Nuthatch nesting in oak tree. 12th May 2023.

 I checked out this regular nesting site in a huge oak tree in the Camel valley and sure enough a pair of Nuthatches were actively feeding young.

I photographed this from quite a distance with a 500mm lens to avoid any chance of disturbance and the birds carried on their normal routine without flinching. I watched the same nest hole last year but this year the late evening light was much better and illuminated the tree nicely.

Nuthatches will partially block up natural holes or old & unused woodpecker holes with mud so that when it hardens it fits their body size perfectly. This then helps keep predators from stealing their eggs or eating their young.

A few more photos follow.....

A tight squeeze

Green Woodpeckers in Cornwall. 29th May 2022.

Female leaving the nest

I've been watching a tree in my local woods all through the late winter & early spring for signs of woodpeckers nesting.

The tree had several holes from previous years but I just couldn't suss out where they were this year. 

Yesterday I watched from a distance yet again and was rewarded by a fleeting view of a green woodpecker. I then settled down for a more prolonged wait to see where they were going as I know it's the time that they should be actively feeding their chicks.

Fortunately I spotted the male bird on the tree and with a bit of detective work found the nesthole at 180 degrees to the previous site.

Being particularly careful not to disturb them I visited again in the late afternoon & put up my hide on a steep slope some 40 metres from the tree in dense oak woodland. It's a very quiet area and I am confident that it won't get disturbed, especially as I really struggled to fight my way to it myself!

I'm using a Nikon 500mm f4 telephoto so doing all my photography from a discrete distance which was proven right this morning as I took a few images without the birds batting an eyelid.

The light in an oak wood is getting worse as more leaves break out so it is hard to cope with the dappled sunlight. In fact I'd sooner it was dull or even raining as the sun is burning out the highlights & yellowing up all the greens.

Here's a selection from my first couple of hours, hopefully I'll get a few more sessions under my belt as the adults are still climbing into the nest to feed so the chicks must still be fairly small.

Male green woodpecker with the red moustachial stripe

A tight squeeze in order to keep predators out

Female green woodpecker

Female green woodpecker

 

Kingfishers on the River Camel. 10th May 2022

 

Male tussles with a large salmonid.

Both parents were very busy this morning carrying food to the nest burrow. 

I'm guessing the young should be about 17 days old now and it's evident that the size of the fish being carried bears that out.

Prey was bullheads and salmonids with no sign of lamprey on the menu today.

They frequently stopped to wash & preen with both birds taking time out to ensure their flight feathers were in perfect condition.

Dippers whizzed past all the time I was in my hide as I think the young have recently fledged. Also a female grey wagtail used the "kingfisher stick" a few times to call.

The female has a broken tip to her lower mandible...beak... so is easily recognisable but I was a bit taken aback after she turned up from upstream with earth on her beak. This is usually a sign of nest burrowing so I'm not sure of her intentions as she's not fledged the current brood yet. Seems a bit soon to be starting a nest for her 2nd brood but who knows!

All photographs taken under my Natural England Schedule 1 licence.

Male cleaning his feet

Male preening

Male preening

Female with a salmonid

Female fishing...note damaged lower mandible

The pair

Male with large salmonid

Female preening

Female with earth on her beak

Gadwall courtship. Walmsley sanctuary 26.3.22.

 Sometimes the courtship display and free for all in the duck world can be a dramatic affair which does appear to be very unpleasant for the females.

Here 5 drakes vied for the attention of the duck and there was a lot of jostling for position and bullying of the female. I'm sure the avian equivalent of rape is widespread amongst wildfowl.

I once watched over a dozen drake mallard kill the female in a continued onslaught just to mate with her. 

Gadwall have successfully bred at Walmsley sanctuary since 2012 when this was a first breeding record for the County. They've bred every year since.

They are usually very late breeders and don't normally hatch till late June although everything seems early this year so it may be sooner.

The female is the bird with the orange sides to her bill, there is only the one female in these photos and up to 5 drakes.

Here are a few more images of the amorous adventures of Gadwall.

Dippers & Grey Wagtails. Mid-Cornwall 18th March 2021.

 

Dull weather is probably best for photographing Dippers as it's so easy to "burn out" that bright white breast patch. Maybe a bit brighter than I had, perhaps "bright overcast" may have been better.

The big problem with low light and a bird that keeps "dipping" up and down is trying to keep a fast enough shutter speed so that the bird stays in focus, whilst keeping the ISO at a manageable level.

However they are very active at the moment nest building and maintaining territories. I've watched them on both the higher and lower reaches of the River Camel and also on the River Fowey.

You can almost guarantee that if you have dippers then you will also have Grey Wagtails as both species are fond of similar habitats, fast flowing streams with plenty of rocks and riffles to oxygenate the water.

Here are a few images taken today.

Grey Wagtail with nest material

Grey Wagtail nest building on the side of a bridge.

Male Kingfisher, River Camel, Cornwall 2nd July 2020.

Thinking I may have identified a kingfisher nest along the riverbank.

I've seen both male & female in the area & today I watched the male sit on a branch low to the water & make tiny contact calls toward the hole before spending a little time in the burrow.

I'm hoping this is a 2nd brood nest site as I totally missed the first brood due to the "lockdown" during the Covid-19 Coronavirus scare.

I'll be keeping an eye on this place for the next few weeks, hoping to see the adults start carrying fish to the burrow.
Fortunately this is a part of the river where I have a Schedule 1 kingfisher photography licence.

I've also done a short 2 minute video of the bird preening so to view it please click on the link to my YouTube channel.

Kingfisher preening video link.

Yellowhammers ......... just down the road, Egloshayle, Wadebridge

Male Yellowhammer

Every year Yellowhammers breed in the hedges at Egloshayle near my home.

This year there are two pairs within 100 yards of hedgerow so a lot of competition between singing males.

I was lucky this morning to get some shots of both sexes including singing males.

This isn't the first time I've tried these birds but persistence has finally paid off!

A short piece of video follows......

Male Yellowhammer

Male Yellowhammer

 

Male Yellowhammer

 

Female Yellowhammer