A Country Walk

Images taken on a recent local country walk.

A male Chaffinch amongst the apple blossom.

Quite a variety of wild flowers can be found  on the local public footpaths.

A Goldfinch that is building a nest nearby.

The much overlooked House Sparrow has the same idea.

I watched this Chiffchaff taking food to a nearby nest.

The next day I revisited the location and couldn't find it. I assumed that the nestlings had flown from the nest and would continue feeding elsewhere.

Masses of buttercups across this field.

There are still some Primroses to be found.

A Wren was also observed near the Chiffchaff (shown above).

Wild Ferns

A Single Bluebell makes a nice image I think.

Red Campions are very common along the walks.

Another one of my efforts of Riverbed Art.

 

A Butterfly Shoot

Most Butterfly enthusiasts would welcome the opportunity to observe and photograph the Duke of Burgundy Butterfly.  However, once seen one wonders what all the hype was about. It is not the most attractive species that can be observed in UK.

It is in serious decline.however and much conservation work is conducted to save it..

Duke of Burgundy.

Small Tortoiseshell.

A common species and certainly very attractive to observe.

Green-veined White

This one I shot would (from its appearance) have only emerged that day.

Brimstone

This male Brimstone was pitched for a change and has obviously been around for a few days now and not always on the wing searching for females.

Marsh Fritillary

The Marsh Fritillary was the only one I could find that day, It didn't wait around for long enough either. More attractive than the Duke above I think.

Small White.

A common species that can be found everywhere.

Orange Tip

Even if you don't know much about butterflies you can probably recognise and name the Orange Tip male.

Small Copper.

A small and colourful species common throughout the UK.

Small Heath.

Even smaller, the Small Heath is common, but not easy to see.

Dingy Skipper.

One of the early skippers on the wing.

Looks like a Moth.

Common Blue

The most common of our blue species.

Spotted Flycatcher

The Spotted Flycatcher is a Summer visitor that arrives in UK in May and leaves again in October.

The first dry sunny day for quite a while, I was able to go for a local walk. I left it to the mid afternoon and wasn't sure I would see much.

With that in mind I only took my 'walk around' camera kit that would cover most subjects OK.

The one bird I did not expect to see was the Spotted Flycatcher.

Where I lived previously I would normally only see this species around the September time. 

Grey and Yellow

Grey Wagtails are in the process of nesting now and feeding young. 

I observed this male catching flies over a small river at a local village.