Great White Egret - Egretta alba85 viewswith some sort of harrier alongside
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Cetti's Warbler - Cettia cetti127 viewsanother Cetti's - another record shot, I'll get a decent photo someday, but alas not today
photographed @ Marton Mere Nature Reserve, Blackpool
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some sort of Wolf Spider?55 viewsID needed
photographed @ Whitbarrow Scar
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Mayfly62 viewssome sort of Mayfly, an early one as it was photographed in early April (on 04/04/15) @ Foulshaw Moss
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Mayfly57 viewssome sort of Mayfly, an early one as it was photographed in early April (on 04/04/15) @ Foulshaw Moss
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Long-eared Owls - Asio otus104 viewsa record shot - there's two of 'em in there somewhere
photographed @ Marton Mere Nature Reserve Blackpool
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Shore Lark - Eremophila alpestris75 viewsRossall Point don't do litter, but if you do spot some it's probably the best litter in the world.
Shore Lark & Carslberg can
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Little Egrets - Egretta garzetta70 viewsjust some of the many Little Egrets @ Leighton Moss RSPB reserve
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Common Bog Hoverfly - Sericomyia silentis53 viewsa large & handsome hoverfly
photographed @ Foulshaw Moss, Cumbria
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Trying to tell me something?69 viewsphotographed @ Rossall Point, Fleetwood
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Squabbling Little Egrets - shot 1/1565 viewssadly these Egrets were quite some distance away, I could hear them making strange calls in each others direction - next minute they both kicked off, photographed from the Morecambe Hide @ Leighton Moss RSPB reserve
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Hoverfly74 viewssome sort of Syrphini species I think, photographed in our garden, Bispham, Blackpool
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some sort of bee or maybe a wasp???58 viewsphotographed in the Véndee, France
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some sort of Sawfly? 59 viewsphotographed in the Vendée, France
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some sort of Sawfly? 51 viewsphotographed in the Vendée, France
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Common Backswimmer - Notonecta glauca99 viewsthis Backswimmer has clambered out of the water & onto some foliage, photographed in our garden, Bispham, Blackpool
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possibly a Nursery-web Spider - Pisaura mirabilis80 viewssomewhat different in appearance (& I think missing a leg) to the other Nursery Web spiders I've photo'd @ Devonshire Road Rock Gardens, Blackpool
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Some sort of eggs on base of pond pump?????138 viewsno idea what these are, seen attached to the base of my pond pump when I took it out of the water to clean
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Some sort of eggs on base of pond pump?????189 viewsno idea what these are, seen attached to the base of my pond pump when I took it out of the water to clean
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Grey Heron - Ardea cinerea147 viewscoughing up something fishy - yuk
photographed at the Heronry @ Stanley Park, Blackpool
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some sort of dodgy Mallard60 viewsthe streaky chocolate brown head & dark bill really make this one stand out against the crowd
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quarrelsome Coots132 viewsphotographed in the gloom @ Stanley Park, Blackpool (ISO1600)
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quarrelsome Coots125 viewsphotographed in the gloom @ Stanley Park, Blackpool (ISO1600)
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Great Crested Newt (female)98 viewsa female Great crested Newt being expertly handled by someone licensed to do so.
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B 4 ID77 viewspossibly some sort of Leafcutter Bee???
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Red Kite - Milvus milvus89 viewsthere are two Kites in there somewhere
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some sort of Warbler85 viewsphotographed in the garden of a gite we were renting in the Vendée, France
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64 viewssome sort of bee or wasp for ID
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Orange Swift - Hepialus sylvina83 viewsphotographed resting on some printer paper at our home in Bispham, Blackpool
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Orange Swift - Hepialus sylvina75 viewsphotographed resting on some printer paper at our home in Bispham, Blackpool
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Great Crested Grebes displaying - Podiceps cristatus73 viewsa pair of Grebes performing the "weed dance", with a gob full of leaves rather than some nice greener. What a fantastic spectacle to watch, photographed @ Stanley Park, Blackpool
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Great Crested Grebes displaying - Podiceps cristatus76 viewsa pair of Grebes performing the "weed dance", with a gob full of leaves rather than some nice greener. What a fantastic spectacle to watch, photographed @ Stanley Park, Blackpool
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Great Crested Grebes75 viewsa pair of Grebes performing the "weed dance", with a gob full of leaves rather than some nice greener. What a fantastic spectacle to watch, photographed @ Stanley Park, Blackpool
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Great Crested Grebes displaying76 viewsa pair of Grebes performing the "weed dance", with a gob full of leaves rather than some nice greener. What a fantastic spectacle to watch
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Dunnock - Prunella modularis122 viewsDunnock doing some sort of weird alien impression, photographed @ Stanley Park Blackpool
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Coal tit80 viewswe get the occasional Coal tit in the garden & this is one of the few times I've managed to photogragh one, hopefully to be replaced by a better shot sometime.
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Herring Gull68 viewsthis Herring Gull touched down briefly in the garden to nick some peanuts off the bird table
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Distant Starlings169 viewsTo the dismay of the group of us waiting for the Starlings to arrive at Marton Mere nature reserve, Blackpool, we spot some good size flocks of them away in the distance doing their aerial display over North Pier
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Distant Starlings180 viewsTo the dismay of the group of us waiting for the Starlings to arrive at Marton Mere nature reserve, Blackpool, we spot some good size flocks of them away in the distance doing their aerial display over North Pier
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Drone flies mating41 viewsEristalis pertinax, enjoying some autumn sunshine
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Hawker Dragonfly115 viewsthis Hawker had somehow managed to land in the water & was struggling for it's life, alas it was well out of reach or I would've scooped it out & put it somewhere to dry out .
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some sort of Grasshopper59 viewsI know not which type
photographed @ Foulshaw Moss, Cumbria
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Adders114 viewswork this one out, there's two of them in there somewhere. My first ever sighting of Adders, photographed at Meathop Moss.
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Tawny Mining Bee - Andrena fulva (female)84 viewsWe're getting quite a few of these quite striking little chaps in the garden at the moment, mainly around some Euphorbia (Spurge) & Ribes, although this one was settled on a Hawthorn leaf. They nest by burrowing into lawns.
photographed in our garden in Bispham, Blackpool
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Black headed Gull92 viewsthis Black headed Gull seems to be perched on some sort of camera that's stuck in the reedbed at Marton Mere nature reserve, Blackpool, weird.
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Black headed Gull81 viewssomewhat bizarrely, this Black headed Gull seems to be perched on some sort of camera that's stuck in the reedbed at Marton Mere nature reserve, Blackpool
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Cormorant83 viewsThis Cormorant seems to have something clinging to it - just below & to the right of it's eye, photographed @ Marton Mere nature reserve Blackpool.
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Whooper Swans62 viewssome of a group of 30 Whooper Swans that were on the Mere @ Marton Mere nature reserve Blackpool on 30/11/2008
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Some sort of Fruit Fly - Drosophila species64 viewsphotographed at River Brock, nr Bilsborrow
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Some sort of Leaf Beetle?56 viewsphotographed at River Brock, nr Bilsborrow
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Song Thrush Turdus philomelos Leighton Moss RSPB reserve59 viewsdoing some nest building @ Leighton Moss RSPB reserve
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Merlin184 viewstaken from the Eric Morecambe hide @ Leighton Moss RSPB, I didn't even see the merlin hidden away on the fence post until some kind chap with a scope pointed it out to me. I've posted a more heavily cropped version where you can just about make out there is in fact a bird in the photo. My only Merlin photo to date.
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Osprey150 viewsphotographed from a layby overlooking Leighton Moss RSPB reserve - what an absolute thrill & a privilege it was to see this majestic bird, to get some photographs was the icing on the cake.
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Osprey Pandion haliaetus Leighton Moss RSPB reserve215 viewsThis Osprey @ Leighton Moss RSPB reserve was feeding on it's catch, which appeared to be either a Roach or Rudd - some observers were adamant it was definitely a Rudd, but how the dickens you can differentiate at such long range is beyond me.
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Marsh Harriers121 viewsa pair of birds doing some aerobatics @ Leighton Moss RSPB Nature Reserve
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Cormorant92 viewsI noticed this Cormorant was ringed, so I brought the photo to the attention of Pete Marsh of LDBWS, a few emails later I was advised the Cormorant was "ringed as Pullus, Puffin Island, Anglesey 13/07/2008". Knowing something about the history of the bird makes what was otherwise just a record shot much more interesting.
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Whooper Swan70 viewsI'm free, the Swan makes a dash towards the estuary. I went back to work at this point, but got a call from the RSPCA girl later to confirm the Swan tok to the skies when it was scared by someone on a quad bike.
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Whooper Swan70 viewsWhilst driving down Fluke Hall Lane, Pilling, I turned a corner to see this Whooper Swan running towards me with a tractor right behind it, when the swan saw me coming it veered off the road into the hedgerow & became entancled in the branches there. After watching it for a while it became apparent it was stuck, so I phoned the RSPCA, who agreed to send someone out & asked me to wait with the swan until they arrived.
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Whooper Swan90 viewstime for a firm hand. With the swan restrained she checked it's wings for breaks, the Swan was trying to flap both wings so she concluded it was unlikely it had a broken wing. Apparently they sometimes think roads are rivers & land on them by mistake, stunning themselves, which is maybe what happened to this bird.
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Brown Rat109 viewstaken @ a small bird feeding station @ Hagg Lane Out Rawcliffe. Someone had put water out in an old fishing bait box, I was photographing the birds when this Brown Rat arrived to have a drink.
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Wigeon Anas penelope Stanley Park Blackpool233 viewsThis has got to be the friendliest Wigeon I've ever encountered, I usually struugle getting within a country mile of them, but this one was obviously used to being fed & was hoping for some of Hovis's finest, which unfortunately I didn't have.
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Red-eared Terrapin275 viewsRed Eared Terrapins are not a natural species in the UK. They have become common in most areas due to widespread release of imported pets by the public once it is realised that terrapins in captivity need a lot of care, as they can live to over 40 years. They have a strong bite resulting in injuries that should be seen by medical staff as soon as possible as they may carry some diseases. They are not thought to be breeding in the U.K. as the mean summer temperature is too low, however there is some possibility that if temperatures rise by a few degrees breeding could start. Note:- Recent news from a reptile specialist in the south (near Southampton) is that terrapin nests and eggs were found last year but no hatchlings were found.
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Magpies138 viewsA gathering of some of the numerous Magpies at Stanley Park.
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Some sort of Ichneumon or Swafly - maybe?87 viewsphotographed @ Todderstaffe Hall near Singleton
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Some sort of Ichneumon or Swafly - maybe?85 viewsphotographed @ Todderstaffe Hall near Singleton
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Grasshopper73 viewsSome sort of young Hopper?
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Long-eared Owl375 viewsone of the roosting Long-eared Owls @ Marton Mere nature reserve Blackpool, regular winter residents here. The owls can be difficult to photograph because of branches between you & the Owl, but it's important to stick to the paths to avoid disturbing the birds - some visitors to the reserve feel the need to climb over the fence to get a closer view which only serves to spook the Owls.
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Shoveler90 viewsFor some reason this one reminds of a WW2 Spitfire, photographed @ Marton Mere nature reserve
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Brown Rat446 viewsThe park, somewhat worryingly, had a thriving population of rats up until 2007. They had a series of tunnels at one corner of the lake where it was believed they were breeding. In 2007 the Council destroyed their tunnels & poisoned the rats & I've not seen one since.
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Knot & Oystercatchers114 viewsThe wader roost at Heysham Helipad, every so often something disturbs the birds & they take flight.
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Knot & Oystercatchers103 viewsThe wader roost at Heysham Helipad, every so often something disturbs the birds & they take flight.
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Moorhen466 viewsMarton Mere allows good close views of Moorhens, as they are used to being fed, so not quite so wary of people as at some locations.
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