Norfolk in October

My family and I spent a long weekend in the bird-filled county of Norfolk at the beginning of October. Unfortunately for a birdwatcher like myself the weather conditions were not conducive to the arrival of many migrants or rare birds. It was sunny and calm nearly every day, unlike the end of the month which was dominated by easterly winds and fog; these conditions produced large falls of thrushes and other passerines on the east and south coasts, but also unfortunately resulted in the demise of many birds that landed in the sea exhausted.
But back to my weekend in Norfolk. Pink-footed Geese were arriving in reasonable numbers and the one continental migrant that I saw regularly was the Jay. The only rarity of note during my stay was a Pectoral Sandpiper at Kelling Water Meadows, it has been a good autumn for this nearctic wader and this was my second sighting of this species this year.
We stayed on the outskirts of Cley in view of the famous windmill, and were treated to good views of Barn Owl most evenings. The nearby reedbed at Cley Norfolk Naturalists Trust Reserve also held good numbers of Bearded Tits.

There seem to be an inordinate number of pheasants around at the
 moment. As this photo shows they are beautiful birds, but they
have a significant detrimental effect on our native invertebrates.

This Blue Tit, the Long-tailed Tit and the Pheasant were all
photographed in the cottage garden at Cley.

A stunning male Bearded Tit at Cley.

This Barn Owl was observed catching a Shrew, which was duly
 stolen by a Kestrel; fascinating behaviour.

Barn Owl before being mugged.

Lapwing at Cley

Dunnock in its usual brambly habitat.

Juvenile Pectoral Sandpiper at Kelling, record shot.

This Chaffinch and juvenile Goldfinch were photographed at
Burton Mere in Cheshire at the end of September while waiting
and failing to see a juvenile Sabine's Gull.

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Wildlife of the Azores

Liverpool Marathon

I haven't had much time to post recently as I have been to Norfolk (photos coming soon) and I've taken part in a couple of local races.
On the 30th of September I ran the "A" race along Cheshire's picturesque Sandstone Trail. This route starts in Duckington and finishes in Delamere, a distance of 17.1 miles with 655m of climbing. It was the first time that I had raced the whole route but I had left my Garmin on the kitchen table so I didn't judge the early pace very well and went off too fast. I paid for this later in the race when I slowed considerably but I still managed to run up all the hills. I was the 33rd finisher and the second in the M50 category. It was all a training run for my next race, the Liverpool Marathon.
I haven't run an Autumn marathon before and with the start for the Liverpool Marathon being only a couple of miles down the road I decided to enter this local event. I normally train for 16 weeks for my Spring marathons, but I entered this race quite late so attempted to cram my training into just 8 weeks.
The morning of the 14th dawned clear and cold; a weak autumn sun brought little warmth to the thousands of runners gathered under the trees in Birkenhead Park. From here it was possible to see the Anglican Cathedral on the other side of the River Mersey, not far from the dreaded hill of Upper Parliament Street 18 miles along the course. The race started promptly at 9.30 and 3,500 marathon and 1000 10k runners started on their individual journeys.
The course took the runners across Four Bridges then along to New Brighton, where the 10k finished. The marathon runners continued along Egremont Promenade and enjoyed stunning views of the historic Liverpool skyline. From here the race re-crossed Four Bridges and went into the Birkenhead Tunnel via Hamilton Square. The tunnel was eerily quite after the cheering and singing in the Square; only the sound of breathing and the patter of running shoes broke the silence as we crossed the half-way point. That was until we approached the tunnel junction that leads to the waterfront; a distant drumming was heard that increased in volume as the runners approached the exit. As we burst into the daylight we were greeted with the inspirational beats of the Batala drum band combined with rapturous applause from hundreds of supporters; this is what marathon running is all about!
The sun was shining brightly now so I was glad of my sunglasses. A mile out and back brought us back past the drum band then under the shadow of the iconic Liver Buildings. A few more miles and I was plodding up Upper Parliament Street. My family had gathered at the top of the hill and passed me a welcome energy drink. The course then wove through Princes Park and Sefton Park. It was here that I slowed and almost came to a halt. Marathon running at these times is totally psychological, mind over matter; your legs don't get you through the tough miles your brain does. I took stock as I plodded under the yellowing leaves on the trees, glad of  the sparse support here, making use of the relative quiet to have a think. Only 5 miles to go including a nice downhill, so I ignored the desire to stop and walk and dug in and pushed on.
Those last few miles went surprisingly quickly and I managed to pass a few other runners, some of whom had been reduced to a walk. I passed the 25mile mark as I increased my speed down Upper Parliament Street, glancing at the masses walking up the hill some 7 miles behind. Running along the Strand I could see the Liver Buildings in the distance so I knew the finish was not far. I rounded the corner at Mann Island and blew kisses and waved at the crowds as I crossed the line in 3 hours 18 minutes. I was 167th overall and 12th in my age group.
I celebrated with a few beers and a burger in Albert Dock. It was a well-organised race and a fabulous experience, I'll probably be back next year.

The Finish of the Liverpool Marathon - photo by Adam Scovell

Looking rather shattered just after Beeston
Castle on the Sandstone Trail

Near Maiden Castle, I'm still smiling (far left).
Sandstone Trail photos courtesy of
Andrew Williams (Inspiring Images).

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Snowdon Mountain Race

Insects and birds

A few recent sunny days have provided me with the opportunity to make use of my macro lens; taking photos of mainly butterflies and dragonflies. The Pectoral Sandpiper at Inner Marsh Farm a week ago was too distant for anything other than "record" shots, so the Red Darters and Small Tortoiseshells were more than welcome. A beautiful Comma butterfly spent a few days in my back garden feeding on one of the many Sedums. A trip to Leighton Moss RSPB reserve produced sightings of Otter, Marsh Harrier and Kingfisher, but again all too distant for photography, the commoner birds were much more obliging.

 



Comma, making good use of the new decking, photographed in
 my back garden.

Red Darter, Inner Marsh Farm. Note fly prey in top photo.
 

Small Tortoiseshell, Inner Marsh Farm.
 

Grey Heron, Leighton Moss RSPB.

Moorhen, Leighton Moss RSPB.


 

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Butterflies, Dragonflies and BMX

Leighton Moss

BBC Wildlife Magazine

I read my first ever issue of BBC Wildlife in June 1984; with a bumble bee on the cover, it was placed carefully next to my bowl of Rice Krispies as I came down for breakfast. I haven't missed a copy since, but little did I think that one day my photographs might grace this illustrious magazine's pages.
I had a picture of a Ladybird Spider printed last year, and this October's issue has one of my Spotted Dolphin photos; it's a real thrill to see my photos in print.

Atlantic Spotted Dolphin and calf in the Azores.

Ladybird Spider, Mount Ipsilou, Lesvos, 2011.

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Dolphins

Spotted Dolphins in the Azores

Spotted Dolphins in the Azores

One of the highlights (and there were many!) of my boat trips with Futurismo on the island of Sao Miguel in the Azores was the sighting of Atlantic Spotted Dolphins. These charismatic cetaceans were seen on nearly all my boat trips. They were a species that I really wanted to see as I had not seen them before; and what a treat they were, bow-riding, leaping, breaching, diving and throwing themselves around with reckless abandon. And on one memorable occasion a large pod of "spotties" swam at great speed, porpoising in a long line adjacent to the catamaran that was itself motoring at a rate of knots.
This species only appears in the waters around the Azores in the summer months when the sea-temperature is high enough for them. The younger animals are plain grey and become more spotty as they mature. Om some of the photos grey calves can be seen swimming with, presumably, a darker, more spotted parent animal.
These playful, engaging dolphins are one of the reasons that I fully intend to return to the Azores.

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Common Dolphins in the Azores part2

Common Dolphins in the Azores part1

Butterflies, Dragonflies and BMX

I returned to Llandegla in North Wales last Saturday afternoon with my son Adam as the weather was still looking good for photographing insects. After lunching on some excellent food in the cafe (mentioned in The Times' Good Food Supplement!), we walked down to the reservoir where I had had good views of butterflies last week. Although it had clouded over somewhat there were still reasonable numbers of butterflies on the thistles. So we spent a happy few hours filming and photographing.

Peacocks were the most abundant butterfly present with about a 

dozen seen in one small area.

At least two Red Admirals were feeding on the nectar, this is

 one of my favourite butterflies.

 The underside of the Red Admiral is cryptically coloured,

 probably to camouflage the butterfly during winter hibernation.

Only one Small Tortoiseshell was seen, a beautiful insect that has

sadly declined in number in recent years.

A few Black Darters were seen, mainly the yellow females as pictured

here.

This Common Lizard was seen warming up on a metal grid.

 

No trip to Llandegla would be complete without a ride on the trails.
I'd ridden these jumps before on my mountain bike, but doing them on
my BMX was something new and great fun! 

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