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Lunchtime

August 11, 2024 at 8:44 pm

For the male Barn Owl breeding time is his most demanding time of the year.For four months he has to provide all the food for the female and their young.I have never spent as much time filming any species as I have on my pair of Barn Owls as they have five young about to fledge necessitating constant demands for Voles, Shrews and Mice. Not every filming session was successful and I have spent long hours looking at an empty field or dodging the farmers cattle!!

The Ghost Of Summer

August 4, 2024 at 6:22 pm

It is now ten years since I last filmed Barn Owls in summer but I had not forgotten how spectacular they are as they hunt at sunset on a summer evening. Technically they give you lots of problems being white birds against a shadowy background and they never fly where you want them to!! However, I have just spent four months in the company of a pair of Barn Owls picking off shots of these ghosts as they carry out their crepuscular activities. More to follow next week!!

Magical Long Ears

July 28, 2024 at 6:36 pm

There have not been many years when I have had the pleasure of filming three different pairs of Long Eared Owls. While the Spring weather, in general, has been awful one of those pairs did manage to rear five young with their success more dependant on the availability of voles rather than the weather.

Creaking Gate

July 25, 2024 at 10:39 am

Now is the time during your walks in the Pennine forests to listen out for a sound that you will only ever hear at this time of year. It is the hunger calls of recently fledged Long Eared Owls and resembles that of a creaking gate. I have spent most of early summer filming in these forests , so this week we will concentrate on the young owls and next week the adults.

Kestrel Success

July 14, 2024 at 6:26 pm

I had already checked out this superb Kestrel nest-site earlier in Spring and as no Kestrels were seen I presumed that it was not being used this year. It was, therefore, a pleasant surprise to see five young ready to fledge when I passed by the other day. Unfortunately, when I returned to film the day after two of the young had already flown and only one feed by the male occurred before the other three went – for once a good result story.

Haste Ye Back

July 7, 2024 at 11:20 am

It is a sad reflection on our recent visit to Islay when the best weather we had was on the sail back to the mainland! It was sublime – but what was on show was even better – thousands of Manx Shearwaters and Gannets,
2 Minke Whales, 2 Great Northern Divers, 1 Black Throated Diver and even an Otter showed for us! Some of Islay’s other wildlife is in this weeks gallery.