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Stephen Burch's Birding & Dragonfly Website |
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Home | Trip Reports | Gallery | UK index | Oxon pics | UK pics | Dragonflies | Other Nature | Contact | Links |
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Stephen Burch's Birding & Dragonfly Website |
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Home | Trip Reports | Gallery | UK index | Oxon pics | UK pics | Dragonflies | Other Nature | Contact | Links |
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Marsh Tit, Oxon 18 March 2021 Another visit to the wood. The Nuthatches didn't oblige this time, but the Marsh Tits did. Unfortunately one of them had nasty growths on its head, as did a Great Tit that was even worse. Some infection being passed around at the feeders? Click to enlarge |
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Marsh Tit, Oxon 18 March 2021 Another Marsh Tit pose! Click to enlarge |
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Marsh Tit, Oxon 18 March 2021 Marsh Tit with a splash of Blue Tit colour in the background. Click to enlarge |
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Robin, Oxon 18 March 2021 Robins were also around. Click to enlarge |
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Blue Tit, Oxon 18 March 2021 Blue Tit with "crest" raised. Click to enlarge |
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Great Tit, Oxon 18 March 2021 Great Tit completing this weeks quartet. Click to enlarge |
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Nuthatch, Oxon 6 March 2021 This wood is one of the few places I can get photos at in current circumstances. This visit was favoured with more species than previously, with pride of place going to this Nuthatch that I've only seen fleetingly before here. This is a near classic pose on a tree trunk. Click to enlarge |
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Nuthatch, Oxon 6 March 2021 On the ground. Click to enlarge |
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Marsh Tit, Oxon 6 March 2021 Nice to see a pristine Marsh Tit coming in as well. Click to enlarge |
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Blue Tit, Oxon 6 March 2021 The most abundant species here! Click to enlarge |
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Blue Tit, Oxon 6 March 2021 Crop of the shot above. Click to enlarge even more! |
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Great Tit, Oxon 6 March 2021 The second most abundant species here! Click to enlarge |
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Blue Tit, Oxon 12 February 2021 Back to the wood I visited a couple of weeks ago. I thought I would try my luck at Blue Tit flight shots. This turned out to be somewhat challenging. Of over 2000 shots, this was the only half decent one! Seems like an improved technique is needed. This time a Marsh Tit did briefly come in but was pretty tatty. |
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Little Egret, Oxon 13 February 2021 Continuing very cold, but I was confident this site wouldn't be iced over. This bird even flew towards me before being scared off by a passing walker. Click to enlarge |
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Blue Tit, Oxon 12 February 2021 Back to the wood I visited in December. No joys this time with Marsh Tit or Nuthatch, but Blue Tits are always a good stand-by! Click to enlarge |
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Stonechat, Downs, Oxon 6 February 2021 It was remarkably sunny up on the Downs late morning, whereas lower down in the vale it had been very foggy! There were two Stonechats present at their spot by the roadside, and this male posed briefly for me. Click to enlarge |
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Cattle Egret, Letcombe Regis 5 February 2021 Managed to get a bit closer this time - in its usual field near to the allotments. Click to enlarge |
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Cattle Egret, Letcombe Regis 28 January 2021 A somewhat frustrating session in that this bird was wandering around its favourite field without ever coming close enough for good results, but kept on looking like it might. |
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Buzzard, Chain Hill, Wantage 24 January 2021 Amazing luck with this apparent road-kill (a hare?) in the snow close to the road but not on it. There were a few raptors in attendance when I drove past, and this one stayed put when I came back even at point-blank range! Click to enlarge |
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Buzzard, Chain Hill, Wantage 24 January 2021 Crop of the photo above. It was close! Click to enlarge |
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Buzzard, Chain Hill, Wantage 24 January 2021 An earlier photo from a bit further away. Click to enlarge |
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Great Bustard, Letcombe Regis 24 January 2021 Walked out to pay my respects again to this remarkable and obliging bird in the snow! Click to enlarge |
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Great Bustard, Letcombe Regis 24 January 2021 Another shot with a higher view point. Click to enlarge |
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Stonechat, Downs, Oxon 21 January 2021 I always find Stonechat wary but this was right be the roadside so I could use the car as a hide. Click to enlarge |
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Stonechat, Downs, Oxon 21 January 2021 Crop of the shot above. Click to enlarge |
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Stonechat, Downs, Oxon 21 January 2021 As above but the male who briefly obliged very close but not on the best of perches. Click to enlarge |
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Cattle Egret, Letcombe Regis 21 January 2021 This bird was playing hard to get today, but I eventually located it and then managed to get this photo (taken through the hedge) when it flew into the Warborough Road lake from the nearby field. Click to enlarge |
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Cattle Egret, Letcombe Regis 21 January 2021 As above but looking right! Click to enlarge |
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Cattle Egret, Letcombe Regis 16 January 2021 Found the previous day in a nearby highly obscured lake, it was relocated today in an adjacent field. Always too distant for good results and also against the light. Still a considerable rarity, especially in areas local to my home, livening up the lockdown! |
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Cattle Egret, Letcombe Regis 16 January 2021 See above. |
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Kingfisher, Letcombe Brook 2 January 2021 Back for another long and cold session! Although I only captured one visit of the bird, at least it was longer this time and I was able to get photos of a variety of poses. Conditions were however duller than last time when the bird appeared. The last photos from this site for some time to come, given lockdown 3... Click to enlarge |
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Kingfisher, Letcombe Brook 2 January 2021 Looking left. Click to enlarge |
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Kingfisher, Letcombe Brook 2 January 2021 Looking up and right. Click to enlarge |
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Kingfisher, Letcombe Brook 2 January 2021 Looking down and right. Click to enlarge |
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Kingfisher, Letcombe Brook 29 December 2020 A very briefly obliging bird. In a cramped 4-hr session, I saw it on this post just once for about 30 secs! Click to enlarge |
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Kingfisher, Letcombe Brook 29 December 2020 As above; a few seconds before it turned round to look out over the water. Click to enlarge |
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Wigeon, Standlake Pit 60 24 December 2020 The approach to the Langley Lane Hide was flooded so it was as well I had wellies on. However on my return, the water has risen to a level higher than their tops! There were very few birds anywhere near the hide this morning. Only a small flock of Wigeon eventually drifted closer. Shame as the light was wonderful for a change! Click to enlarge |
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Great Bustard, Letcombe Regis 8 December 2020 What a remarkable and obliging bird! Click to enlarge |
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Great Bustard, Letcombe Regis 8 December 2020 Photo of it in its more usual lower head mode. Click to enlarge |
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Great Bustard, Letcombe Regis 8 December 2020 A slightly earlier shot when the sun was still out. Click to enlarge |
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Marsh Tit, Oxon 5 December 2020 Some sun for a change! Decided to try this wood for the first time this winter. Click to enlarge |
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Blue Tit, Oxon 5 December 2020 A brief moment of sun on the perch! These birds were so quick it was difficult to get onto them. Click to enlarge |
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Great Northern Diver, Farmoor, Oxon 26 November 2020 This long staying bird is remarkably faithful to a small area of the huge F2 reservoir. Unfortunately it is always tantalisingly distant and never seems to come close enough for really good results. I arrived at 08:30 only to find the reservoir shrouded in fog. It had only partially lifted when this bird came just a little closer than usual, so a fair amount of Photoshopping was needed for this one. Click to enlarge |
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Great Northern Diver, Farmoor, Oxon 26 November 2020 This shot was taken later on when the fog had gone so there was less problem with the contrast. Also the spread wings makes the bird seem bigger, even though it was further away. Click to enlarge |
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Little Egret, Southern Oxon 20 November 2020 The Little Egret was more obliging on another dull day. This was pretty close! Click to enlarge |
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Little Egret, Southern Oxon 20 November 2020 Another flight shot |
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Little Egret, Southern Oxon 20 November 2020 Remarkably close! |
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Little Egret, Southern Oxon 20 November 2020 Also remarkably close! Click to enlarge |
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Kestrel, Farmoor 19 November 2020 The Scaup were being somewhat un-obliging when I got a call from Bob who asked me to turn around and look the other way, which I promptly did... He was down near the Pinkhill hide with a Kestrel very close by in a tree by the path! Remarkably it stayed until I got down there for some almost frame filling shots. An extraordinarily tame bird. Thanks again Bob! Click to enlarge. |
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Kestrel, Farmoor 19 November 2020 Close up of the shot above. |
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Kestrel, Farmoor 19 November 2020 Another shot of the tame Kestrel - flexing itself prior to flying off. Click to enlarge |
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Crossbill, Buckland 12 November 2020 After a relatively brief visit to Farmoor (see below) I wanted to make the most of the sunny conditions and so headed to this new site near Buckland to attempt to find (and photo) the Crossbills that had been reported from here recently. A flock of about ten flew in shortly after I arrived and promptly vanished into a tree whilst feeding. They were very difficult to photo being high up in the top of the tree and were generally invisible or highly obscured. This was the only time one appeared out in the open. |
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Scaup, Farmoor 12 November 2020 Having been snagged by a fisherman's hook a couple of days ago the Great Northern Diver was unsurprisingly keeping its distance today, but this Scaup eventually proved more obliging in the nice sunny conditions early on today. Thanks to Bob for the heads-up on its presence and whereabouts. Click to enlarge |
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Little Egret, Southern Oxon 7 November 2020 A reasonably obliging Little Egret on a dull day. Click to enlarge |
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Great Northern Diver, Farmoor, Oxon 6 November 2020 At last a worthwhile bird in Oxon to chase! My first visit was yesterday afternoon when I saw the bird but only distantly as it was way out in the middle of the reservoir. Today, on arrival the bird was showing conveniently from the eastern bank, i.e. very close to the car park. Unfortunately this bird was keeping its distance so a severe test even for the 500mm lens with the x2 converter and my new R5. Also the light wasn't great. This was its closest approach and it had this low profile the whole time before turning round and swimming out. Click to enlarge |
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Great Northern Diver, Farmoor, Oxon 6 November 2020 Further out and without the earlier sun. Click to enlarge |
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Great Northern Diver, Farmoor, Oxon 6 November 2020 Wing flapping. Click to enlarge |
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Grey Wagtail, Southern Oxon 5 November 2020 In the sun with a partial reflection. I like the circular pattern of ripples this bird has created. Click to enlarge |
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Stonechat, Westcot Down, Oxon 31 October 2020 Two birds were by the roadside so I was able to use the car as an effective hide for this shot. Of the two, only this first winter (I presume) seemed willing to get reasonably close! Click to enlarge |
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Kingfisher, Southern Oxon 30 October 2020 It is not easy finding places for bird photography in Oxon currently and the forthcoming lockdown 2 is going to make it even harder! This is surprisingly sharp considering the distance to the bird which required a substantial crop even when using my 500mm lens with the x2 TC. With the Canon R5, this crop and lens combination gave an effective focal length of just over 3000mm for this photo! Click to enlarge |
© All pictures copyright Stephen Burch |
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