Garden Colours.

I have been out of sorts for about a week ... can't remember when I last suffered from a winter cold but I'll be glad when if finally disappears. I finally manged to get out for a stroll in the last two days so while I sort through the stored images here are a few recent odds and ends from the garden. 

The wary Reynard made another brief visit.

Narcissus starting the brighten up the bare border.

Scilla siberica (possibly 'Spring Beauty')

Greedy Parakeet wants to know who's watching.

Blue Tit checking if anything is lurking below.

Another delightful find was the reemergence of the short stemmed Leucojum vernum var. Carpathicum. 

The Hellebores continue to produce more faces every day.  

Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to publicly thank Dawn for the invitation to feature The Early Birder as UK blogger of the week on BirdingBlogs.com   FAB. 

Reynard Returns.

Continuation from previous post .....
After disappearing for an hour or so the young urban fox returned but this time I was actually in the garden doing some weeding and the camera was close at hand. It casually walked across the border and decided to lie down behind a bare stem as if trying to hide! 

As I tried to get a better view my movements were closely monitored but this creature seemed totally unfazed by my reasonably close presence.

It eventually moved further in amongst the limited foliage and laid still for a while before slowly taking its leave and disappearing through the hedge. 

Just another magical wildlife encounter.   FAB.

Unexpected Daytime Visitor.

For many years the local urban foxes have used our garden as their nightly route in search for a free meal around the local streets. Their high pitched 'yap .. yap' calls, howling and barking is often heard in the wee small hours. Very occassionally we get a fleeting daytime glimpse when  one slinks down the garden path and disappears through the hedge or over the boundary fence but today was a different scenario.

Just before midday today I spotted a young Reynard creeping very slowly through the garden stopping every now and then to sniff around various plants while also showing some interst in the movement and calls of the Blue Tits feeding overhead. I rushed upstairs for the camera and when I returned downstairs I was surprised to see this animal still moving closer to the house. This series of shots were taken through the window which wasn't ideal but I didn't want to scare it!

He or she eventually crossed our small patch of lawn and settled down just beneath the patio whilst trying to appear inconspicuous beneath the surrounding foliage.

Obviously aware that someone was watching!  This soulful looking creature eventually decided to sneak out of the garden but this wasn't to be the only encounter ..... watch this space.   FAB.

A Full Backpack Day.

To satisfy the curiosity of a number of my readers here are images of the new backpack that was fully loaded in readiness for a day out with Graham yesterday who kindly acted as taxi driver and collected me at 6.45 am. 

Our first port of call was Epsom Ponds where we managed to spot a female Mandarin Duck hiding amoungst the waterside vegetation. Also present were Black-headed Gull, Mallard, Grey Heron plus Great Spotted Woodpecker and a Robin were heard. 

Graham then drove to the Wey Navigation close to the remains of Newark Priory where we followed the towpath towards Walsham Lock producing more Mallards, Mute Swan, a pair of Kestrels hunting over the water meadow, Lapwing, Jackdaws, Starlings, Woodpigeon, Collared Doves, noisy Parakeets, House Martins, Swallows, Blue and Great Tits. a Great-spotted Woodpecker plus a Goldfinch. We also had an interesting conversation with the local farmer who explained that his cattle loved eating the waterside Himalayan Balsam with apparently no side effects. A few Banded Demoiselles were also resting just above the water.

Further along the towpath this barge owner stirred up the water, much to the annoyance of the fishermen, while attemting to move his craft 'Wendy Woo II' away from its overnight mooring. 

We stopped again and chatted to this fisherman who was interested in my camera gear and revealed that he raised butterflies and is releasing Brown Argus at a site very close to where I live. The only flutter we saw was a Speckled Wood plus male Common Blue Damselflies. We crossed over the weir to check around the lock for any Grey Wagtails but there was no sign of them today. While retracing our steps back to the car we picked up the call of a young Common Buzzard and eventually watched it fly to leafless tree but our efforts to get closer for a photo proved unsucessful as it moved further away.

The weather forcast suggested light showers at around 10.00 am so Graham suggested a trip over to Kempton Park Nature Reserve as he has the necessary codes to gain access. This reserve was created in 1995 by Thames Water but I have never visited before so this this would be a new location to explore and it has hides in case the wether turned foul.

As you can see the water levels are very low and much of the old reservoir floor is covered with sphagnum moss. From the first hide we located Mute Swan, Grey Heron, Cormorant, Mallard, Coot, Moorhen, Tufted Duck, Little Grebe, a single Greenshank, several juvenile Pied Wagtails, Sparrowhawk, Black-headed Gulls, Parakeets flying over and Swallows. On our casual stroll to another hide we watched Common Darters, Meadow Browns and Common Blue butterflies. Bottom right image is a very tatty female Common Blue. Blue and Great Tits were also seen at a feeding station.

While eating our packed lunches in the last hide a young Reynard appeared from amoungst the vevetation and sat at the side of the water intently starring in our direction. After an apprehensive look at the water he eventually crossed to the other side and disappeared only to return and swim back while all the resident Mallard and Coots gathered together, totally unfazed by his presence, to watch him get wet again. After a quick shake down he then decided to run back and forth just like a young teenager letting of steam before disappearing back into the leafy undergrowth.

We also had slightly closer views of the Greenshank feeding together with a Common Sandpiper and one of the Grey Herons and a Mute Swan came close enough for the camera. A number of Green Woodpeckers were also spied around the reserve. Another enjoyable day out in good company...thanks Graham.   FAB.

Local Patch Exploration.

For the first time in many years I decided that the time had come to check out the wildlife possibilities closer to home without using the car. We live right on the edge of an area of 'green belt' that comprises arable farmland, a Country Park (including an Equestrian and Sports Centre) with extensive horse paddocks, small pockets of deciduous woodland, a number of very tiny ponds and rough pasture. After leaving the housing estate the path takes me past very noisy dog kennels and the uphill between the farm fields. Occupants in the fields were Carrion Crows and Magpies. Robin and Blue Tit in the hedgerow with very noisy Rose-ringed Parakeets passing overhead.

All the horses I saw have already donned their winter jackets.

View over the extensive paddocks

While unsucessfully trying to get shots of some Redwing feeding on berries, constantly disturbed by dog walkers, I spied this Fox traversing the grassland and disappearing into one of the small woods. Shortly afterwards a Stoat shot across the path in front of me. As expected Woodpigeons are common and I also saw Collared Doves, Green Woodpecker, Kestrel hovering over the nearby Cottage Hospital, Greenfinch plus overflying Black-headed and Herring Gulls.

My homeward journey through Castle Hill Woods produced the most avian activity; Blue, Great and Long-tailed Tits feeding high in the canopy, Jay, Blackbird, Crows, plus Nuthatch calling and at long last the chance of snapping a male Great Spotted Woodpecker. (The pic had to be heavily cropped).

Who knows what I will find on my next exploration but I may need to go out very early to beat the dog walkers!  FAB.