Wildlife in a Suburban Garden

Back to normal, well almost.

Before I start, can I direct you to my Sri Lanka Trip Report which is being put together and added to daily. To read it just click on the picture of the exotic White-throated Kingfisher on the left. I had a rest after I came back from Sri Lanka, I think I was almost exhausted from my constant early mornings and activity. I described how life in Sri Lanka is almost like a parallel universe, people living their lives and on their own journey (so to speak) just as we do here in England but in such a totally different way. We seem to be far too materialistic here in the UK. We are "over-governed" with rules and regulations and health and safety which has got totally out of hand in comparison. Our politicians make rules and regulations just because they feel that's what they have to do. For example, I don't think I saw a vehicle in Sri Lanka that would pass an MOT Test in the UK. (I didn't see one single traffic incident by the way).
An Indian Roller on the wires above our house in Sri Lanka. This bird had a nest in a coconut tree in the adjoining garden.

 

The seat belt laws in the UK is a typical example of over governance where surely you should be free to make your own mind up, if you are stupid enough not to wear one, then that should be for you to decide. In Sri Lanka its not unusual to see 4 people squeezed on to a motor scooter and with no helmets in sight! People travel on the backs of trucks and cram in to Tuck-tucks, (the 3 weel motorised rickshaws). The cost of living is a fraction of the west and all basic commodities are priced for people who would be on a good salary if they earned £50 a month.
Yours truly photographing the Indian Rollers nest.

A plantation worker earns an average daily wage of £2.37. Therefore, mobile phone charges, transport and food cost are tiny compared to the west. Tourism is a great source of revenue for the those clever enough to be in this sector. The massive difference in wages in the west means that every single visitor is a rich man compared to the local Sri Lankan. The annual minimum wage in Sri Lanka is £377 therefore when a Sri Lankan is charging you Western prices for his services he is on a massive earner. That said, its a great country and a great experience to visit.
Our house in Sri Lanka.

Its still quite early in the season here and the weather is not the best. In a few weeks the Dipper will be starting to pair up and nesting will start. I am looking forward to this. In the meanwhile, just a photo or two of Long-tail Tit.

Trip report Sri Lanka 2014

I am currently in the process of compiling the trip report from my recent trip. Please check it out here and read a day by day account of my trip with many, many pictures. Here's a link 

Lotens Sunbird

A brilliant day yesterday…..far too busy and tired to post yesterday but here is the highlight of that great day…..a bird of a lifetime……Loten's Sunbird. Going back in a minute to see if I can get more…… Leafbird, Celylon Flycatcher etc etc…… check back later!

Oriental Magpie Robin

The Oriental  Magpie Robin, what a name, very common here and a beautiful singer. As we walked down the road early this morning this bird was on the floor, a great photo opportunity. Before we left I photographed the Parakeet here, this is a Rose Ringed Parakeet and the same as the species that is breeding the home counties at home in the UK. They are nesting in the coconut grove next to our house and feeding here on a berry bush next to the house. Then down at the beach Terry photographed the Bee-eaters and I tried to capture the swallows in flight with a tiny bit of success. I think the one here is a juvenile Barn Swallow, if you know different can you please let me know. Oh….. and a female type Brown Shrike. A good morning, off to look at some water birds this afternoon.

More Blue-tailed Bee-eaters in flight.

Today, after a small lie-in I left my accommodation after 7.30 to go out to the beach area where I had so successfully photographed Bee-eaters flying from and landing on, their perches doing what bee-eaters do best, catch bees in flight!! The light was better today, bright sun and not over-cast so if the birds were there then i would be able to improve my shots from the other day and so it proved with many, many action shots, some absolutely glorious. On my walk dow the road to the beach I have to walk past the gardens of a nearby guest house which is always full of intriguing bird sounds and this morning in one tree, I saw and photographed a Sri-Lankan Paradise Flycatcher….what a bird and also my best ever shots of a Brown Barbet so even before I had managed to get my eyes working properly I had seen two cracking species and thats not to mention the Indian magpie Robin pair that have a nest in the garden somewhere I think as I have seen them every time that I have walked past. Photos of all today's action to follow shortly.

The spinner dolphin (Stenella longirostris) at sea off Kalpitya Sri Lanka

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(I have had difficulties connecting to the internet this last few days, sorry for he lack of posts). Thursday saw us going up the coast to Kalpitya, to look for Dolphins which are close to the Continental shelf at this point and the sea is rich in life and supports vast pods of Dolphins. We were told that a sighting is absolutely 100% guaranteed, well it isn't because we had to stay an extra night in the beach side camp ….. they called it a hotel but its basically 7 little sheds on the sand with facilities. It was fun but basic, some would say exotic and romantic but a sheds a shed. I suppose location is everything but you can't call a wooden hut anything else than shed can you. Having failed on the Thursday we negotiated another trip with the manager to go out next day at a reduced price where we were assured that "it's 100% guaranteed my friend", funny didn't you say that yesterday. 4 hours on the Thursday was followed by 2 on the Friday and eventually there they were. The magnificent sight of perhaps 500 Dolphins. They were in the vicinity of a few  small boats, way out at sea.  They were fishing for Tuna and other ocean going pelagics with hand lines. I assumed that the fisherman and the dolphins were there because of the abundance of bait fish and the dolphins were certainly following the small boats...... and us once wehad  joined the mini-fleet.

 What a sight, the water was boiling with them in all directions and it was certainly a great spectacle that I will remember for the rest of my life. Photography was nigh on impossible so to finish up with a dozen or so shots was nothing short of divine intervention!  A picture paints a thousand words?  No it doesn't because it doesn't show the extreme amount of effort that we endured  to get to see this pod. It doesn't show how rough the sea was and it doesn't show how wet we got, nor how shaken, rattled and rolled we were!   But, unequivocally it was worth every bone crunching bounce of the boat, every thorough salty spumed soaking, and every pound extracted from our wallets by the local Sri Lankans who are masters in the art of stripping the rupees from every travellers wallet, by subterfuge, argument, bribe or simple begging!!!!  The money for this expensive outing was my Christmas present from my lovelly wife Jenny, so thanks Jen my best Christmas present ever!  What kind of wife allows you to go away to Sri Lanka to photograph wildlife and gives you money towards it?

 

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Spinner Dolphins are smaller than Bottle Nose, they seemed to be the size of the Common Dolphins that I have seen before in the Bay of Biscay. It was really good to see that there were lots of young calves that left the water to jump along side their parents. A wonderful treasured sighting.

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We arrived back on the shore after a great 3 hours, I tried to persuade the boat to stay longer ever hopeful of better shots……I always am. It seemed odd to spend 6 hours looking for them and when we had found them, leave after 20 minutes, why couldn't we stay for 3 hours? But others wanted to return including the boatman so thats what we did. At the point I ought to mention the young lad acting as a guide, (the owners son),  he was a gobby little (privileged) boy who almost spoiled the trip. He would have made good shark bait!  Our trip back to Waikkal was great. We travelled all the way by Tuktuk stopping regularly to photograph birds of interest. There simply isn't time to post today but we saw, and all very close. Stork Billed Kingfisher, Pheasant-tailed Jacana, Open-billed Stork, Ibis, Purple Heron, and two lifers for me (with photographs), Green Bee-eater and White-rumped Munia. All in all a fabulous and rich 2 days. Here's a record of he Green Bee-eater.

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An eventful trip to Nogombo.

Terry and I went to Nogombo this afternoon.  I decided not to take my camera and it was good fun to negotiate the local means of transport which varied from Tuk-tuk to Bus and back to Tuck-tuck (a small 3 weel vehicle that can take 2 passengers, basically a powered rickshaw). They are cheap and seemingly dangerous but they don't seem to crash which says a lot more  about the belief in various gods than the skill of the drivers. They weave in and out of the traffic.  There is always hassle negotiating the price which usually finishes up at a few quid,if that. It's a constant feud between Western travellers who arrive with wallets laden with cash and it seems the national passtime of every Sri Lankan is to extract as much of it as you can. This is done by always being "my-friend" or having a brother, uncle or some other distant relative who has a boat here or a taxi there or is a tour guide and will give you the best price etc.!

The beggars are real, and very sad but some people just randomly ask you for money even though they look perfectly respectable. We shopped in a gift shop which could have been any gift shop anywhere in the world with that slightly musty smell from the usual carvings, probably mass produced in China or the Philippines but all supposedly hand made here. Having been in hundred of gift shops in dozens of third world countries previously then I am sorry to say, I wasn't fooled but did buy two tiny resin elephants (designed to look like iron wood) and a spoon made from a shell which will join all the other things from countries like Fiji and Tonga and the Pitcairn Islands, in a box somewhere in the attic.Oh well, when in Rome as they say….. Our journey home was weird! We caught a bus which was crammed with people, we used our wits and even managed to get off the bus and then change on to the next one which was even more crowded and smelly. We careered along to our destination and jumped off to then flag down a passing agricultural vehicle who took us to a spot further on where we could get a Tuk-tuk to the last stage of our journey. All very interesting and exciting. I think the locals enjoyed it more than us as they were intrigued to see two English men of a certain age, on their crowded bus and laughed at us as well on the motor driven cart. Back home at Ravi's there is a disaster of sorts. Its a new moon and believe it or not every new moon is a public holiday and the bars and hotels are not allowed to sell alcohol! (Thats just for today). So an early night tonight which is probably a good thing as we are leaving very early in the morning for another go at the Dolphin trip.

Blue-tailed Bee-eater in flight

I had a great couple of hours early this morning with the Bee-eaters, a really common bird here.  The species that I am seeing is the Blue-tailed Bee-eater.  You can see them on just about every outing and hear them passing over head very regularly.   Being in a situation to photograph a species like this is the reason that I came all the way to Sri Lanka.   It took a lot of patience and persistence to get the shots.  It's not always easy to be in just the right spot for a good shot, in fact it rarely is to be honest.  Part of my success ( if I have acheived any of course) is to be in the right position which is a big skill.  There were several Bea-eaters on the beach which seems to be a good place to see them particularly when they are feeding.  I had noticed that one particular bird had a favoured perch quite low down  and I managed to manoeuvre myself in to a position just in front of it and then gradually I moved myself nearer and nearer. Then I set the camera up for the in-flight shots by trying to get the very fastest shutter speed possible.  This meant that I had to choose a high ISO which can make images look a bit grainy if you are not careful.  I was very excited when I realised that I had achieved some success. It's always rewarding  to set out to do something and then get a result. In the end I finished up with about 50 shots of the bird alighting on this perch.  Very quickly when I came back to my room  I had a look and selected these.

Such a great day so far!

It's been such a magical day so far, even though its lunch time and "siesta"  we have had such great start. It was dull and overcast and remained so until well after 8.30. Terry my travel companion had said that I ought to go with hime to an area that I hadn't been before so before we strolled down there before 7, and as we stood there drinking coffee we took photos of this Asian Koel that was eyeing up the fruit on our feeding station that have  so far attracted lots of birds which have included mainly Bulbuls and Mynahs and the Yellow Billed Babblers.   But there has been more, so much more. In the bush with the Bee-eaters was a bird that Terry hadn't realised was important too me, he is not a birder so how would he know but there was a lovely Brown Shrike female. I managed a shot or two but like I have said……. yet again…..the light was bad, out came the better beamer and flash gun and I then managed a keeper. I saw Brown Shrike last year and the other day I had seen a male.

The light was awful but when we got there, there were some birds of the usual species. The White-throated Kingfisher (below) was vying for attention with a few lovely Bee-eaters bit the light was just so bad. never the less I crept towards the Kingfisher who was on nearby bushes but off it went and I thought I had disturbed it…. but no, suddenly there it was in front of me with a prey item…….and now i know what they eat. It had a little ghost crab in it's beak. What a treat to see it feeding on the little crab. As I have already said twice, the light was dull so I could only achieve around 1/100 of a second which is normally a recipe for disaster but out of the 20 or so shots of the action, this one seemed almost OK.

We have an Indian Roller nesting high in a dead Coconut Tree in the plantation next door to Ravi's Dream House! Absolutely brilliant, Terry discovered it the day before yesterday. There has been some interesting interactions between the pair and also between the Ring-necked Parakeets that are nesting in the hole beneath (in the same tree).  I have managed a few shots of them but its hard to be in two places at once and when you are sitting there taking pictures of them you are not elsewhere getting other shots and the possibilities are endless..... just not enough time to do it all (and get some sleep as well).  But, its really going to be my focus in the next day or so I think because look what's happening..... it's brilliant.

This is the male flying down to the hole, we think that the female is incubating and we have seen them on the top of the stump together. This morning the male attacked the parakeets but I didn't manage to get a shot of the.
This is the same bird on another occasion, flying down from the stump of the tree which is about 50 foot high, a really safe place for a nest. Here he is on the nest rim before he looks inside to interact with his mate.

….and if that were not enough to keep you entertained there is always the fruit feeder which is a great source of entertainment. We had Mynah birds feeding babies with our free banana offerings this morning…… photos later. This is a Red vented Bulbul, they seem to love the Banana.
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..........…and a close up, foloowed by an Indian Pond Heron that was in the plantation as I waited fo action from the Rollers.

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A few different Tern species.

Before the complete post  then here's the Stork-billed Kingfisher that I promised you yeaterday.

We went to a little place up the coast called Chillow today. Its off the beaten track and not in the least bit a tourist haunt. No English spoken and the train, very basic as it is, did the job for the princely sum of 35p each. It was good to see the rural scene as we passed along the line, every rice field full of egrets and every cow having at least one Cattle Egret for company. Then now again a stork of unknown species appeared in to view. A wonderful experience to say the least, (in spite of my earache). I have travelled all my life and you can't explain to non-travellers what the 3rd world is like unless you have been. The sights, the smells the one legged beggars, the poor (and I mean POOR) with no shoes and the lovely smiles that everyone is ready to give, in spite of having nothing.  Most people seem so much happier than the average European. I am constantly reminded of the inequality there is in the world and the good fortune of people in England who don't know the meaning have having nothing and then  feel hard dome by if they haven't got satellite TV (for example). In Chillow there are some sand spits that form an estuary and this was why had returned today. In about an hour I photographed 4 species of tern include my first new species of the trip, a Gull-billed. I also had some wonderful views of a lovely Caspian Tern which I have now been lucky enough to see on three continents, europe, USA and here in Asia but I haven't photographed them very well before. If you look below there is a Whiskered Tern first followed then  by a Crested Tern (also called Swift Tern) and then the Caspian as mentioned. Then a Gull-billed Tern, a first for me as I already said.

Purple Heron

Yesterday, that was Sunday, Terry and I went on a river boat trip which I wasnt expecting to be too successful, just a happy jaunt but I have to confess that it was very rewarding and this in spite of the boat boy who let us down badly.  We were supposed to meet him at 6.30am but he sent a substitute and then he arrived much later to take over.  I was hopping mad because this meant that we had to return to pick him up and exchange boatmen.  I told him that it would be fair enough if he was doing us a favour but of course they are not, it costs handsomely!In the end though we saw 4 species of kingfisher and several other interesting species include a Stone Curlew pair and I even spotted the nest of one of the Sunbird Species. I took a magnificent picture of a Purple Heron in flight, possibly one of my best ever photographs, I am very pleased with it.
I have very interesting pictures of the Stork Billed Kingfisher that we saw, a truly awesome big Kingfisher, almost as large as a Kookaburra. Last time I had photographed it but not well, but this year I have nailed it as they say. Check back and I will try and post the picture. Bad news now, we were supposed to be out Dolphin watching this morning but unfortunately I have had to go to the doctors. I have a nasty ear infection that came up over night, it was really painful and a bit scary. I didn't know if I would be able to find the right treatment but a trip to the local doctor cost me £2.50 which included 4 different tablets, antibiotics and anti-biotic ear drops. I waited 14 minutes, not 14 days that I have to wait at the surgery in Exeter and it was as cheap as chips. Job done, perhaps our health service should send people here to have a look at how its done in the 3rd world?

A Water Monitor comes to call.

Its been the usual round of early mornings and days filled with photographing.  Its hard to keep up with looking at pictures and posting but I am trying hard!

I had a great day on Friday.  I sat in a hide which I had made over-looking the river where I had placed a stick to hopefully entice Kingfisher to land which wasn't all that difficult to achieve success apart from having to sit for a couple of hours quietly in the 30 degree heat. It was a few minutes before the first bird flew in and I hadn't realised until I got back to my accommodation that it was going to give me some great shots. I saw it fly in towards me then settle on the fence where I couldn't see it, then within seconds it landed on a young palm tree growing out of the water. It was looking for food and I think it would have been successful but for a boat which disturbed it.
This bird had a noticeably muddy beak and mud on the plumage and also the feet a sure sign that it had been tussling with something in the mud rather than diving in the water to feed.
You can clearly see the mud in the beak on this photo. Then once this one had departed I sat for an age, full of expectation having already proved that my camo was working. Then a Kingfisher flew in to land on the perch very close to me and as I shuffled myself in to a good position to fire the camera's shutter, the cover fell off me and the bird was disturbed, a disappointment. After another wait a Water Monitor Lizard swam towards me and climbed out on the the shore. I could n't see it but after no more than a minute it appeared only 6 feet from me. I wasn't sure if I was safe but it was tasting the air with its massive tongue which whipped in and out and then it sensed my presence and slid quietly back in to the water to swim away agin, quite a good encounter.
So then Saturday arrived and we went to the fish market at Nogombo which in the past had been good for diving terns that "work" of the beach for the white bait that everyone, both bird and fisherman is so keen to get hold of. Their was a huge flock of the pretty Whiskered Tern which is the commonest Tern species here in Sri Lanka. I had some good success and ooh lots of photos, most I have yet to look at properly but I have picked a couple out to post .

The Indian House Crow is not what you would call a nice bird really but I do like to photograph birds in flight and here was a great opportunity as there were literally hundreds feeding on anything that they could get their grubby beaks on.
This is all for now but I have so great pictures from a fruit feeding station that we have set up…….. heres a taste, a Red-vented Bulbul.

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On a different note, I see that someone has hacked in to my twitter account and is sending spam to people. I am trying to deal with it sorry if you have been affected. As you can appreciate it wasn't my doing but I do apologise.

White-throated Kingfisher

It was overcast this morning when I got up and by the time I had started my early morning walk, it was still a little misty and comparatively cool…. (in the low 70s). I had benefited from a full nights sleep which had not absolutely got rid of the jet lag which I am rubbish at dealing with anyway  but I was feeling better.  However I am suffering with the effects of the nastiest bug that I have ever experienced and it  has taken its toll. All my family are suffering including my little granddaughters who have been particularly badly affected. I hope they are feeling better now. I wandered in the direction of a park area that I know contains lots of birds with the target being the White Breasted Water Hens that I have been seeing there. They are common but on my last trip I hadn't even bothered with them, its always the same, you ignore the common birds…..common here but unknown at home…..and then when you get back you regret it. This year I vowed not to overlook these birds.

I sat for ages on a stump right where I knew they were emerging from the undergrowth expecting to be successful without much difficulty. Well I was wrong… they never emerged while I was there. By now I had wasted 40 minutes!!! I gave up, thats not like me but I can't afford to waste too much time especially if I have judged that its not going to happen. Walking on, I suddenly noticed this absolutely gorgeous White-throated Kingfisher, what an opportunity. It was perched on a stump in the river. I edged closer, sat down and then shuffled forward on my backside to a spot that gave me a clear unobstructed view. I had done it, a good spot without disturbing it. You imagine that countries like this with all these exotics give real opportunities, well of course they do but the birds are just as easily disturbed as back home. Fieldcraft and stealth is still needed. Its a bit more scary because you are invariably on the ground and you don't know for sure what biting bugs are down there with you. Calculated risks are taken, well they are by me!! The bird was there for ages, preening and on the look out for prey in the water.

 

I could see that it had been in the water recently because it was wet but I hadn't imagined that this species would dive for fish, there are different sorts of Kingfishers and not all are actually fish eaters, some taking lizards and large insects. I really need to do some research about the feeding habits of this species because it certainly was scanning the water for prey. Unfortunately after a while it was disturbed by a local preparing his boat for the day….. all in all, a great encounter for me and the reason I am here. On my walk this morning I also saw Stone Curlew and a particularly nice male Purple Sunbird but I didn't manage a photo of either.

When I was almost back at Ravis Dream House and as I crossed the road bridge I caught site of a very nice Little Cormorant (Phalocrocorax niger), a nice pretty little cormorant.

Hello from Sri Lanka

I am having real problems with internet connection unfortunately.  I am making efforts to address the problems and hopefully normal service will be resumed as soon as possible as they say.  I have already taken several stuning photographs and I am really grappling with the problems of posting the images, its amazing how much we  take the internet for granted. You only miss it when you havent got it. Here is the blog post that I wrote about our journey over which I have managed to retrieve from my iPad.

"So here I am on the plane to Sri Lanka, we are 3 hours in to the  flight and so far......fabulous.   As is usually the case in these situations I have  turned to music for comfort and solace, Beethoven if you want to know.......not that I need it because its been a  lovely trip so far. We left Exeter at 11 this morning for our journey up to Heathrow, I can't remember how long it took because it went by in a flash with my personable, interesting and frankly, charming travel companion Terry. We swapped life stories and tales, all enhanced by Terry's sense of humour and twinkly eyes. We have a great deal in common, a love of life, a quest for experiences and a need to tell each other our tales.Even our unreasonably long wait at the airport turned in to a social event.We laughed like drains......do they laugh?......when as soon as we arrived at Exeter Coach station a  blind lady  insisted on helping Terry carry his luggage as though he couldn't cope.   Then when we got to our seats on the plane I was greeted  by a slightly weird lady who wished me a good evening, a good flight and a good life. . When I asked her what?  She answered, "Well you seem like a very spiritual person",  after my experiences on the beach in September with my angel, well that was a curved ball to say the least.  So now, with a glass of red in my hand,  Beethoven's Emperor Piano Concerto in full flow and the promise of two weeks in the sun, photographing birds, well does life get any better?  I wish Jenny was  here, but that apart,  it's pretty good so far.  As this is mainly a bird  Blog  then I ought to tell you that the highlight of the coach trip was the Red Kite sighting on the edge of Reading.  It hung in the air right next to the Motorway  giving glorious views and as this is nota bird that I see that often, I really enjoyed it.  Later on in the 10 plus direct flight, a nearby  child vomited which lowered the tone somewhat so with the stench of sweet sick in the nostrils, the almost constant stream of food wasn't always as welcome as it might be, and now the slightly weird religious lady keeps smiling at me.......time to sleep I think"

 

So we got here and I now talk aboy my problems with the internet.

 

 

Now I have managed to post a picture by various round about methods, success at last.  This bird was one of a pair that I saw this morning , hope you like it.

So now further to the entry from this morning, I have now resorted to buying a dongle and Sri Lankan Sim card and , hallelujah…… I am on line thanks to the intelligence and initiative of an amazingly clever young man who was able to connect me with very little fuss after all other efforts had failed miserably. This now gives me the chance to tell you a bit about my journey and first day here. I had written reams about all that before and it sits idly on my iPad which I can't connect to the net, so here's a précis.

Food is good at Ravi's, tonight we had butterfly prawns in batter with rice. I have seen loads of birds, mostly the same as on my previous visit but my experience of that trip has meant that I have been able to get some better images already. I will post more tomorrow now that I am able.
This is a Purple Rumped Sunbird a common bird here but not easy to photograph but with the better beamer flash…..thanks Dave Land…… I managed a shot this morning……sure there will be better to come. There are lots of butterflies this year, heres a nice photo of a Swallow tail, hopefully I will be able to name it soon.
There will be another post tomorrow, please check back. All the best Charlie….

Sri Lanka 2014

This will be my last Blog post until Wednesday. I leave for Sri Lanka tomorrow, Coach to Heathrow and then a flight direct to stay at Ravis Dream House, Waikkal Near Nogombo, Sri Lanka.  It was fun when I went in November 2012 and its going to be great to return.

This is Rav's house where we will be staying although Ravi tells me that he has built some new rooms in the garden opposite, perhaps we will be in these new rooms? I am travelling with my friend Terry who has been to Sri Lanka before so he knows what is awaiting him. A few pictures from my last trip.

……. and finally a picture of my favourite little bird…. my granddaughter.

My first cetacean photos in Devon as well as Red-necked and Slavonian Grebe.

I didn't know how to start this post, I mean, what should I talk about first…. it was such an incredible two hours on the Dart Princess this morning. We pulled out of the harbour at 9 prompt on a full tide, the weather was not the best, it was overcast and a little choppy but with reports of so many birds around the bay it was also exciting and anticipation was high. The skipper steamed at a good rate of knots straight across the bay towards Berry Head in the hope that we may see something a bit different than our previous trips when we had mostly "chugged" along hugging the shore-line. We picked up good numbers of feeding Northern Gannets as we crossed the bay, these are very impressive birds when you are close to them. Some were sitting on the water and presented good photo opportunities but to be frank, you really have to know how to get the best out of your equipment when it is dull and overcast.  (I am not saying I do, but I'm getting there).
Out there at the head there was lots of feeding activity with numerous Shag, Guillemots and flying Fulmars.... and the Gannets of course.  The Fulmars seemed to be already looking for nesting sights on the cliffs and from time to time they would sweep past us in classic style. Fulmars are in the same family as Albatross and you could certainly see that in their flight even though comparatively they are much, much smaller of course.

Suddenly some of the other passengers had the expected sightings of Porpoise and it was just a matter of seconds before I luckily caught sight of them as well. Apparently there were between 5 and 7 which is the usual small pod size. It was incredibly difficult to get a photograph, Porpoise rarely leap from the water and trying to predict where they were going to break the surface was a lottery. However, success ws achieved just a couple of times and I managed my first photographs of wild cetaceans in my home waters. A big thrill!

We lingered, but not for long enough for my taste but when you are on a boat with other people, everyone's wishes and interests need to be taken in to account, so we turned and headed back in towards Brixham Breakwater and then the most incredible thing happened. A Bottle Nosed Dolphin breached right next to us. This is only the second time that I have seen Bottle Nose in Devon an the first chance to get a photo but it was hard. In the end it stayed with us for around 30 minutes following us right in to the harbour slowly past the breakwater and even o the mouth of the inner harbour. In the end I did manage a few shots and in the one at the top you can see it's beak under the water. My impression was one of awe, you could clearly hear it as it emptied it's blow hole, I wouldn't have expected that. I rushed down to the lower deck of the boat and I am sure that he saw me and came close to see me. I was on the stern above the prop, he swam towards me and hen I could see his entire length and shape just under the surface. Nigel, the guide, told me that this was a well know individual, a loner nicknamed "Nick" due to it's damaged dorsal fin. He was in a bit of a mess and had lots of scratches and scrapes including the damage that you can see on the fin.

The Grey Seals seen on the trip today were very impressive, they were hauled out on the floating pontoons, 5 in all (later on we saw 2 more), a good total of course. Amongst the seals was a pretty white spotted one, I hadn't realised that they are so variable in coloration but I discovered that the light ones are the females.  They are also very distinctib=ve and they can be identified by their patterns.   As I photographed the seals I could clearly hear the "blowing" Dolphin close by, a massive distraction to say the least.  I hope you are as impressed with these seals as I am. These are big animals and is testimony to the the environment here,  It's so reassuring to know that we have all this wildlife in Devon.

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Once inside the inner harbour we were lucky and I was very excited to see a Red-necked Grebe very close and giving me the opportunity to take a few photographs that have improved my photos of this species.
Finally, as we steamed back towards Paignton we came upon another grebe which I immediately though was a Black-necked Grebe, however, Chris Proctor had seen it in flight and identified it as a Slavonian Grebe, only the second one that I have photographed.

 

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This is a Guillemot from earlier, followed by yet another Black Guillemot, probably the one that I photographed earlier in the week.

 

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Sri Lankan Birds

Prior to my trip next week back to Sri Lanka, I have been looking through a few pictures from my previous trip in 2012. I  arrive on Wednesday and am very much looking forwrd to meeting up with some old friends, both avian and Sri Lankan.  To whet your appetite here's a couple that I haven't posted before.  The first is an Indian Roller an ndividual that was a resident  in the garden next to my accommodation. When I got up on the very first morning I was very excited to know that I shared the garden with a real beauty.  I saw this bird constantly and really enjoyed photographing him.(or was it her)?

The next bird is a White bellied  Drongo, another interestesting but totally different species.

 

Shag photographed with a flash gun and flash extender.

I haven't had the opportunity to go out with the camera today, unfortunately my wife Jenny is still suffering with a nasty chest infection..... I am recovering now but still nothing near 100% but I am devoid of any energy which is a big worry.  Early next week I am off to Sri Lanka (for the second time) and I really hope to be fit and well so that I can get the best out of it.  I have finally sorted through the pictures from the fabulous boat trip I had the other afternoon in Brixham.  During this  trip I experimented with the "Better Beamer Flash Extender".  The use of flash can greatly add to the detail captured in an image and also give an image some real "pazzaz".  The trick is to not overdo the flash and the general rule of thumb is,  if you can tell it's been 'flashed"then you have't done it properly.  I took some nice pictures of the resident  harbour Shag using this technique and I am very happy with the reults.

The one above is a first year bird in non breeding plumage but there were several adult birds already sporting attractive plumes.  When you are close up to this species you can appreciate that the plumage is far from black, but a subtle combination of  irridescent  greens which refelct the light beautifully............ and what about that eye?

 

I have photographed 12 different species of Cormorant from all over the world and I have founnd our own Common Shag to be the most attractive and photogenic. Here is a link to my gallery of Cormorant species featuring 11 others in my gallery  Cormorants of the World

Iceland Gull - Brixham Harbour