I’d been reading about a tawny owl that roosts out in the open in the middle of an urban park for some time. Well, the story goes that an owl called Mabel took up roost in 2007 but was last seen in 2017. So… is this Mabel? Unlikely sadly given the life expectancy of wild…
Tag: UK wildlife
A Thrush Visits from Asia
I’m not one really to “twitch”, but when a bird turns up from Asia or similarly far afield, and it’s not too far away, I’ll always pop along out of interest and maybe get some photos along the way. Most vagrants don’t show well enough to get decent photos, so when I heard a black…
Spoonbills at last
The last two weekends I have spent a bit of time at a nearby spot called Abberton Reservoir. The main reason being two spoonbills showed up and have been most accommodating with where they decided to hang out I.e. not miles away from a hide but right in front of a road going over a…
Adder Love
I love reptiles in general but the adder holds a special place. Yes, they’re incredibly beautiful with their zig zag patterns and the male’s silver appearance post-shed. Their red eyes contrasting against the browns and greys of their skin. Maybe it’s the danger element too, the fact that you’re so close to Britain’s only venomous…
North Yorkshire Cliffs – May 2019
I finally managed to get up to the seabird sites of North Yorkshire in May, over 25 years since my last visit. Perhaps a few metres less to see thanks to coastal erosion 😉 but was great to be back. We started at Bempton Cliffs where thralls of gannets, razorbills, kittiwakes and guillemots clung to…
Weald Amphibian Survey
A few weeks back I joined the Essex Amphibian and Reptile Group on a survey of ponds in the Weald Country Park near Brentwood. Led again by the awesome Graham Hart we met at 19:00 to lay down transects of traps at one location before making our way to another to survey the sides of…
Short-eared Owls of Wallasea
This last winter was a special one. I finally ventured to Wallasea Island RSPB reserve to try and see the short-eared owls that everyone had been telling me about. After several failed attempts at Rainham Marshes, I thought I’d give it a go. My first visit was pretty late in the day but as I…
Thursley Common – May 2019
GI’d heard a great deal about Thursley Common and how incredible the habitat there was for reptiles and birds, not to mention invertebrates. So, one long bank holiday weekend, I decided to head over. It was clear that, with a dip in temperatures that week, any reptiles would be few and far between. Nonetheless, I…
Dormouse Survey Essex
Just before Easter 2019 I was able to join a dormouse survey in a local wood. To say I was excited… I had never seen a dormouse in the wild, let alone to prospect of getting close to one. Graham and the team were on hand to train up volunteers and get them comfortable enough…
Wildlife Wander 