, builders a hundred yards away from me have cut down trees that shaded the site they were working on which has disturbed the birds nesting and on top of all this my village has been classed as one of the most polluted places in the country. No wonder there is a lack of wildlife here, except of course the peregrines who never seem to let me down.

Barn Owl

 The hedgehogs having disappeared from my garden and no news on the badger, I took a trip down to see how the peregrines were doing, no luck there either. While I was searchig for signs of the peregrines an old friend turned up.

I have been photographing this barn owl for some three years now, he made one pass when I was able to grab a couple of shots before he flew into the  into the bushes.

And there he stayed. It was cold and damp so I left him to it and headed for home.