Nature
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Exotic Insects
In the past I’ve had the idea that I might keep some exotic insects to photograph. Probably I don’t have the dedication to set that up and to keep them alive…so I was very pleased to be invited by a colleague and friend to photograph his insects at his home. It wasn’t as easy as you might think…they don’t keep still…the locusts are inclined to jump off their perch and happily bound along the floor. The mantises were curious and moved their heads and antennae a lot…and one started to groom itself when I was in the middle of photographing it. The insects were lit with a combination of natural…
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RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch 2023
Birds in the Garden As I sit here, writing at my computer, my feeders are once again attracting wild birds but, so far, not in the same numbers that I saw them last year, when they could be spotted waiting their turn in the bushes and trees in the garden. Right through the winter, so far, I have seen far fewer birds than last year and more singletons that don’t seem to be paired up yet. In fact, I have rarely needed to replenish the feeders. I am wondering if this is another symptom of the decline in our garden birds, or is it because, last summer, I stopped putting…
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Counting the Birds
Last year, I first recorded my garden birds for the RSPB Big Bird Count in January. In 2022, I repeated the exercise. I found I actually had more birds this year, but the distribution of species was quite different. I had more than 20 species visiting in an hour, but the RSPB only display the first ten on the chart. Small Birds The small birds are here in some number and I’m very pleased to see the siskins again, along with bullfinches, which are visiting daily. The dunnocks are showing off to the females. Long tailed tits are in and out before I can get them focussed and an elusive…
