Tame Magpies Eating and Caching Peanuts

Some very tame Magpies I came across on September 19th:

Birds of Forest Farm

Besides the Bittern, there was plenty of other wildlife to enjoy at the suburban oasis. It started almost as soon as I arrived, when I spotted a Weasel scampering up the far bank of the stream that runs along the path between the two hides.

Anyway, a few bird shots, just presented in the order in which I took them:-

A Long-tailed Tit feeding on food put out by visitors:

This is a great location for Bullfinches, which are quite scarce where I live. Here's the beautiful male:

The ubiquitous Robin:

Reed Buntings are common - surprise, surprise - in the reedbeds here. Here's a male:

The milder weather has stimulated many birds into song, including the humble Dunnock with his tuneful warble:

Male Mallard on the Glamorganshire Canal:

This Water Rail was scurrying through the undergrowth near the canal:

A Long-tailed Tit collecting lichens and mosses for its nest:

The reeds cast lovely reflections in the water. I just waited for a Moorhen to swim across:

Mallards enjoying some post-coital relaxation:

A Magpie:

Female Bullfinch:

Hen Reed Bunting:

A few shots of the stunning cock Bullfinch to finish:

An Hour in the Park

A few shots from yesterday in Singleton Park, Swansea.

A bit dark in this wooded area opposite the Ornamental Gardens, so shutter speeds were low and ISOs high, but I managed a few shots, albeit some of them are a bit grainy.

A Magpie showing of its iridescence:

I caught this Blue Tit in a quirky pose:

A squawking sound in the canopy alerted me to the presence of this Ring-necked Parakeet - the first time I've seen it in a few months, and in exactly the tree in which I saw it for the first time:

Nuthatches were keen to come down for the peanuts I put down for them, although it was difficult to get a shot without a nut in their mouth:

This Robin would probably been better in a vertical composition, but I didn't have time to turn my camera round:

A couple more Blue Tits to finish:



Park- and Shore-birds

I went into the Botanic Gardens in Singleton Park for half-an-hour or so before they closed this afternoon.

Here are a few of the shots I took:-

Blue Tit:

Coal Tit:

Male Chaffinch:

Robin:

Magpie:

After the gardens closed, I walked along the seashore to Blackpill, where it was high tide. Here, there was the usual large gathering of Oystercatchers; smaller numbers of Curlews; a handful of Ringed Plovers and Dunlins; half-a-dozen Knots; and a flock of several hundred Sanderlings, of which this was part:

Snow in Swansea

We don't get much snow here in Swansea; and, when we do, it usually melts pretty quickly. However, we had some snow a couple of days ago, and the cold weather has meant it is still lying quite thickly. I went out for a walk on Friday afternoon, and took a few pictures.

Singleton Park looked picturesque under the snowfall, and many were out enjoying the conditions:

The beach was clothed in a white blanket (for those who don't know, the large, white tower in the city centre is the Meridian Tower):

This fellow wasn't going to let the snow-covered golf course stop him:

I paused to throw down some breadcrumbs, and was soon surrounded by a group of hungry Carrion Crows:

As well as this Magpie:

Under a group of pine trees, was a small area of snow-free ground, which was being taken advantage of by this single Redwing. It was so intent on finding food, that it seemed oblivious to me as I sneaked up to it for a picture:

As I reached the area where the River Clyne flows into the sea, some sunset colours began to appear in the sky over the city:

As dusk fell, I took this shot looking across to Mumbles Lighthouse:



On Saturday, I went out again.

The nearby village of Mumbles was, like everything else, covered in snow:

The sky turned pink over the Port Talbot Steelworks across the bay:

As the sun went down, the moon rose: