More Salmon

I have made a few visits over the last few weeks to the upper River Ribble to try and capture the salmon as they leap the falls on the way to the spawning grounds.It is not easy to capture the action and on my visit last Friday with Paul we sat at the rverside for over three hours without seeing a single fish.Maybe the run is now over till next Autumn so I have decided to post a few more images from my previous visits.
Nearly all the fish are very dark in colour sporting their breeding colours having lost the silvery look as they have travelled many miles since leaving the sea off the Lancashire Coast.It has been a very interesting time trying to capture the leaping salmon and some of my better efforts are posted above.Martin and Paul are also shown perched on the rocks above the falls with cameras at the ready to capture the action.Thanks for looking in and hope you enjoy my efforts shown above.

Salmon Watching

Recently I have visited the upper River Ribble near Settle to watch and try to photograph the migrating salmon as they make their way upstream to the spawning grounds.There has been a lot of rain over recent weeks and this has aided the salmon on their long journey.A few years ago I would have been trying to catch them on rod and line but these days I prefer the camera to record the action.
I joined numbers of fellow photographers and onlookers as we watched for leaping salmon trying to negotiate the falls on the River Ribble.It was not easy to anticipate the leap and be fast enough with the shutter to capture the action.Perseverance and concentration was the solution and eventually we all managed to grab some decent images.
It was very enjoyable on this beautiful stretch of the Ribble and we all had a great time trying to get some memorable shots.I have shown above some of my efforts and was reasonably pleased with the results.As usual though I will probably return to this delightful spot to try and capture some more action.I think there will be more salmon yet trying to negotiate these upper reaches of the Ribble in a bid to reach their birthplace high up in the hill country. Thanks for looking in and enjoy the weekend.

Shapes In The Sky

As you will be aware the BBC Autumnwatch programme recently came from the RSPB Reserve at Leighton Moss in Lancashire.We all enjoyed nightly the various topics and live footage from the reserve.One aspect that featured was the murmurations of the starlings as they flew in to roost in the reed beds.These murmurations can provide some exciting viewing as the starlings take evading action as they are pusued by sparrowhawks and peregrine falcons looking for an evening meal.
I joined the assembled "crowds" surrounding the reserve to await the arrival of the starlings.It was a beautiful evening with a spectacular sunset and about thirty thousand starlings duly arrived.They didn't disappoint us and performed some wonderful aerobatics before settling down for the night.I have shown above some of my images taken in fading light but which still hopefully show some of the wonderful shapes that were drawn in the skies above Leighton Moss.Hope you enjoy my efforts to convey this spectacle and if you get the opportunity to visit Leighton Moss in the next month or so you should be guaranteed a memorable experience.Thanks for looking in and my next installment will be about the salmon which are currently running up our northern rivers to spawn in their birthplaces high up in the headwaters. 

Thousands Of Pinks

Last week I made a couple of visits to Martin Mere at Burscough.Over twenty thousand pink footed geese were on show,coming and going during the day.It was quite a spectacle to see this number of birds in the air and the sights and sounds of the geese as they arrived in big numbers is difficult to describe in words and images. It is really something to be experienced first hand but I have tried to convey some of the magic with my images above.The geese took over completely one of the meres and fields at the back of the reserve and excellent views could be had particularly from the United Utilities and Ron Barker hides.
Also present at the Ron Barker hide was a kingfisher which gave wonderful views at times and delighted those present in the hide.I have posted a few images above from my visits and hope you enjoy them as much as I certainly did in taking them.If any of my followers get the opportunity to visit Martin Mere it is well worth while at the moment.As well as the flocks of geese there are also a number of raptors present.During my visits I also enjoyed views of peregrine falcon,marsh harrier kestrel and sparrowhawk.Thanks for looking in. This week I am hopefully going fishing,with the camera that is,to try to capture the salmon as they make their way up the rivers following the heavy rain of recent days. 

Glossy Ibis...Horwich

This week I went for a look at the long staying Glossy Ibises present close to Bob's Smithy at Horwich.I had seen some excellent images of these uncommon visitors and decided to try to get some for the portfolio.It was a dry day but the sun never really came out which would have been better but I had an excellent session with these very approachable birds.They were feeding in amongst cattle and were constantly on the move.Their very long bills were used to probe the pasture and wet ground in their search for food which appeared to be mainly earthworms.
They went out of sight but I found them in a rushy area of the hillside and I was able to approach to within a few yards as they moved around me.They were not bothered by me being so close and allowed some nice shots as they fed together.There were two birds feeding around me the other two having departed to a different part of the hillside.
Shown above some of the many images from the day,hope you enjoy my efforts .My only regret was not getting any decent flight shots of these impressive birds.I hope to return on a nice sunny day, that is if the ibises stay in the area. Thanks for looking in and enjoy the weekend.