18th November 2009 – Nearctic Wader Double in East Lothian!

Most of northern Britain seems to be engulfed in heavy rain and strong winds currently. However a trip to East Lothian with Chris gave us a pleasant surprise in the form of blue-skies and sunshine! Our first place to visit was Musselburgh Lagoons where a 1st winter Wilson’s Phalarope had been present the previous few days. Thankfully, we were not to be disappointed; the Phalarope was feeding on the western most pool. Although the Wilson’s...

11th October 2009 – Northumberland

Chris arrived at my house at 0700hrs and we were soon on our way to Northumberland. The weather was damp and dreary until we got to the Cresswell area where it was in contrast; bright and sunny. We had a quick look at the north end of Cresswell Pond before heading onto Druridge Pools. The previous day a Radde’s Warbler had been found in the bushes alongside the path to one of the hides. We hoped the bird was still present! Amazingly, as soon as we...

27th – 28th September 2009 – Orkney adventure (sponsored by Costa Coffee)……;-)

On the 22nd September whilst returning from our trip to Spurn news broke that an adult Sandhill Crane had been found on the island of South Ronaldsay on Orkney! Orkney was a long way away; and I certainly did not even consider making the trip north despite this being only the third British record and the first since one on Shetland in 1991! However as the week progressed and the bird was still present, this trip seemed to be more tempting. After a...

11th July 2009 – Dragons re-visited….

The Craigster arrived at mine at a very lethargic 0900hrs and we made our way to the superb White-faced Darter site. Despite the weather forecast it was looking like a warm sunny day – Ideal for insects! On the walk to the boggy pools we noted a few Large Heath butterflies, Common Hawker and the first of many White-faced Darters. Once we arrived at the first decent pool I decided to try my hand at photographing Common Hawkers in...