Back to Bretton

Depending on your point of view, Bretton Lakes Nature Reserve has recently been either revamped or vandalised. Today was my first visit since the not-so-grand re-opening and the first thing to hit me was the exponential rise in visitor numbers. I'm far from being an expert but I can't see how this can have a positive effect? I suppose only time will tell and we will be able to make more of a judgement when the next breeding season starts?

The sun was already sinking below the horizon when I arrived so, birdfeed at the ready, I made straight for the hide. All the usual suspects were around and were more than happy for me to sit close to their feeding stations to get some pics.

Photographically, the bad light meant high ISO settings and low shutter speeds hence there was plenty of noise and motion blur on the results.

After much post-processing here is the best of what I captured...


(Wren, Coal Tit, Great Tit, Nuthatch, Blue Tit and Chaffinch)

Bretton Update

A pleasant Sunday morning motivated me just enough to get out of bed early and head down to Bretton Lakes. The hide is usually empty at this hour but I could see at least two people in there as I approached, so I turned around and made for my spot in the open by the lakeside.

August is usually a very quiet time and this morning was no different. I sat there for almost an hour with only an inquisitive Great Tit for company. It landed in a bush at the side of me to check out what I was doing. Perhaps he/she had seen me leave the area at the back of the hide without leaving some seed as I would normally and had come to give me a nagging?

It chattered away for a few minutes before returning to the area by the hide.

Eventually a solitary Kingfisher arrived.

It stayed around for over half an hour. Hopping from perch to perch, it went fishing many times and caught at least seven fish.

Before swallowing the fish it first shakes it and smacks it against the branch to kill it. 

Common Sandpiper

A definite first for me at Bretton Lakes, I was surprised to see a Common Sandpiper in the front of the hide this afternoon. Luckilly for me it was in no great hurry as the shock of seeing something new put me into a bit of a panic. I forgot that the focus limiter on my lens was set to 10m-infinity. The bird was closer than that so I had to change it and take aim again. Sod's law would normally dictate that the bird would choose this moment to fly away but not on this occasion! I also forgot to add a bit of exposure compensation but I was able to correct this in post processing. This is one advantage that shooting in RAW gives you.

That was the end of the excitement for today!

Meanwhile a few of the usual suspects were happy to pose around for me.

Great Tit

Dunnock

I think this scruffy looking ball of fluff is a recently fledged Nuthatch?

"I'm not fat, I'm big-boned!"

A fellow blogger recently asked if I could upload a picture of Bretton's only wildlife hide so here it is. It's a small, rickety construction. Big enough for only about 4 people but it's nice and snug! 

The horizontal bits of rotting wood on the left are improvised feeders, complete with a Great Tit who was eager to get at the seed I'd just put there. Underneath the bushes on the right of the entrance is where we put food down for the local Bank Voles, Woodmice and Shrews.

The viewing window is quite narrow but the thick log provides a nice, steady platform for the camera. Yet again I'd forgotten to bring my beanbag though! The island can be seen in the foreground but the Heronry is out of shot at the top of the trees. The wooded area on the far side is on a narrow spit of land that is bordered on one side by the River Dearne with the lake on the other. This area is people free so the wildlife tends to favour that side of the lake.

Bretton - Almost Thawed

Its nearly a month since the first snow hit us and the start of the big freeze. Thanks (I think) to NASA for this amazing photograph, which shows virtually all of the UK totally covered with a huge, white blanket.

I went to Bretton this morning with the thaw well under way. The lakes are still mostly covered with ice but it is retreating fast and the carpet of snow has all but gone.

As expected the birdlife was a bit thin on the ground so I headed for the rear of hide where the birders who visit during the week usually put out some food. The place was deserted when I got there but not for long. By the time I'd placed the seed, nuts and peanut butter I had plenty of company. All the usual common birds showed up apart from the Coal Tits.

The light at this site isn't very good at the best of times and this morning was overcast which made it even worse. So the following pictures are taken at low shutter speeds and ISO 1600. A bit of noise reduction and sharpening in Photoshop has produced some reasonable, if not very sharp results.

Robin

Blue Tit

Nuthatch

Great Tit

The stuff on the bark of the tree is peanut butter. Most of the birds love it.

Chaffinch

I'd been watching and photographing the feeding for quite some time when suddenly and completely out of the blue, the peace was shattered by a Sparrowhawk! Neither I nor these birds saw anything coming. It descended quickly and silently from the rear of where I was sitting and pounced before any of its potential prey had time to react.

I'm not sure whether the Sparrowhawk caught anything. It took off and then landed in a tree about 30 yards away but with its back to me. I tried to get a shot but there were too many branches in the way and the lens wouldn't autofocus. I switched to manual and got a couple of shots but they are poor and you can't tell whether or not it has anything in its beak. Although if you look closely along the bird's left 'shoulder' I think you might be able to see some ruffled feathers? Could this be a victim hanging from its beak?

Footnote: After asking around I learned that if the Sparrowhawk had caught anything then it would have had it grasped in it's talons. So it would appear that this strike was unsuccessful after all.