'British Birds'

Front Cover - February 2011

I have just received my February copy of 'British Birds' and was really thrilled to see my Long-eared Owl, taken on Fair Isle during October 2010 on the front cover! I have been busy of late producing work for a forthcoming exhibition (Sea Pictures Gallery, Suffolk) as well as 2 large photographic commissions based on Shetland. I have also been bird ringing locally with Phil and we have had a good success rate catching Redpolls with approx 100 birds caught since the new year. This year a good mix of Mealies and Lessers as well as a few British controls. Phil also ringed 5 Waxwings from a flock of 50+ in Melton.

Leo Musings . . . I was recently asked to join a new & exciting multi-authored birding blog: www.birdingblogs.com

This highly successful world bird blog has been a real HIT during the first month of it's launch . . . I have just uploaded my 5th article called 'Leo Musings' please do take a look! I feel humbled to be a part of such an exciting project alongside other birding blog members from the bird world: Gunnar Engblom, Kenn Kaufman, Dawn Fine, Jeff Gordon, Rich Hoyer, Dale Forbes, Tom McKinney, Martin Garner, Gyorgy Szimuly & Susan Myers. . .

Tarts Tick!
Today has turned out to be a brilliant one for me. Firstly I enjoyed fabulous views of a superb Long-eared Owl in the shop garden. I had wanted to photograph another Long-eared Owl since 2004 when I was AW & had several sat about in the open during the season. This one today was my first photographable bird since that time! I photographed it firstly on the window sill of the shop greenhouse & after lunch returned to see it had moved to an attractive lichen covered rock outside the garden walls. Apart from getting irritated at a sheep which got a little too close for comfort, the owl sat fully exposed on the rock all afternoon, it's ears getting buffeted by the increasing winds. Delighted at the owl encounter I decided to head south & work a few crofts. I was soon at Schoolton & seeing the garden was being watched by a birder, moved along the outside of the garden to the crop below. As I worked through the crop I was nearly at the end when a small warbler flew up & landed for a second or two on a fence wire. With this brief view I knew at once I had a Dusky or Radde's, though I thought at that time it was more likely a Dusky. It flew fast towards Quoy and dropped into grass & out of view near the road. I called Phil who was with Deryk & beckoned over 3 birders (including Gary Taylor :-) I could see not far away. On arrival of Deryk & Phil we searched for the bird again. After a few minutes I relocated it at the back of Quoy. I had another brief view on a fence & this second glance gave better views to deduce that it was in fact a Radde's, something then confirmed by Deryk & Phil as it showed again for another brief moment behind quoy. This was a British tick for me & a bird I had wanted to see for a long time! Fantastic! Twenty or so birders saw this elusive bird throughout the late afternoon as it moved over towards Kennaby & adjacent fields before the light rain set in & the light conditions started to fade. I don't think there can be a better feeling than finding my own British tick & photographing a LEO all in one afternoon.