birdwatching – T E Shepherd https://shepline.com author | illustrator | digital designer Tue, 16 Jul 2019 17:55:58 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.0.4 https://shepline.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/cropped-shepline-white-on-green-square_512-32x32.jpg birdwatching – T E Shepherd https://shepline.com 32 32 Avocets, curlews, and seven spoonbills amongst other bird life at @rspbtitchwell… #birdwatching #rspbtitchwell https://shepline.com/2019/07/16/avocets-curlews-and-seven-spoonbills-amongst-other-bird-life-at-rspbtitchwell-birdwatching-rspbtitchwell/ https://shepline.com/2019/07/16/avocets-curlews-and-seven-spoonbills-amongst-other-bird-life-at-rspbtitchwell-birdwatching-rspbtitchwell/#respond Tue, 16 Jul 2019 17:01:10 +0000 http://shepline.com/2019/07/16/avocets-curlews-and-seven-spoonbills-amongst-other-bird-life-at-rspbtitchwell-birdwatching-rspbtitchwell/ Avocets, curlews, and seven spoonbills amongst other bird life at @rspbtitchwell... #birdwatching #rspbtitchwell

Avocets, curlews, and seven spoonbills amongst other bird life at @rspbtitchwell… #birdwatching #rspbtitchwell

]]> https://shepline.com/2019/07/16/avocets-curlews-and-seven-spoonbills-amongst-other-bird-life-at-rspbtitchwell-birdwatching-rspbtitchwell/feed/ 0 My first murmuration https://shepline.com/2013/11/03/my-first-murmuration/ https://shepline.com/2013/11/03/my-first-murmuration/#respond Sun, 03 Nov 2013 18:46:33 +0000 http://journal.shepline.com/?p=5735 Finally, I’ve seen one! Emma’s been telling me about the Starling murmurations that she used to see from her flat when she lived down in Brighton, and every year on Autumwatchwe see footage of the most incredible displays and every year we try and get to see one for ourselves and never quite manage it. Last January we headed down to Otmoor to arrive minutes after they had just all gone to bed really quickly.

Today? Today, was different. Although, that said, we did still get there too late to get into prime position but we got a good view over the marshes and the reed beds anyway, seeing something like this (photo from the RSPB website)…

Starling-Murmuration1It was amazing. It was glorious. But it is still only my first murmuration; I want to see more.

]]> https://shepline.com/2013/11/03/my-first-murmuration/feed/ 0 The Old Stomping Grounds of Suffolk https://shepline.com/2012/11/12/the-old-stomping-grounds-of-suffolk/ https://shepline.com/2012/11/12/the-old-stomping-grounds-of-suffolk/#comments Mon, 12 Nov 2012 22:36:00 +0000 http://journal.shepline.com/?p=2295 This weekend we returned to Suffolk for a couple of days back in the county of my childhood. My mum and dad had taken a cottage at Iken Barns so that they could enjoy some of the music at the excellent Snape Maltings.

Saturday, we went into Aldeburgh to pay our respects to the monochrome North Sea, and to enjoy loosing ourselves in the wonderland that is the Aldburgh Bookshop. After a nice meal in the Oyster Bar down at Snape, Mum and Dad went to a Britten opera and Emma and I headed back to the barn to look after Barney, watch Merlin, and play a game of Scrabble with the travel set that we bought for our holiday in Iceland and then never had the time to play. Marvellous!

Sunday was the polar opposite of an autumnal day with cloudless blue skies, a crispness to the air, and a flat calm to the North Sea. We all went down to Dunwich Heath/Minsmere for a walk amongst leaves and funghi, seeing deer prints and otter prints, and a Dartford Warbler flitting about amongst the gorse and the heather.

A snack lunch later in the old coastguard cottages and then we headed down to the beach towards the hides – saw a Common Seal lounging about in the water – before heading into the reserve to see: two waxwings, a kingfisher (also exciting), heron, wigeon, curlew, shell ducks, shovellers, gold crests, teal, wren, lapwings, and a marsh harrier…

]]> https://shepline.com/2012/11/12/the-old-stomping-grounds-of-suffolk/feed/ 3 On the fourth day of advent: wetlands and waterfowl https://shepline.com/2011/12/04/on-the-fourth-day-of-advent-wetlands-and-waterfowl/ https://shepline.com/2011/12/04/on-the-fourth-day-of-advent-wetlands-and-waterfowl/#respond Sun, 04 Dec 2011 18:58:00 +0000 http://journal.shepline.com/?p=1895 After a late night last night and way too much off-diet food at Emma’s work’s Christmas meal, we were up early this morning to head out to the WWT London reserve at Barnes for the Facebook group meetup, and a guided birdwatching tour of the reserve.

Very excitingly we saw: Lapwing, Little Grebe, 11x Herons, Jack Snipe, Common Snipe, Shelduck, Shoveler, Teal, Pochard, Wigeon, Pintail, Gadwall, Tufted Duck, Mallard and Bittern (our second of the year!).

Additionally, I now have the gossiping call of the Eider duck as my message alert ringtone on my mobile phone!

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