Leighton Moss Waders

Back in September I spent a couple of mornings at Leighton Moss RSPB Reserve in Lancashire. The target was waders and hopefully some nice reflective shots. Of course things never really go to plan and with a breeze picking up on the first visit, the perfect mirror reflection was never going to happen. On the second visit the levels were so low that there was more mud than water. Still, a few good shots were taken and here's a selection.

Black-tailed Godwit

Greenshank

Great White Egret

Greenshank

Greenshank

Spotted Redshank

Dunlin

Little Egret

Scarce and Rare Birds on the Wirral

With a period of Easterly winds the Wirral got more than it's usual share of rare and scarce birds over the last week or so. At Burton Mere Wetlands RSPB Reserve (or BMW as it is known) there was a good list including a Red-necked Phalarope, Cattle Egret, Little Stints, Curlew Sandpipers and Pectoral Sandpiper. Some of these were present for most of the week, if not longer.
Tied in with some high tides I spent a couple of days out with the camera to see what could be done. BMW isn't great for photography and from the old hide unfortunately the birds are a little distant. So this would only be good for record shots. Still, I had a go and managed to photograph the Red-necked Phalarope and Pectoral Sandpiper.

Red-necked Phalarope

Pectoral Sandpiper

On the North Wirral coast I photographed Curlew Sandpiper on the beach at Hoylake and the diminutive Little Stint which was roosting with about 500 Dunlin at Leasowe.

Curlew Sandpiper

Little Stint

Here are some of the more common species I encountered in a productive couple of days with a bit of decent sunshine.

Dunlin (It's not marching)

Grey Heron

Mute Swan

Ringed Plover (juvenile)

Sanderling

Breeding Plumaged Dunlin

Another of the breeding waders from the Uists was the Dunlin. I seem to have gone a little overboard with them, with nearly a thousand images to sort through I finally narrowed them down to eighty six to add to my website. Here are a chosen few.

Dunlin

Continuing with the local waders I have recently been photographing, here are a few Dunlin. I have added many more to my main website.

My Favourite Images (2)

The second in the series of some of my favourite images.

Brahminy Kite
Photographed in Goa, India. One of two wild birds that were very tame due to being fed fish scraps since they were young. This is a full frame image taken with a 300mm lens.

Corncrake
A bit of time and patience was rewarded with close views of these birds on the Outer Hebrides in Scotland.

Cuckoo
This juvenile bird was here locally a few years ago. It was late summer and very overdue for its migratory trip south. It gave a week of photo opportunities which I made the most of. I believe these wing stretches were part of it's final preparation for it's long journey ahead, this was the last day it was seen here.

Dipper
I was set up in a hide on a private stretch of river for this shot. After several days without a Dipper coming close, one eventually performed for over an hour right in front of me.

Dotterel
Taken on the same trip as the Corncrake. A group of these birds were very approachable, as I crawled on my stomach to get within 20ft of them.

Dunlin
Taken locally at a high tide winter roost.