sarahthurlbeck

Christmas Kingfisher

This morning I was gifted a new big lens. So of course it was off to the canal this afternoon to see if we could spot a kingfisher to test it out on. For three quarters of an hour we sauntered up and down the canal scanning for a glimpse of orange or bright blue.Continue reading “Christmas Kingfisher”

Seal Pup Season

I’ve seen lots of images of white fluffy seals on cards and on television documentaries. When my son was wee he used to have a pillow sized cuddly seal toy called Snowy which accompanied us on holidays. But until today I’d never seen a seal pup in the wild, let alone photographed them. It mightContinue reading “Seal Pup Season”

Small Wonder

I’m so chuffed that there is at least one kingfisher regularly fishing a patch of the canal near me. There may even be a pair. I think this one is a female, as there is orange on her lower beak. I tried to capture her in flight and managed a couple of shots of herContinue reading “Small Wonder”

Berry Banqueting

The trees and bushes are laden with red berries this Autumn and the birds are enjoying the berry banquet. Here are photos of various types of birds feasting on them, and even a grey squirrel getting its five a day! The fieldfares are back from Scandinavia for their winter holiday here. They fly around inContinue reading “Berry Banqueting”

Whoopee!

In amongst the mute swans at Hogganfield Loch was this very cheery looking whooper swan. Whilst the mutes had their beaks closed this one had his open most of the time, maybe this youngster was extra hungry having flown in from Iceland. It looked like he or she was grinning. Whooper swans are named fromContinue reading “Whoopee!”

If you go into the reed bed today …

On my recent birthday we travelled to the Tay Reed Beds at Errol, between Perth and Dundee to hunt for rarely seen bearded tits, also known as bearded reedlings. If lucky enough to spot one for the first time ever it would be such a birthday treat. We’d been once before in early spring butContinue reading “If you go into the reed bed today …”

Bonkers Bonxies and Greedy Gannets

Recently on Shetland I went on a boat trip to the sandstone cliffs of Noss, home to a gannet colony and many other seabirds. On the way past the Isle of Bressay we got close up views of the great skua, known as a “bonxie” (meaning big breasted) in Shetland. This one had its eyeContinue reading “Bonkers Bonxies and Greedy Gannets”

Tammie Norries!

Last weekend I was lucky enough to see puffins for a second time this year, this time on the Shetland Islands. Here they are known as “Tammie Norries,” probably because in the old scots language a tammie norrie is foolish looking man. They are also known as clowns of the sea, because of their clownContinue reading “Tammie Norries!”

Osprey Evenings

We are very fortunate to have ospreys visit a loch just a mile away from us. The other night we went looking for one and there were actually two hunting for their supper at the same time. We watched them circle round, then hover, then plunge feet first down into the water. We watched atContinue reading “Osprey Evenings”

Buzzing

I knew the buzzards must have had an active nest in the wood as when walking past a parent buzzard circled overhead calling out a warning cry. So last night we went into the wood to see if we could see the nest. The old one was blown down in a January storm so weContinue reading “Buzzing”