Waxwing Week

Unexpectedly I have been watching waxwings again this week.I enjoyed some excellent sessions with waxwings around Christmas and New Year.There was a flock of around one hundred birds present at Barrow village near Whalley and many photographers and birdwatchers came to see them.So it was a great surprise this week to see they were back at Barrow village.There was a flock of around forty birds coming to feed at a cotoneaster tree in a nearby garden.

I made two visits to see them,the first was curtailed by heavy rain but I did manage one or two shots before I had to head for home.Of course I was keen to return and the following day I was there again.The waxwings were still there and were coming down at regular intervals to feed on the cotoneaster berries.I was not alone and Eric kept me company and we enjoyed some excellent views and photographic opportunities with these wonderful waxwings.Eric left later and I stayed on a while until suddenly around 2.30pm the birds suddenly departed.I also departed for home having enjoyed yet more excellent views of these very special visitors from Scandanavia.Hope you enjoy my efforts shown below and I will be back soon with more of Lancashire's wonderful wildlife.

Yarrow Valley...Valentine's

I hadn't visited Yarrow Valley Country Park for some time.I had heard that the kingfisher had been showing well recently at it's usual spot so I went for a look.As I arrived David and Jackie Moreton were just leaving having spent a couple of fruitless hours waiting for the kingfisher to show.I went to the channel between the top and bottom lakes and joined half a dozen or so other photographers waiting patiently.

Eventually around three o'clock the kingfisher suddenly appeared and all the cameras were in action.The kingfisher stayed for around an hour,perching,preening and catching fish.Although the light is never just right at this spot I would have thought that everyone went away happy with their efforts.As well as the kingfisher a handsome male goosander appeared nearby and provided some nice opportunities for the camera.The usual nuthatches,robins etc were also coming frequently to seed left for them.All in all then Valentine's Day at Yarrow Valley had been excellent with good company and a brighter day for a change.Some of my better efforts from the day are shown below.Thanks for looking in and I will be back soon.Enjoy the weekend.

Around The Lanes

The weather recently has been for the most part very dull and depressing.Consequently I haven't been out much with the camera.One or two afternoons were slightly brighter and better and I took the car for a ride around the lanes in the Pilling and Cockerham areas.Spring was in the air and ir was nice to see the snowdrops in bloom.Brown hares were becoming active and there were still decent numbers of wildfowl and waders in the area.

A selection of images are shown below of the wildlife.All of the images were taken from the comfort of the car which is always very useful as a mobile hide.The kestrel on the lookout for prey takes pride of place.Lapwings and curlews on the flooded fields were numerous throughout the area.It was nice to get a couple of close ups of Whooper and Bewick's swans showing the difference in size and bill pattern.Wild geese were also found in various locations,mainly pinkfeet but I did manage a couple of shots off white fronted and barnacle geese at Pilling.The geese are also shown in flight as they moved around the area.The final image shows a nice sunset over Pilling church.Keep tuned for more from my travels and hopefully the weather will brighten up and warm up in the days to come.