South Shropshire - Goshawk

There's one bird guaranteed to quicken the pulse and that's a Goshawk. Here's some rather distant pics from today of a rather special raptor!!

Stunning!

Venus Pool - Green winged Teal again

 The Venus Pool Green-winged Teal is an unpredictable bird, either skulking out of view or just occasionally showing quite well! Today it was a case of the latter and the sun was shining!

Here's a couple of paddle by sequences...

And from the left...

Need the perfect angle for that green display too!

Venus Pool - Ruff

A smart Ruff, first decent wader of the year! Shame it was rooted wandering the middle 'Stump island'. Just one pic will do methinks!

First of many?

Whixall Floods - Cetti's Warbler poses

 Lady luck shone down on me once more with the Cetti's Warbler calling and showing once more at Whixall Floods!

Lucky to get these virtually full frame images!

A magic moment, now where's that water Pipit??

Whixall Floods - Water Pipit

With the Cetti's sorted once more, what would be the chances of the Water Pipit appearing? Amazingly it did but I struggled to get decent pics of this rather scruffy specimen with the sun behind it!!

Never mind, they all count!

Whixall Moss - Short-eared Owl

 A Merlin flashing across the path at Whixall Moss today gave me no chance of an image but it was a different story for an obliging Short-eared Owl...

Never that close but never that far away! Always magical to stand there and watch...

And the sun which threatened to shine... DIDN'T

These pics were part of an extended pass against the perimeter trees befire it disappeared from view.

Only to return minutes later, prey clutched in the talons!

Another long wait until next winter beckons!

The Mere Ellesmere - Med Gulls in the roost

 Another try for the Kumliens Gull proved to be yet another dip with the only decent gulls amongst another huge roost: at least 3 adult Mediterranean Gulls plus 1 Yellow-legged Gull.

The meds were almost photogenic but given the low light and distance, a study in black and white...

Here's the first adults till developing it's hood...

Another fully hooded gull flying in closer...

Showing well at the front of the roost!

Kumliens will have to wait then!

Whixall Moss - Marsh Harrier

Two down from the other day and one to go? I was alerted by a short show of aerial combat between the Black-headed Gulls and what could only be a Marsh Harrier! And of course it was.... Distant!

Never an easy bird in Shropshire...

Whixall Moss - Hen Harrier and Short eared Owl

Three good birds were on the cards with a bit of effort at Whixall Moss and I'll settle for the distant views I managed of both Hen Harrier (Ringtail) and Short-eared Owl! As for photographs, a non-starter really with both never much nearer that 400m!

Hen Harrier giving me five fingers to the primaries.

Short-eared Owl.

Need to do much better really but only a short window of opportunity and the Moss is a big place...