This year I decided that I needed to get some good shots of raft spiders, the largest spider species found in the UK. Unfortunately living in Essex there are no sites nearby, the closest good site I’m aware of being Thursley Common in Surrey, where the Bog Raft Spider Dolomedes fimbriatus can be found. A…
Details
A couple of years ago I was fortunate enough to be introduced to Naomi Ewald, who is an expert on all thing freshwater in the New Forest and works for the Freshwater Habitats Trust. Last year she was kind enough to take me to a pond full of medicinal leeches and to a pond to…
DetailsYesterday was national badger day ago I was hoping to post it then, but got sidetracked so here it is today. Over the last couple of months on and off, I have been visiting some local badgers which are not bothered by flash and will wander around a feed on peanuts close enough for photography.…
DetailsToday is world rivers day, so I thought to celebrate I would right a quick post showing some of Britain’s river wildlife. Perhaps the most colourful bird in Britain, the kingfisher, is usually found perched by rivers, hunting fish. Also hunting fish, heron can be found at and in rivers. Salmon rely on clean rivers…
DetailsToday I was sitting in the Green Centre hide at Wat Tyler Country Park chatting to my friend Dave C, when I got a call telling me the glossy ibis was in creek. I headed over there and there, a little way off, in the creek was a glossy ibis. It was heading towards us,…
Details
Back in June I had visit to RSPB Strumpshaw Fen in Norfolk, one of my favourite reserves. I decided to do an anti clockwise loop and started in the area near the ‘Doctors Garden.’ The sun decided to disappear behind the cloud as I arrived around lunchtime, so I wasn’t holding up much hope of…
Details
Regular readers will know that I often photograph pond creatures, both in situ in the wild (as in the above photo of a fen raft spider) and also using my photographic mini aquarium set up. I am also now running a workshop to show people how to photograph these interesting creatures, details on this and…
Details
Please the read introduction text on this post first HERE (which also has some other useful info) Wow where did that week go. Kept meaning to post an update each evening, but seeing others posting photos from most days, I figured most folk would be able to see the Southern migrants (or ‘Thames Hawker’ as…
Details
Please the read introduction text on this post first HERE (which also has some other useful info) The headline news as it were is Tim Caroen yesterday managed to track down some tandem pair Southern migrant hawkers on RSPB West Canvey Marshes and a male on RSPB/Buglife Canvey Wick. No such luck for me…
DetailsPlease the read introduction text on this post first HERE (which also has some other useful info) What a difference a few days make. On Wednesday I was thinking the southern migrant (or blue eyed) hawkers might have been having a brief early(ish) emergence and numbers reducing, then Thursday and Friday resulted in plenty of…
Details