.
A couple of weeks ago we stumbled across this young fellow. The spotted pelage coupled with the non-palmate antlers, the dark dorsal strips, the white brow and pale gland patches on the hocks as well as the pale rear end with no dividing dark tail all help to distinguish the Sika Deer from Red, Fallow and Roe.
A big stocky deer the Sika interbreed with Red. This may eventually lead to the demise of pure Reds within England as the range of the introduced Sika expands.
.
.
It never ceases to amaze me what flies around in the darkness of the night. A beautiful Eyed Hawk Moth in the moth trap the other day. Exquisitely beautiful.
.
Hooded Crows that are common further north in the UK have had a chequered history with regards to their status as a species. They have shuttlecocked between sub species and full species for some years. They are currently regarded as a full species.
We encountered several on our Mull trip in early May. This particular individual was scouring the beach for a tasty morsel among the seaweed.
If there’s one British bird to stir up the imagination it’s the Manx Shearwater. Gliding effortlessly on stiff wings for many thousands of miles each year; not giving the worst of storms a second glance and looking smart with it. We saw several large rafts last month sat on the water between Mull and the Cairns of Coll off the Scottish Coast.
The berries were getting depleted but the Waxwings were still finding them. This individual was one of three we encountered in Durham at the same place we saw the Yellow rumped Warbler last month.
The sun was low; just glancing the water. As the day turned to late afternoon, a pair of Egyptian Geese left the water to dry for an impending cold night. As they sat beneath a tree in the warm winter light I just thought it made an attractive scene.
Quite a marvel of construction isn’t it? Several webs were so obvious in the morning sunshine as we walked around on a tour the other week I just couldn’t help but photograph a few.
As we drove around Mull last month we had an encounter with a Buzzard. Perched above the road he was intent on standing his ground as we approached.
These birds of prey seem to be faring much better than Kestrels that appear to be in short supply at the moment.
There were a lot of superlatives being heard on one of the tours last week as we stood and watched four or five Black terns dipping down to the broad to feed.
However, one young mother was herding her brood away. Quite unimpressed at the terns and the on-looking birders she was shifting her family across the broad to somewhere a little quieter.
The local water was heaving with hirundines the other morning. A swirling, diving, swooping mass of Swallows and Sand Martins flew effortlessly over the surface of the reservoir picking off the few measly insects that dared to venture out into the cold northerly wind. Just occasionally one or two would rest on the fence to take stock and do a little housekeeping before moving off to continue their migration.
Letter From Norfolk 