Spooky

A very heavily cropped image of Barn Owls interacting on Holy Island a couple of weeks ago. Obviously the quality is poor but i loved the pose of the top owl, if only it had been 30 metres closer. Again, i know that the image is spilling over into the border but worth the mess.
To try to make up for it here is an image also from Holy Island of a Long-eared Owl along Straight Lonnen not 50 metres from where the Barnies were observed but 14 days earlier as i recollect.

It's been quiet on the birding front for the last week or so and the camera hasn't been out of the bag much. I called past Prestwick Carr yesterday and had a first for me there with the sighting of a Kingfisher by the ditch up by the first sentry box. Heavy showers and occasional sunny spells accompanied me while there and i had a few sightings of Common Darters and Hawkers sp. as their wings glistened whilst airborne and the temperatures rose briefly in those sunny spells. Sparrowhawk, Redwing, Curlew and Goldcrest some of the highlights before heading along the bumpy road which was a lot quieter. The spotting of 2 Noctule Bats over The Carr as the light was fading and shortly before leaving by THE WANDERER OF PRESTWICK CARR ended a pleasant visit. Peter captured some nice moody images tonight. 

St. Marys and Lindisfarne

I've cobbled together a few images from the last week or so. I visited St. Marys Island last week, as did many others, and found it difficult to compose a post as every bird seen had been reported on and felt like i was just repeating.. I was out with John, Howdon Blogger on Saturday and spent a fine days birding with this gentleman but again found it hard to post as he had covered just about everything we saw.

This little fella was lying close by the causeway at St. Marys.

I had a brief view of the Arctic Warbler on Saturday but a Long-eared Owl along The Crooked Lonnen in a hawthorn looked stunning in the morning light and huge numbers of mainly Barnacle and Brent Geese originally on the sands north of the causeway and east of Beal Point which later lifted and flew past us as we sat in the hide at Lowmoor Point were impressive sights. They came through, wave after wave, for some fifteen minutes. Thirty minutes or so with a couple of Spotted Flycatchers, Robins and Thrushes all around on the ground was super in fine sunshine and slightly sheltered from the jostling wind in the Priory grounds.

Priory posers.

Lindisfarne Castle fly by.

Straight Lonnen views.