Swabi Birder Visits the UK


In August 2015 RMK (or Swabi Birder), as he will be henceforth known, visited the UK for a whistle-stop tour of birding sites wrapped around a business meeting in the North-east of England. During the trip, he visited the north Norfolk coast, the English Midlands, the North-east of England and the Scottish Highlands before ending up in London prior to his departure back to Pakistan. During the trip 102 species of birds were recorded but August is not the most productive birding month in the UK, although, obviously, waders figured prominently. The following photographs provide a flavour of the bird reserves and species Swabi Birder saw:

One of the Wader Scrapes at the Cley Marshes Nature Reserve, Norfolk
 
Black-tailed Godwits flying in and landing at Cley Marshes
A Marsh Harrier approaching a scrape.....
.....and the resultant commotion the Marsh Harrier caused
A Eurasian Kestrel hovering over Cley Marshe's extensive reedbeds
On to Titchwell RSPB Reserve and it's Main Scrape




Canada Geese
A group of 11 Eurasian Spoonbills was a nice, if not distant sight
One of the many Ruff seen in North Norfolk

Avocets are beautiful and Swabi Birder caught them in synchrosided motion
An adult Song Thrush that was feeding a well-developed juvenile near to the Titchwell cafe
Renewable energy source and blot on the landscape? Offshore wind farm at Hunstanton
A Blue Tit at Brandon Marsh Reserve in Warwickshire
Long-tailed Tit at Brandon Marsh
A Brandon Marsh Dunnock
A Chiffchaff, also in the wooded area at Brandon Marsh
A good find, A Spotted Flycatcher!
Britain's favourite and National Bird, the Robin
A family of Tufted Duck on the main pool at Brandon Marsh. Note the duckling in the foreground in mid-dive
Great weather for Ducks! a nice study of a Gadwall.
A Grey Heron flying through a summer rainstorm
Taken by Swabi Birder from a small hide at Brandon Marsh, this fabulous Kingfisher
One of many Little Grebe at Loch Vaa in Speyside, Scotland

Scaup at Loch Vaa
A Male Chaffinch at the RSPB Reserve at Loch Garten

A Coal Tit about to visit a Loch Garten feeder

Juvenile Siskin

An adult male Siskin

Siskin trying its best to look like a Himalayan Greenfinch

No, not Himalayan but a male Great Spotted Woodpecker at Loch Garten
A male Bullfinch near the River Spey at Grantown-on-Spey

A juvenile Eurasian Blackbird, one of a family party attracted to the many berries on offer. However, we failed to find Scottish Crossbill or Crested Tit in the the normally reliable Grantown-on-Spey Park
A Common Pheasant near Boat of Garten
Juvenile Black Tern at Draycote Resrvoir in Warwickshire
A Great Crested Grebe

A Black-headed Gull doing a spot of opportunistic feeding
A Yellow Wagtail on rocks that form the Farnborough Bank at Draycote

One of several Meadow Pipits at Draycote Reservoir

A flycatching Lesser Whitethroat

Hoping to photograph a Wren, this is the closest that Swabi Birder got to one!
Swabi Birder signing out!

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