Long -tailed Tits in the Rain

Yesterday I watched and recorded a troop of a dozen lively Long-tailed Tits as they foraging in the poring rain while other larger birds had stopped and taken cover in the undergrowth.

They took their fill at Stithians Reservoir feeders and hurriedly moved on to set up another raid elsewhere along the shoreline.

Male Great-spotted Woodpecker foraging

This sequence of a male Great-spotted Woodpecker portrait and behaviour images were taken at Stithians Southern Cut-off hide during a very wet visit yesterday but the bird was not put off by the weather and foraged through tree barks continuously for over an hour.

Snipe preparing for Take-off

I had been photographing the above Snipe successfully predating on earth worms for over an hour when it decided to take a nap as shown in my previous blog and this is the moment thirty minutes later when it re awoke seemingly startled at my close and static presence and I expected it to fly immediately.

The Snipe held its ground watching me for a while before relaxing and going into a preening procedure which gradually became more elaborate and was followed by a lovely complete body shake-out.   The finale to this fine display was a skilful one legged full wing stretch.

                                        

 In the last image at the end of the stretch the bird went into a crouched sprung loaded take-off and was away to conclude what had been a magical encounter with lots of Snipe behaviour  recorded.

Snipe foraging on Worms

                                           

An alert Snipe flies into a small stream on Loggans Moor,  It exits the water and starts to forage for earthworms in the boggy banks

An hour later with many worms devoured the now relaxed Snipe moves back into reed bed cover and takes a bit of a nap !

Check out my next blog for more preening and wing stretch images on this bird when it wakes up and prepares to depart !

Hide and Seek

While looking out for sightings of Roe Deer on Loggans Moor yesterday morning I saw a couple of Snipe fly on to the reed covered banks of a small stream and they instantly disappeared into its cover.

I slowly waded in closer and twenty minutes later eventually spotted one of them right in front of me so I set my tripod in the difficult soggy bog conditions and waited.

My efforts were rewarded as this incredible bird moved in and out of cover playing Hide and Seek for over an hour and a half to provide me with many full frame portraits some of which are posted below plus feeding and preening behaviour images which will be posted in my next couple of blogs