Norfolk!

Norfolk, my favourite place for birds in Britain. It may not be the most scenic of locations, a hill being quite a rarity, but the vast areas of reedbeds and coastal marshes are a haven for wildlife. Over the summer I was fortunate enough to spend a few days there, where I focused on one of my favourite birds, Bearded Reedlings (tits). Not only are they extremely difficult to obtain clear views of, they are also extremely charesmatic. Conditions have to be perfect with no wind, and it can't be too hot, otherwise they seem to prefer to hunker down in the reeds! I was very fortunate as I had fantastic views of both Male and Female birds. In terms of birding it was also great, with a number of scarcities being seen, including a new species for me, a Common Scoter. They are extremely common I know but I have never confidently seen one. Being a sea duck it was predictably miles out, but nice to see. On the drive back from Norfolk, we decided to stop off at Abbey Farm, a great little place near Kings Lynn. It is simply a farm, however the owner has made a conscious effort to maintain the farm with wildlife in mind. One of the star attractions are the little owls, and I managed to obtain this rather dodgy record shot of one. More Recently, I was fortunate enough to see a Little Owl very locally, so I will be contacted the land owners in the next few days in the hope over the winter I can start a mini Little Owl project. Other plans for the winter include Woodpeckers, Nuthatches, and of course my worst enemy, the Bittern. Below are my images from Norfolk, I am particularly pleased with my Bearded Reedling efforts this year, being much better than my previous attempts.

On another note, in addition to my Highly Commended image in the BWPA (British Wildlife Photography Awards) this year, I have also won the 'Small Mammals' Category in the Hampshire Wildlife Trust's Competion. However perhaps more excitingly, out of the 4 Junior Categories in Marwell Wildlife's (Zoo) photograph compeition, I won 3 of them, and the overall Junior Compeition. Links are below! http://www.itv.com/news/meridian/2012-10-05/wildlife-photos-of-the-year/ http://www.hwt.org.uk/pages/photocomp2012.html