Category Archives: Wildlife

Samples of wildlife photography

A Grey Day at Pulborough Brooks

The weather was far from perfect, but with more rain forecast it may well be the best day we’ll have this week. I headed over to the RSPB reserve at Pulborough Brooks in West Sussex.

It was quiet (this is not the best time of year for bird watching), but even on a quiet day there’s always something to catch the eye and the lens. The dominant avians from most of the viewing points were the Canada geese. Most of the time they were content to graze, but they did occasionally rouse themselves to fly short distances to new feeding areas.

Flock of Canada Geese at Pulborough, West Sussex

Flock of Canada Geese at Pulborough, West Sussex

Flock of Canada Geese flying over the South Downs National Park at Pulborough, West Sussex

Flock of Canada Geese flying over the South Downs National Park at Pulborough, West Sussex

Just off the edge of the reserve I discovered a route down to the river Arun. It too was quiet, but I did see a pair of mute swans, and the beuatiful demoiselle damselflies were also active.

Pulborough Brooks, South Downs National Park

The Arun at Pulborough Brooks, South Downs National Park

Mute swan at Pulborough Brooks, Sussex

Mute swan at Pulborough Brooks, Sussex

Demoiselle damselfly, Pulborough Brooks, Sussex

Demoiselle damselfly, Pulborough Brooks, Sussex

The rains came around lunchtime which put pay to the visit, but hopefully I’ll get back there again soon.

Meanwhile here’s a short video of some of the garden wildlife.

Camera note: all photos taken with the Canon 7D Mark II and EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens. Trail cam footage by Bushnell Trophy HD camera

Also posted in Badger, Birds, Foxes, hedgehog, Landscape, water birds Tagged , , , , , , |

More Fox and Badger pix

Well, this is really much more like it… last night the foxes were evasive, but the badger was on great form. The one downside was that we were shrouded in mist, but I took the shots anyway as it is relatively simple to clean them up in Lightroom/Photoshop.

Badger tucking in to peanuts

Badger tucking in to peanuts just after midnight

Badger

No badgers yet this evening, but the beautiful male fox is beginning to realize that I am not a danger. It’s still a game of me keeping very still and him edging back and forth, but the dance lasted about 10 minutes tonight (and I was able to take a few photos)

Cautious male fox in the garden

Cautious male fox in the garden

But he is getting bolder, going back and forth for about 5-10 minutes

But he is getting bolder, going back and forth for about 5-10 minutes

Camera note: all photos taken with the Canon 7D Mark II and EF 200mm f/2.8L II USM lens.

Also posted in Badger, Foxes Tagged , |

The Garden is Getting Lively

The warm evenings have not only got me out into the garden, but have emboldened the local night prowlers. The foxes are still cautious, but they are learning! The badger, on the other hand, is just plain greedy and will do anything for peanuts (so cheap as well!). Here’s a few shots from the past several days, starting with a lanky fox.

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Lanky fox enjoying a chicken treat

The second fox is a striking male, but somewhat cowardly. He tends to lurk at the back of the garden which makes getting decent photos tricky.

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The fox and the apple (very nearly an Aesop’s fable)

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Here he is sitting at the back of the garden… his favourite spot

As for the badger, I took these last night. A fox was about to come to the front of the patio area but was scared off. Here’s who showed up in its place. A very relaxed badger…

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Badger relaxing over some peanuts

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Badger in black and white

Camera note: all photos taken with the Canon 7D Mark II and EF 200mm f/2.8L II USM lens.

Also posted in Badger, Foxes Tagged , |