Spring on the Levels

THE warmth of today's spring weather brought out the adders; at least four were basking on a heap of cut grass; some were intertwined making it hard to count them with confidence.

The young silver birch leaves, the white bark and the red of the bog myrtle created quite a wonderful spectacle.

 

There are so many great-crested grebes on the Levels - both individuals and pairs were everywhere you looked.  The males send out a call that is like a bark to attract the females and probably warn off other males.  Other calls heard today included booming bitterns, screeching water-rails,  chittering little grebes, singing warblers and even croaking marsh frogs.

And finally a fine male robin was singing his heart out...

Two birds

Birding and plants are my biggest interests, although everything else wildlife is good.   I also quite like history, geology, landscape photography and archaeology too, but one doesn't want to spread oneself too thinly does one!.

Here are two birdy pictures from last weekend - a great-crested grebe and a mute swan.  My camera is absolutely at its limit taking birds cos I can't afford a lens the size of my right arm, and frankly I am not sure I want to be seen out with one either!

I particularly like their reflections.

I use a Canon EOS 500D with a 18-200mm Canon lens which is great, but of course just as I bought that model the EOS 550 popped its head up on the market.  For you guys over the pond this is the Rebel series from Canon.  Its the old conundrum - buy now or wait for ever for the next model....

Incidentally even though those big camera lens are totally vulgar, I am starting to get lens envy...and don't start me on binocular and 'scope envy!!!