Whipsnade Zoo - Baby Elephant

Back to the blog after quite a break - so plenty of photos to post - starting with a trip to Whipsnade Zoo a week or so ago.

This nearly 3 month old elephant was called ‘Nang Phaya’ (meaning Queen in Thai) in honour of our late Queen’s visit to open the new Elephant house in 2011. What an opportunity for photographs!

Queen of the castle

Fitting neatly under my mum

another go

I love my mum

Its safe here...

...From all these legs and trunks.

Inside a run in the sand

Wilstone Reservoir Tring - Mute Swans - Hate and Love

Another walk at the end of October around Wilstone Reservoir.

From the jetty I could see about 2 dozen Mute swans, mainly in loose pairs. Generally, it was quiet, but occasionally a swan got too close to another swan and the bird undertaking the incursion was driven off by the cob. 

Having spotted an intruder this Mute Swan had built up quite a bit of speed before I got the camera on it.

Picking up more speed....

....the swan approached the intruder...

....and with a few pecks....

....hurried the intruder away.

Not all violence though!

I found this pairing interesting as the female has a dull red bill.  Not an expert at all, but I assume that this is a relatively young bird coming into maturity.  I would appreciate if anybody can confirm this.

Ashridge Estate Herts - Coprinopsis picacea "Magpie Inkcap" Mushrooms

On a walk to see the Fallow Deer rut on the Ashridge Estate the traditional rutting grounds were disappointingly quiet with not a buck to be seen (possibly due to either the field in the woodland being used as a film set location last year right in the middle of the rut or the winter culling of the deer bringing numbers drastically down and making the deer more nervous of people) and so I turned my attention to the wonderful fungi in the surrounding woods.

Amongst the several varieties I found were the photogenic and poisonous Magpie Ink Cap Mushrooms (see also post of 14th Nov 2011).

One just appearing out of the leaf litter....

...to mature....

....before the gills drip liquid carrying their spoors and disintegrating (they deliquesce) ...

...to nothing.

Wilstone Reservoir Tring - Great White Egret and other Fish Feeders

One of the main reasons I had gone to Wilstone Reservoir was that a Great White Egret had been resident for a week and had been showing well in front of the hide.  This was a bird I had seen in August 2002 in the Camargue, the area of wetland formed by the Rhone Delta in Southern France as this great river entered the Mediterranean Sea.  However I had never seen it in the UK despite sightings becoming more and more often over the last few years probably as a consequence of global warming with the boundaries of their northern territories expanding North.  I suspect that in the next few decades they will become a regular and common sight, just as the Little Egret is now, having become commonplace since my first sighting with great excitement at Easter in 1992 on the Hayle Estuary Cornwall.

Whilst I was awaiting the Peregrine, the Egrets and Herons antics provided plenty of entertainment.

Relative sizes of Little Egrets, Great White Egret and Grey Heron.

Great White Heron goes for a short flight....

....Whilst Little Egrets keep together....

....and a Grey Heron lands nearby.

An adult Grey Heron drives off a juvenile...

...whilst two Little Egrets hunt in the infill stream to the reservoir...

...and another Little Egret flies in.

The Great White Egret in hunting mode...

 ...later successfully catching a fish and...

....and swallowing.

Great White and Little Egrets share a hunting area.

Whilst the weather was mainly dry with some sun, this squall gave a rainbow over the reservoir and in front of Ivinghoe Beacon in the background.

Great White Heron painted in cloud with cloud fish.  Hope you can see it!

Wilstone Reservoir Tring - Peregrine Falcon

A walk in early October at Wilstone Reservoir Tring with water levels low and many returning wintering ducks and waders.  There had been recent reports of a Peregrine Falcon hunting these birds, so I hoped to see one of my favourite birds and possibly get better photos than I had various locations over the years.  Things looked good as when I arrived I saw in the distance all the birds rise in a rush and a bird of prey flying on the edge of the cloud of birds.  An out of focus long distance shot showed a Peregrine with a small kill in its talons (so poor I haven't included the photo)

Making my way to the hide, I waited about an hour before the Peregrine made an appearance, first over the open water....

 ....before turning and making its way directly towards the hide....

....before passing directly in front, making a turn and flying back....

 ....with me frantically trying to keep my heavy telephoto lens on it.

This shot shows the blood on the leg feathers, presumably of the earlier kill.

It did not make another appearance despite waiting for another three and half hours, but I was already happy just seeing this beautiful and powerful flyer for only a minute or so.

September Morning Pt 4 - Insects and Dancing Little Egret

Leaving Church Lock, I made my way to a nearby abandoned sand pit, where I spotted a blue butterfly (Common Blue?) resting on a teasel, with a spider hiding in between the spines.  If it was after the butterfly it did not get it as the blue flew off a few seconds after this photo was taken.

 

It took me five minutes to locate this Common Green Grasshopper as it fell silent as I approached.

 

One of the most difficult birds to photograph is the Little Egret in bright sunlight, the white of its burning out in the sun.

I was lucky to watch and photograph this Little Egret as it ran around the shallow water chasing small fry wings held aloft....

 

….passing a Mute Swan....

 

….and striking for a fish....

 ….and chasing the fry.

A small selection of photos I took in over an hour whilst I watched this spectacle.

September Morning - Pt 3 Gull, Sparrowhawk and Historic Plane in Flight

Still at Church Lock Grove a Black Headed Gull in its winter plumage passed by as the sun caught it.

 

Waiting for more action my attention was drawn to a chorus of small birds chattering in the reeds near the canal when suddenly an unseen Sparrowhawk broke cover (a female I think rather than a juvenile, but I could be wrong) chased by the small birds.  It circled overhead getting higher and attracting the attention of Swallows, before it glided away into the distance.

Whilst getting ready to move on I was surprised as a very low and slow flying aircraft came into view, quite close and travelling west to east, it also disappearing, but behind the hedges.

This is the second time I have seen this aircraft, and at an almost identical spot.  A bit of research shows that it is an American Piper L-4H Grasshopper. This one, G-BKHG / 479766 is from 1942 when it was used by the US military as a scout plane and I believe is now part of the Duxford Aircraft Museum collection.  again I am not sure, but I understand that planes with the stripes on the wings were used in some way as part of the D-Day landings in WW2

September Morning - Pt 2 Grey Heron and Vole

Continuation of my morning at Church Lock Grove.

 

A Grey Heron had been stalking through the canal-side field and suddenly struck pulling out a vole....

 

….before manoeuvring it in its bill.... 

 

….and swallowing.

A bit gruesome but necessary in the balance of nature.

September Morning - Pt 1 Church Lock Grove

Not getting up early enough to see the sun rise, I made my way to Church Lock at Grove.

 

I managed to surprise a Grey Heron lit by the early morning sun.

A Grey Wagtail arrives looking for flies on the dew covered roof of a narrow boat.

 

Swallows were feeding young sitting on a telephone wire....

 ….which was shared by the odd House Martin juvenile (top left).

 

Goldfinches including a juvenile were flitting about in the field feeding on the thistle heads.

More next post