Northern Wheatears on the move

Good numbers of Northern Wheatears were showing well on Sunday at Davidstow. The majority of the 25 or so were all first year birds.  In addition, around 50 Pied Wagtails were present.  Elsewhere, migration is picking up with a Baird's Sandpiper found at Hayle yesterday and a Great White Egret found today at Restronguet Point, Truro.

Northern Wheatear at Davidstow

First year Northern Wheatear, one of six on Davidstow runway today.

Northern Wheatear today at St Gothians

First year Northern Wheatear was photo'd today at St Gothians, Gwithian.  It was one of ten individuals feeding around the pond.

Northern Wheatears return

Northern Wheatears have arrived in numbers in Cornwall with the first bird being a male at Sennen on 3rd March.  Two more were recorded at Land's End and others at St Gothians and the Lizard the following day.  I was hoping for my own first sighting on the 4th at Davidstow but sadly none had made it this far.  I saw four males yesterday at St Gothians NR.  I guess they had just arrived overnight as they were feeding well and keen to move through. 

Fresh autumn Northern Wheatears

These three images were taken last week and show a young, fresh male Northern Wheatear, probably no more than a couple months old. All of the feathers are clean and tidy and show no wear. The mantle also shows some down feathers. Young birds at this time of year are normally in far better plumage condition than the adult birds and make far better photographic subjects.

EXIF Detail: Aperture priority F/7.1 Focal length 840mm. ISO 640. Shutter speed 1/400s. Exposure 0.0 EV. WB Cloudy. All RAW files. Taken from the car window resting on a sofa cushion.

Adult female Northern Wheatear - St Gothian Sands

This female Northern Wheatear was one of four females at St Gothian Sands NR this week. Females normally migrate later than the males as the latter need to get to their breeding areas earlier and establish the territories. Wheatears do breed in small numbers in the county and these four could presumably also be local birds.

The image above was taken with the 600mm fixed lens with no converter used. Distance approx 10 yards.

EXIF Detail. Aperture Priority. Ap: F/7.1 Shutter 1/500s. ISO 640. Exposure +0.3EV. Saturation: Normal. Sharpness: Normal. White Balance: Cloudy. 33% zoomed in via Photshop.

Grass roots photography

Why grass roots? Well, I spoke to John Swann today at Nanquidno. He said he knew there were few migrants around as my photo blog had gone quiet ! How true that is. Apart from a handful of common waders and and a few Northern Wheatears, there is precious little to watch at the moment. It's time to get back to "grass roots" and start photographing the commoner birds - so here they are: a nice male Northern Wheatear at St Gothian Sands NR today and a plump Woodpigeon and Grey Heron, all with a bright green grass background.

Northern Wheatears at Davidstow

Northern Wheatears have arrived in force this weekend with several delightful males and a couple females showing well on the disused runway at Davidstow. The shots below were taken from the car window with the sun behind me. I used a polariser filter to reduce the glare often found on white feathers in bright sun. Shutter speed reduces quite dramatically when using these filters but the end result can be worth it. The third image shows the bill open as it is singing!

EXIF detail: Aperture priority. Aperure wide open at F/4. EV -0.7. Shutter 1/1250th. ISO 400. Focal length 600mm. White Balance Cloudy.

Welcome back !

A few hours from first light this morning at St Gothian Sands and I was treated to my first Northern Wheatear sighting of the year. The males are always first to arrive as they are eager to get on their breeding grounds early and establish territory. Females will follow through at the end of the month and into April. Wheatears and chats are one of my favourite families and the images of the birds below show the reason why. I have slotted in the Blackbird image from today as well, just because it was singing its' heart out and deserves a mention. Its not from Africa but is more than welcome !

EXIF Detail: P Program Mode. Shutter 1/400th. Ap F/10. ISO 800. Focal length 850mm. EV -0.3, White Balance: Cloudy. DX Crop Mode used. Distance from bird c30 yards.
EXIF Detail: P Program Mode. Shutter 1/400th. Ap F/10. ISO 800. Focal length 850mm. EV -0.3, White Balance: Cloudy. DX Crop Mode used. Distance from bird c30 yards.

EXIF Detail: P Program Mode. Shutter 1/400th. Ap F/10. ISO 800. Focal length 850mm. EV -0.3, White Balance: Cloudy. DX Crop Mode used. Distance from bird c30 yards.

Stonechat. EXIF Detail: P Program Mode. Shutter 1/250th. Ap F/8. ISO 1000. Focal length 850mm. EV -0.3, White Balance: Cloudy. FX Full Frame Mode used. Distance from bird c10 yards.

Blackbird. EXIF Detail: Aperture Priority Mode. Shutter 1/125th. Aperture F/6.3. ISO 1000. Focal length 850mm. EV -0.7, White Balance: Cloudy. FX Full Frame Mode used. Distance from bird c 20 yards.