Stotfold corn bunting flock

Just part of the flock yesterday

Great Northern Diver

Great Northern Diver, Stewartby lake, 30th January 2010

Stotfold.

Great sight to see so many buntings, the air was full of their calls. And the merlin kept them moving about on quite a few occasions, great to watch the dogfights.

Eversholt.

Shame the Goosanders didnt hang around for longer. The siskin flock numbered close to a couple of hundred, with just one redpoll seen.

Broom.

Record images of the Black necked grebe.

Caspian Gull

2nd winter Caspian Gull, Stewartby Lake, 24th January 2010

Blunham Scaup 20/1

Not the best of photos but then it's me behind the camera!

Stotfold Corn Buntings

Part of the flock at Stotfold - I put a grid over this shot and counted. I got to 499! Neighbouring trees had good numbers in so 700 is probably an underestimate.

Some more visitors to our Clifton garden this year

All were again taken through the closed window. The Tree Sparrow is really just a record shot to prove it was there. I got better shots here in Feb 2009

Bittern at Stewartby Lake

Two more photos of the Bittern found by Neil Wright at Stewartby Lake. The first photo was taken by Martin Green and the second one by Neil Wright.

Bittern

Bittern, Stewartby Lake, 17th January 2010. Found by Neil Wright just a few yards from the busy main track around the lake, this bird seemed oblivious to our presence.

Green Woodpeckers

Male (top) and female Green Woodpeckers trapped and ringed at Beeston

Taiga taiga!

You always have to scan the goose flocks just in case. What a flock this one was today!

Brent and Pink-foot

Smew and Great Northern Diver at Stewartby Lake

Record shots of the male Smew and Great Northern Diver at Stewartby Lake. Photos by Martin Green

Luton Garden Yellowhammer 15Jan2010

Just to show what can come into a suburban garden as a result of the weather we have been having over the last month. A nice surprise and garden tick while working from home. A wide angle image of the bird in context with the snowman and some of my feeders just for fun as well.

Brambling at Brogborough

This Brambling was in Neil Wright's garden in Brogborough village. The photo was taken by Paul Wright

Just a Blackbird?

Taken at Whipsnade Zoo by Cliff Tack, is the lower bird just a female Blackbird? Comments welcome. (sorry for the poor quality of the images, they are scans of a print.)

EDIT - I have now received a full set of original photos from Cliff. Thanks to software enhancement (although not too much) I have added the top photo, which clearly shows its a female Blackbird.

I guess reflections from snow, and distance, made this look far more interesting than it actually is. Thankgoodness for digital cameras!

Some visitors to our Clifton Garden so far this year

All of these images were taken through the closed window i.e. through glass, the Goldcrest also with flash as the light was poor. I have seen Goldcrests here sporadically between 3 Dec 09 and 11 Jan 10 feeding at dusk among the ivy.

East Hyde Jack Snipe

As no-one else seems to have put an image on of the East Hyde Jack Snipe on the Blog I am doing so even though they are not terribly good. The position of the bird and light were less than ideal for photography. The only one I saw woke up briefly whilst I was there but did not show a lot of activity otherwise!

Garden Redwings 9 January

Redwings present in our Putnoe garden throughout the week -and perching up in the Ivy covered Apple tree near the house - unlike the Fieldfares that seemed to only use the trees at the back of the garden. male Blackcap also present briefly in the morning