Hollywell Dene Waterfall

After an early finish from work yesterday I headed to the coastal woodland of Hollywell Dene to take some long exposure shots of the mini waterfall situated half way along the woodland trail.

Unfortunately as I was exiting the dene, whilst attempting to photograph a Shield Bug, my SLR came up with 'Shutter release ERROR!' and as I took the lens off the mirror fell off!

There are however, two upsides. Firstly its still under warranty so fingers crossed I can get it fixed painlessly, and secondly I have a brand new Nikon SLR arriving on Monday which luckily I ordered on Tuesday. I'd been wanting to upgrade for a while.

Was this fate? Who knows, either way its great timing and I can't wait to get to grips with my new camera body.

David

North North East

Winters Gibbet - Monument To Murder

Ominous, lonely, bleak, eerie, historic and somewhat atmospheric; Winter's Gibbet is situated near the small village of Elsdon, along the edge of Harwood Forest and is a reminder of a murderously dark deed dating back to the 17th Century.
This afternoon I took a drive up to Winter's Gibbet for a spot of photography, the weather was overcast and not brilliant but if anything it adds to the murderous vibe of the site and I attempted to grab some shots that encapsulated the remoteness of the location.
Unfortunately the Gibbet has been completely replaced, so its not original but it does still serve as a reminder of what once was.
I'm looking forward to getting back up here one evening and trying some dusk and even astrophotography, I only hope the ghost of William Winter doesn't decide to keep me company.

David
Nature North East

Sericomyia Silentis; One of many insect species amongst the moorland vegetation.

Dusk Photography At Seaton Sluice

As has been apparent in my previous blog post, I've been frequenting St Mary's at dusk to try and work on some coastal landscape photography; on Thursday night I turned my attention North towards Seaton Sluice and Rocky Island.
The weather was fantastic, however a few more clouds in the sky would have really increased the drama I wanted in the shots. Overall I couldn't find the shots I was after, I attempted to salvage what scenes I could and was relatively happy with what I achieved.
I have ordered a few ND filters to help with the brightness of the sun so until they arrive I have to make do with what I can.
I'm really enjoying my foray into coastal landscape photography; it really makes a change from wildlife photography, which I still do but have put on the back burner for now as I try to hone my camera craft towards landscape scenes in the North East as oppose to amateur wildlife shots.
- David
Nature North East

Sundown At St Marys

It may be one of the most overly photographed and cliched sights of the North East, along with Sycamore Gap, Holy Island & Bamburgh Castle but St Marys Lighthouse is a true icon of the glorious north.
I can't resist driving five minutes from home to the iconic lighthouse on an evening and taking a few shots. I'm really trying to improve my knowledge and practical experience with landscape photography at the moment and while I still have a tremendous amount to learn I'm finding this a stunning location to do so.
Oh and the local wildlife is always a bonus.
David
Nature North East

A Shortie & A Sunset

Short-Eared Owl; F5.3, Shutter Speed: 1/2,  280mm, EXP: +2.3

I decided to end a night of job interview prep with a chilled hour of photography on the coast. A beautiful evening with stunning light and a surprise encounter with a Short-Eared Owl; absolute magic!

David
Nature North East

Brilliant Brampton Breeding Bucket List Bee-Eaters

On Friday morning I read the fantastic and surprising news that two pairs of Bee-Eater had bred in Cumbria, with a total of six birds present in and around Low Gelt Quarry, just off the A69 and not far from Brampton.

I remember having a conversation about twitching with a colleague in the RSPB and I said that I wouldn't consider myself a big twitcher, its just something I don't really do. That being said I told him a few species I would twitch; species such as the Roller, Hoopoe and Bee-Eater. 
So when I got wind of Bee-Eaters in my neighbouring county and the fact they were breeding, I had to do it! They are after all a bucket list bird for me they're beauties!

Managed to get my Bee-Eater hungry face in the local paper; hint: Look for the beanie! ;)

Upon my arrival the twitch remained quiet for a good while, the weather was a bit chilly and overcast. Not what I expected, to be honest I expected the six birds to be very active upon arrival, this wasn't the case and it was a good hour and twenty minutes before I got my first glimpse.

Very distant Bee-Eater; shot on a 300mm lens. The result was clearly less than adequate.

It was a disappointingly distant lone Bee-Eater, it showed briefly perching on a fence post and flying above the nesting Sand Martins on the far side of the quarry. 

Another long wait ensued and with more and more twitchers arriving it was beginning to look a tad grim, then suddenly another lone Bee-Eater; probably the same one, appeared again in the same area, perching on the fence posts and dropping into the nest burrow a couple of times.

Only one of the six birds was showing whilst I was there and the individual never came closer than a few hundred metres, a bit of an anti climax but I suppose thats twitching and with this being an organised twitch by the RSPB  for breeding birds the viewpoint was always going to be very distant.

That aside it was such a buzz to finally see my first Bee-Eater, however distant, and brilliant to have two pairs breeding up here in Northern England! 

Hopefully a sign of more to come! Bee-Eaters would inject a nice oomph of colour into British bird life along with the Kingfisher and a few others.

I may make another trip across in the coming weeks on a warm afternoon and try my luck again; its to good of a bird to refuse after all!

David

Nature North East

Digi-scoped Bee-Eater, using my iPhone and another birders scope.

Twilight At Thrunton Woods

Thrunton Woods at twilight.
Is there any better place to be than up in the dark heart of Northumberland, as the sun sets and the veil of darkness closes in.

David
Nature North East

Dusk At Arcot - 19th July

Yesterday evening I spent a still and relaxed couple of hours at Arcot Pond from sunset and into the ambiguity of twilight. 
The air was thick with Swifts, a sight I savoured knowing full well that they'll be heading back down to Africa soon enough. The last rays of sunlight lit them up as they fed on the masses of flying insects which gathered in thick clouds above the waters surface. 
A Grasshopper Warbler reeled in the distance, five Roe Deer fed around the pond perimeter, two of which were fawns, Common Tern darted across the water and the Shelduck family looked very well indeed. Moorhen searched for supper on the exposed mud bars around the pond, a pair of Oystercatcher fed up to waist height in the water on the northern edge and a lone Grey Heron preened itself underneath the ominous dead trees.

A beautiful evening for some down time on my patch.

David
Nature North East

A Small Flash Of Blue

On Friday morning I was taken by surprise as I stood by the harbour wall of Seaton Sluice.
Something caught my attention as I peered down below, it zipped past the moored fishing boats of low tide and onto one of the mooring ropes.
It was a Kingfisher in all its bright, petite glory, unfortunately I wasn't ready for such a treat and neither was the SLR, the settings were off but I seized the opportunity and snapped a few photos before it flew across to the other side of the harbour and out of sight.

Next time you're at Seaton Sluice, have a look for that small flash of blue.

David

Nature North East

Waders On Top

One of my favourite sights when up in a moorland habitat is that of wading birds perched proud atop a fence post or stood boldly on a dry stone wall. These are usually located by the side of a quiet winding road or gravel ridden lane.

The likes of Oystercatcher (as pictured), Common Snipe, Redshank & Curlew can usually be spotted taking advantage of a high point on the moors.
Providing us snap happy folk a chance to grab the cam and click away!

David
Nature North East

Arcot - Back In Bloom

It feels good to be back in the North East and to finally return to my patch; Arcot Pond & Grasslands. One of the soon to be 'few' wild areas of green space left in Cramlington, to cut a long story short there is proposed development in the majority of other wild areas. This is really grinding my gears at the moment so I'm trying my best not to think about the implications on local flora and fauna.

Just the whole notion of building on every available scrap of land sickens me and reminds me of the introduction of the TV show, The Animals Of Farthing Wood, in which a huge cement mixer pours concrete down upon the wood! 

Enjoy it whilst you can folks it won't be long before Cramlington's wildlife corridors are no more!

After an absence of a good couple of months I returned to Arcot and what a change.

Readers of my blog will be well aware how annoyed I was that several horses of suspect origin were dumped onto my patch earlier in the year.

Well thankfully they are but a memory and after a few months of not going to my patch, I was very surprised to return to a thriving wildflower meadow! I was concerned that the massive overgrazing would destroy the growth of Dyer's Greenweed, a locally uncommon plant species which grows in abundance at Arcot. Amazingly, it's returned this year in force along with multiple Orchids and other wildflower species!

The water level of the pond was very low, so low in fact that in certain spots Swan Mussels could be seen sticking out of the water. Lapwing and Oystercatcher were present, along with the Shelduck and Mallard families. The solitary Common Tern chick was noticeable on the far side with the adults being very attentive and regularly fishing and diving at any large Gull that was bathing or getting too close for comfort.

Sedge Warbler were more often seen, rather then heard around the margins of the pond and both Blue-Tailed and Common Blue Damselfly were seen, sadly no larger dragonflies were noted. I know of a few local dragon hotspots which I intend to investigate.

Its good to be back!

David
Nature North East

Buff-Tailed Bumble Bee?

Volucella Pellucens; Doing its best impression of Linda Blair from the Exorcist!

Common Spotted Orchid

Common Blue Damselfly

Blue-Tailed Damselfly

Common Tern about to dive!

Life In Macro

There's a whole world beneath your feet, so remember that as you tread through a wildflower meadow looking at the larger life which has struck your gaze, whether its a Kestrel hovering overhead, a Stoat zipping about in the distance or a Skylark singing in the morning sun, remember that there is 100 x more wildlife right at your feet.
Life that generally goes unnoticed and unchecked because it's so small and has numerous legs, and sometimes no legs at all.
Its a world creeping and crawling with alien life and must be given the same adoration that's given to our larger more friendlier looking British wildlife.

David
Nature North East

In The Company Of Brer Rabbit

Recently I've had the opportunity to photograph Brown Hare on rough grassland in an area of very quiet farmland.
They're fascinating mammals with a somewhat majestic and mystical quality. Its no wonder they hold such a prominent place in folklore across the world, from the american tales of the trickster Brer Rabbit to appearing in one of Aesop's Fables. Brown Hare make for very compelling viewing, unfortunately I left it to late in the game this year to get any photographs of them boxing during the spring months.
The photographs on this blog are a small selection of my favourites taken out in the field.

I wonder if many wildlife photographers ever stop to think about where the subject of their capture is at present.
A living wildlife subject that has been immortalised and preserved forever within the confines of a digital photograph may have been predated moments after that final shutter click or may very well still be thriving out there in the wild and perhaps in somebody else's viewfinder right now.

David
Nature North East