Currently browsing

Page 7

Arctic Tern - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

From a mile away

I’m at least a mile away from the Arctic Tern colony here when one passes overhead. It’s clearly not found enough to …

Arctic Skua - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Incoming!

We spent an amazing evening with the Scootie Allans of Westray. Arctic Skuas are beautiful, impressive birds, with sleek bodies and swept-back …

Skylark - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Skylarking

An evening walk in the warm, low sun and there is a pair of Skylarks in the field. They’re difficult to get …

Fulmar - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Mallimack surprise

The Fulmars on Westray are littering the coast with their ungainly earthly forms, as well as flying effortlessly along the cliffs with …

Fulmar and Arctic Skua - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

A Scootie Allan attacking a Mallimack

A Scootie Allan attacking a Mallimack. An Arctic Skua attacking a Fulmar. A Stercorarius parasiticus attacking a Fulmarus glacialis. Dramatic, isn’t it, in …

Herring Gull - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

From Herrings to landfill and back

I love Herring Gulls. Amazingly their UK conservation status is red. That’s because their breeding population keeps declining, and so does their …

Juvenile Herring Gull - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Moult

I’m fascinated to see this Herring Gull going through a moult into adult plumage. You can see it better in this view: …

Guillemot - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Guillemot

There’s a Common Guillemot on the waves. It’s having a little spruce up. Nesting in a colony is a great idea if …

Gannet - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Gannet flypast on Kelly’s Hero

Can you see this Gannet’s blinking its third eyelid, its nictitating membrane?

That reminds me, I must clean my glasses from all that sea spray.

Great Black Backed Gull - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

The biggest gull in the world

The Great Black Backed Gull is the largest gull in the world. We’re aboard the Kelly’s Hero on a cruise out of …

Grey Seal - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Yawn!

This Grey Seal is clearly feeling a little snoozy as it rests its blubber on a pontoon in Brixham. If you’re trying …

Cuckoo and Meadow Pipit - Emsworthy Mire - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Cuckoo and Meadow Pipit

There’s a never-ending battle going on in the meadows and on moorland of Dartmoor. It’s Cuckoo versus Meadow Pipit. The Meadow Pipits …

Starling - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Starling in the Meadow

As I arrive in Broken Tower Meadow in Rome a group of Starlings scatter from their fossicking in the meadow. This one …

Hobby - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

A hunting Hobby

I can see a bird of prey high in the sky. I don’t recognise it, so I train my lens on it …

Black Kite - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Black Kite

It’s a hazy day in Matera and the sun is already high in the sky when we see a procession of Black …

Eastern Dappled White Butterfly - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Eastern Dappled White Butterfly

There are butterflies galore in Broken Tower Meadow, il Pratone di Torre Spaccata. Here’s one. I think it’s the Eastern Dappled White, …

Owlfly - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Owlfly

I wish we had Owlflies in the UK. They fly like a combination of dragonflies and butterflies, and perch with their massive …

Transparent Burnet - Zygaena purpuralis - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Transparent Burnet Moth

There’s what looks like a Transparent Burnet moth, Zygaena purpuralis in the park. The larvae feed on wild thyme, which is exactly …

Swallow - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Barn Swallows

Wandering the ancient pedestrian streets of Matera in the heart of the Medieval village is a fabulous experience. There are stone troughs, …

Blackcap - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Blackcap in Matera

It’s been a wonderful few days in Matera, but it’s time for us to go back to Rome. What an incredible place …

Serin - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

A Serin singing like a Canary

I still can’t stop laughing at this photograph of a Serin, Serinus serinus, in Matera What a face! He’s a male, with …

Lesser Kestrel - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Falco naumanni

We’re in Matera to see the Lesser Kestrels. We’ve booked the room in the hotel which has three small terraces and the …

Pallid Swift - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Pallid Swifts

I love seeing the Swifts swirling overhead in Matera. There are screaming chases, flights which end in mating while clinging to buildings, …

Lesser Kestrel - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Yes, we’re in Matera again

We are in the oldest continuously inhabited city on Earth, Matera in Basilicata in the south of Italy. It’s possible to walk …

Arco Naturale, Capri - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Arco Naturale

The rocks are massive, towering over nearby trees, and giving glorious glimpses of turquoise seas far below.

Spotted Flycatcher composite - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Quick sally

As a child I saw a Spotted Flycatcher. I was thrilled and went back home determined to draw it from memory. I …

Whitethroat - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Whitethroat

There’s a bird I think is a Common Whitethroat, Curruca communis, in the bushes here in Capri. The light here is so …