Goshawk, Hawfinch Spectacular...plus a small review of the last few weeks

Being my birthday week I decided that I should do something special. I received a special invite to spend a week in the Masai Mara, unfortunately due to date clashes I wasn't able to head out. Joys of a full time job ;)

So what to do???? As the time drew nearer Scotland was calling me back for Black Grouse in the snow but hearing of a new Goshawk hide in Spain it seemed like an opportunity not to be missed. So almost at the last minute and with thanks to my good friend Felix dates were made available for me and on Wednesday morning I headed out of Gatwick, destination Madrid. The 150 mile drive to the village was spent dreaming of a possible Goshawk showing and observing the migrating raptors, white stocks etc. Love watching hundreds of mixed raptor groups consisting of black kites, booted, short-toed eagles along with various smaller species including Lesser Kestrels.

Arriving early afternoon I was taken to  hide for a couple of hours. Great opportunity to get my bearings and thinking of what shots to get. Always recommend that you spend some time observing your surroundings and thinking of the shots you want rather than shooting everything that's around.

What a couple of hours.....flocks of Hawfinch descend to the feeders with numbers reaching 38 at one time. What a sight and pointing the lens was a bit of a challenge as I didn't want to miss any of the action. Fights, displaying, signing but no copulation...possibly too early. 

Hawfinch - Female

Hawfinch - Male

Back to my earlier point....good to have a few shots in mind, as situations like this fill you with excitement and confusion.

Hawfinch - Fight

Hawfinch - Male

Other species included much loved Crested Tits, Great tit, Long-tailed Tits, Siskin, Chaffinch, Greenfinch, Great Crested Woodpecker, a stunning Short-toed Treecreeper and a couple of Cute Red Squirrels.

Short-toed Treecreeper

Goldfinch

Greenfinch

Red Squirrel

Red Squirrel

After a couple of hours I headed back to my room as now I had been awake for over 20 hours and was knackered but happy. Start times where finalised as news hit me the Gos visited 15 minutes after I left.......I better not repeat the word that left my mouth!!! So an early start  would be best, as it didn't make a kill.....phew!!!

At the crack of dawn we met up with Felix and hopes were high that we would have a silent assassin turn up early in the day.

After set up and almost straight away the Hawfinch arrived. After about a hour and out of nowhere and as silent as a feather dropping a huge raptor maneuvered through the trees and bang.....One dead pigeon....shouldn't fall asleep in the open....or is that should!!!!

Goshawk

Now...... 'PPPPLLEASE stay'......'eat it and don't take it away' was going through my head as we composed ourselves at the sight of this stunning juvenile male Goshawk with an almost black face. (Later I would find out it's possibly a new bird not seen before)

Goshawk - Pluck the feathers before eating

Interestingly he removed the spine and neck first

He stayed for about two hours eating its prey.....bones and all!!!! During this time a common buzzard was calling from behind us but the Gos didn't give a hoot.

The stare is so evil I wanted to enhance it by increasing the shutter speeds

Full frame portrait - sometimes not so evil

However what is that circling just above the tree tops.....now it is nervous and starts to mantle.....could it be?????

Goshawk - Mantling

Yes a sub adult male having a look but deciding to perch in the distance for a short while. Hopes of a fight was being whispered by us both....not to be as we know this male was injured at the weekend....possibly by this large new male or one of the adults a short distance away.

After the distant Gos left our new companion relaxed and continued to have its breakfast. Only a partial head on mantle as the buzzard flew past obviously deciding there would be no scraps. What was surprising to me was how vocal he was throughout his meal. 

Goshawk - Partial Mantle 

When all that was left was the ribcage off he went straight over the hide taking it with him for afters. 

All that was left after two hours

We spent the rest of the afternoon photographing the various small stuff and also had a quick visit from one of the squirrels this time for a quick drink as the heat was building up.

Great-spotted Woodpecker

Hawfinch - Do you think we should nest here???

Hawfinch - Looks Good To Me!!!

Crested Tit

Hawfinch

Late in the afternoon and again out of nowhere a juvenile female Goshawk made an appearance but no pigeons to be had..... the Hawfinch were a little too quick or more likely too many as she was spotted......alarms calls went out as everything fled in all directions.

She decided to hide in the bushes. Due to the alarm calls being heard every couple of minutes this wasn't fooling anyone.

She then decided to have her photo taken and perched towards the back of the clearing before heading off not to return.

Goshawk - Juvenile Female

The day came to an end and possibly one of my most memorable birthdays to date. For years Goshawk have been on my wish list and up to now not been able to photograph them. I was heading back to my room happy and looking forward to beer or three.

Happy Birthday to me....couldn't get any better I thought......or could it???

'Fancy seeing eagle owls?' Came from my host........'What?' I know he was checking two nest sites but didn't want to ask too much. 'Fancy seeing eagle owls?' Was repeated and double taking Felix, simultaneously looking at each other 'YES!!!!!'

On route we were being told a couple had hatched at another site, which I hope to visit in the coming weeks. On arrival at this nest and in the twilight were three stunning 1 week old chicks. A quick record shot from distance is all I could manage in my excitement of seeing my first nest. The adults are huge and one day I will get some photos of them.

Eagle Owls - Chicks 

On our way there and back we could see why this is a good place for the Owls. Hundreds of rabbits everywhere and when I say hundreds I mean hundreds!!! Also a stunning Short-toed Eagle was perching in a nearby pine. Too dark for photos though.

Thank you to Felix and my host for a great couple of days. I will be back with guests for sure!!!!

I have been asked what I have been up to for past couple of months. So a quick recap.

I am currently scoping the local area for the rare Wiltshire Wild Red Deer. Unfortunately only seen a dead doe but have it on good authority where they are and hope to catch up with the small numbers soon.

While in the area I have seen a possible Rough-legged Buzzard. The jury is out but a couple of good raptor chaps think it is. Just wish I hadn't deleted the photo of the white un-barred tail as this would help in identifying.

Rough-legged Buzzard

I have also been lucky on the Owl front. All 5 UK species sighted within 10 minutes of my house. New Little Owl pair, Long-eared, Short-eared, Barn and Tawny all seen hunting. Just can't locate the Long-eared roost but more than happy to see my first Swindon sighting.

Little Owl

Short-eared Owl

Also had a quick visit to the Borders of Scotland for a fantastic session in Alan's Kingfisher hide. Unfortunately in extremely bad weather but still came back with some nice shots. Will be back in May for another go.

Kingfisher - Male

Sierra Morena Spring Trip - Day Two; Eagles and foxes

Day Two of my short trip to the stunning Sierra Morena region was spent in the very well-appointed Spanish Imperial Eagle hide. For a full description of the set-up, see my post from my last trip in January.

It was a very early start to get to the private Finca and into the hide before the light started to come up, but well worth it. As we arrived, a solitary Griffon Vulture was roosting in one of the Stone Pines towards the back of the clearing, and it stuck around for most of the day.

We then got very excited when two huge, dark birds flew out of the gloom towards the clearing, before the sun had come up... however, it soon became clear that it was a false alarm & that it was a pair of Ravens, rather than the Eagles. Still very impressive birds; you forget just how big they can get, until you see them close up. They did briefly perch up, but light levels were still too low for a shot. 

The last couple of times I've been here, the first arrivals on the bait have been a huge, noisy flock of Azure-Winged Magpies. At this time of year, there weren't the same large flocks - presumably because most of the birds are on nests at present. However, a couple of pairs did briefly visits several times throughout the day, though they weren't hanging around; it was strictly a case of grab some grubs  head off to the nest.

Azure-winged Magpie

The pair of Imperial Eagles did show up not too long after the sun had come up, but initially assumed a watchful position in the tops of the trees right at the back of the clearing. The antics of a small group of Goldfinches kept us entertained as we waited, and it was also nice to see a couple of Crested Tit flying too & from between the pines. We also had a pair of Blackbirds about their business, and a pair of Spotless Starlings was busy ferrying a steady stream of maggots and grubs over to their nest.

Spotless Starling

Spotless Starling

Eventually, the Griffon Vulture came down to feed on the bait (most of a deer carcass, in this instance). Another tried to join it, but the original bird soon saw it off by hissing and posturing aggressively.

Griffon Vultures

I was delighted when an Iberian Red Fox vixen put in an appearance, after an hour or so. I've been hoping for an encounter with one of these stunning creatures every time I've visited this hide, but no joy - until now.  The Eagles weren't quite so pleased to see her, though. As soon as she started attempting to feed on the bait, they moved forward into the closest pines and made their displeasure very clear.Indeed, one even got so riled up that it swooped down on the fox, and managed to grab it, as she fled toward the cover at the side of the valley. It was quite something to witness, as the bird lifted the vixen off the ground; however it can't have had a proper grip, as the fox was able to escape, apparently unharmed. 

Spanish Imperial Eagle -Pair

Iberian Red Fox

Both eagles looking for the fox

Shortly after this, a small herd of about 6 Red Deer hinds, plus one surprisingly well-grown fawn crossed the far end of the clearing. I'm always happy to see a deer or two!

Eagles beating up a Griffon Vulture

The Eagles came and went throughout the course of the day, though they didn't actually come down to the bait to feed; seemingly more interested in guarding their larder from all intruders. I also enjoyed watching a Goshawk coming & going in the distance over the valley; clearly taking food back to the nest. A third Griffon made a appearance, however it didn't seem hungry for it left after a short stay. 

We did also get another visit from a second Vixen in the afternoon. Interestingly, the Eagles didn't seem at all bothered by her, which seems surprising, considering their attack on the first fox during the morning. This one, really wasn't hanging about; she grabbed a huge hunk of meat and promptly dragged it off with her. I really like the light effects on this photo of her.

On the way back to town we were privileged to stop off to check out a little owl sight. We did find the wee chap though not coming out of the trees. Further down the road another was posting nicely on top of a wooden electricity pylon but by this time my battery had run out and I had stupidly left the spare at home!!

Little Owl

Another very memorable day in this beautiful place. Final installment of the trip to follow tomorrow.

Crested Tits, Crossbills, Capercaille & back to the Coast

Finally getting around to finishing off the trip report for our last couple of days North of the border last week. Apologies go to our avid readers in Cults in particular for the delay in producing the last installment!

We'd originally planned to retrace the same route up Deeside, through Glenshee & Perthshire back to Edinburgh after our few days in Aberdeen. However, tantalised by seeing other people's fantastic shots of Ptarmigan on snow, we decided to take the super-scenic route back with a detour through Aviemore & a flying visit to the Cairngorm.

After a hearty full Scottish breakfast to give us strength for the day, we set off up Deeside as far as Balmoral Castle - again passing good numbers of Greylag Geese feeding in the fields around Muir of Dinnet. 
A final pass through the moorland around Bridge of Gairn was rewarded with some more great views of Red Grouse displaying.  

Red Grouse

We then continued along the same road through Tomintoul and the Lecht towards Aviemore - passing several Roe Deer, large flocks of Lapwings, several groups of Curlews and some distant Mountain Hares along the way. I'd been hoping that there might be some better snow-cover remaining at the Lecht for another chance of getting the Grouse on snow, but it was pretty much all gone apart from a few compacted patches. 

Nearing Aviemore, we spotted quite a lot of large winter visitor waterfowl grazing in the fields along the Spey - mainly Greylags again, but also several groups of Whooper Swan and some Pink-footed and Canada Geese. 

Just outside Grantown on Spey, I was absolutely flabbergasted to spot a female Capercaille walking through the pine trees, not too far back from the main road. I nearly crashed the car in my shock, but as we were in a stream of fast-moving traffic there wasn't anywhere to pull over for some distance. We had to go a couple of miles further down the road before coming to a place where I could turn round, and by the time we'd made our way back, there was no sign of the bird. While I'm gutted not to get even a record shot, it was an incredible feeling to see one in Scotland. 

By this time, we were in dire need of caffeine & cake, so we paid a visit to the Potting Shed Tearoom at Inshriach Nursery. This is a great place for a coffee stop if you are even remotely interested in birds, as the tearoom has a really nice viewing area looking directly out over their wildlife feeding station, which attracts a constant stream of birds and the odd Red Squirrel or two - with the added bonus of excellent cake too! We enjoyed watching the dozens of Chaffinches and Coal-tits on the feeders, as well as Greenfinches and Great Spotted Woodpeckers.

Arriving at the Cairngorm, I was disappointed - but not really surprised- to see that here too, the snow cover had receded up the slopes. I did pick up a group of Ptarmigan on a ridge to the far left of the funicular railway, but too far up to tempt me to try an ascent, I'm afraid! Ah well, got to leave some challenges for next time, after all.

We then stopped into the Scottish Heather Centre, as we've found their wildlife feeding station to be good for woodland birds when we stayed in the area a couple of years ago. However nothing at all was moving during our (admittedly, very breif) visit this time - although we could clearly hear Crested Tits calling in the pines around the grounds. Chatting to the owner, he hasn't seen any come down for a few months, so he thinks the mild winter has meant they are less interested in visiting feeders.

Before hitting the road again, we decided to stretch our legs with a quick walk in one of our favourite spots - in the beautiful RSPB Abernethy forest around Loch Mallachie. Almost immediately, we were surrounded by Crested Tit calls on every side, and we had fun watching them flitting around high up in the pines - too high for much in the way of photos, sadly. (Guess I'm just spoilt after my close encounters in Spain last month!)

Crested Tit - Spain

We also had a small flock of Scottish Crossbills, although again they were staying in cover at the top of the trees. 

Lou stumbled across (almost literally) a very obliging Common Toad - always a fun challenge to shoot 'macro' style subjects using a 500mm lens! 

Common Toad

The highlight of the walk was hearing the unmistakable sounds of a male Capercaille clacking away somewhere in the depth of the forest. We didn't manage to work out where the call was coming from, but it was quite a thrill all the same. 

Back in Edinburgh on Friday, the weather had changed back to cold, grey and drizzly - with strong winds. It wasn't a day to tempt us to go too far afield, especially knowing we had the long drive home the next day. We did take a drive down to the coastline at Crammond, where we found the sea was very rough and few birds were visible out on the water - except a few gulls on the front. However we did come across a huge flock of over 200 Curlews in a sheep field just back from the bay -accompanied by a single Ruff. If it wasn't for the farmer driving through the field as I was setting up I could have managed some close shots of them.

Moving on through Leith Docks, we noticed there were quite a few more birds sheltering in the harbours, so we decided to pop down to Musselburgh again to see if we could pick up the Surf Scooter.

Arriving at the Fisherrow Harbour, we thought we had completely struck out, as there wasn't a single bird to be seen. However a quick scan through the bins showed a few waders huddled on the spar at the mouth of the River Esk further along the bay, so we headed in that direction for a closer look. It turned out to be a good call, as we discovered lots of the waders and waterfowl were sheltering just slightly upriver - including Greylag & Canada Geese, Golden Eye and Dunlin. We didn't find the Scooter, but I was very pleased to be able to finally get really close to a group of Goosanders, as they've been a bit of a bogie bird for me in terms of getting a decent shot!

Goosander -Female

Goosander - Male

So, overall we had a really good time in Scotland - always good to combine seeing the clan with some top-quality wildlife action too!