Coot contenders
I’ve enjoyed seeing fights between Moorhens before, if enjoyed is the right word. Here’s a Moorhen fight I saw in Rome: I’ve …
Juvenile Moorhens
These juvenile Moorhens are clearly hungry. They’ve fluttered up on top of a wall and are helping themselves to seeds which have …
New life
The Coots on my local lake had six chicks earlier in the year. All of them were eaten. They built another nest …
Coots and Moorhens
Coots and Moorhens are fairly familiar birds of lakes, ponds and canals. They are both members of the Rallidae, a family which include Rails, like the …
Bird portraits at Daisy Nook
Birds have evolved a wide range of faces. Here’s a Coot with that large white faceplate: And a Mute Swan with a …
Portraits in beautiful light
What are the chances that a period of time when many people have to stay indoors to avoid a deadly pandemic should …
Fighting Moorhens in Parco della Caffarella
It’s a rainy day in Rome and I’m out in the park. I take shelter in the bird hide. There’s nothing happening. …
What’s in a crop?
Whenever I take wildlife photographs I always have to develop them digitally on the same day. If that means a late night, …
The First Ladybird Book of British Birds – #15 The Moorhen
It’s Day 15 of turning the pages of this 1950s Ladybird book to see what’s changed since it was published. Today; The …
Monkey nuts
Walking through The Regent’s Park I notice a woman with her hands deep in a bag. She brings out a handful of …
Crime Lake at Daisy Nook
I’m at Crime Lake. Apparently no crime was committed here, but having seen the six lanes of motorway built through beautiful countryside, …
Feathered friends
There’s time to visit Stover Country park and see some wildlife today. I’m taking my dad along so he can experience one …
Moorhen on the pond
Moorhens are such skulking birds it’s not often I get the chance to admire them. Here they have such amazing vivid colours …