Photo Diary (2024-01-16)

So, it was time for another gentle walk around my local area; I covered about 2km on foot and took about 300 photographs. Some of the ground I covered was reconnaissance-based, as I was looking for convenient places to find birds of prey.

First up are the Carrion Crows (Corvus corone); this time, it seems to be just one of them high up in the trees, presumably somewhere near a nest.

It was great to see Collared Dove (Streptopelia decaocto) rather than simply Wood Pigeon's up in the trees:

In between finding the Collared Doves, I did manage to spot Japan Airways Flight JL45 from Tokyo to Paris - I was amazed that I was able to read the tail number from under the right wing with my 600mm.

Back to finding the Collared Doves, they are much smaller than Wood Pigeons and far more timid. Very rarely see them in my garden; typically, they get chased off the food by the larger and more aggressive birds.

I have been trying to catch more shots of this Magpie for a while, but it always stays a decent distance from me, not even risking flying close to me. Frequently, it will watch me as I walk, a little bit like Alfred Hitchcock, but I'm okay with it.

Found a Herring Gull (*Larus argentatus) in its natural habitat, sitting on a car generally being a nuisance.

I wanted to try my astrophotography with this lens when the nights are clear, and the moon was super crisp today; I'm pretty pleased with this shot as you can zoom in and see the details.

When I got home, I put more food out on the feeders for the birds, and I spotted this Fox (*Vulpes vulpes); I managed to catch this shot just before - this specific fox is very bold; we've seen her (I think) in the area, she will frequently come and investigate an open door.

Thank you for joining me on my photo walk today; I hope you enjoyed the photos as much as I enjoyed taking them. I greatly appreciate any support you give on the post, however small it may be.