A little story about tenacious Little Grebes and the greedy, but clever, Moorhens, and how a new kleptoparasitic behaviour led to a détente of sorts. When you visit the same lake a lot, you start to really get to know the residents. Some of the waterfowl, of course, just pop
In a world that is so confusing, cruel at times, too fast to keep up with, and literally on fire, connecting with nature seems almost impossible. And yet, for a few precious moments, that is exactly what millions of people did across the world, together or in solitude. One brief
While I was photographing a particular Mandarin duck the other day, I was hoping that I would have a positive Plucky update. I spotted what I thought was a young Mandarin duck, a male fledgling starting to get his adult colourful plume. He was by himself, swimming where I had
A bit about Coots The Eurasian Coot is a striking bird – very dark grey body, black head and a very, very bright white faceplate and beak. And let’s not forget their red eyes that wouldn’t seem out of place in a horror movie. But it is also a
Last Monday (1 June), I ventured to the lake. I wanted to check on Plucky of course, and to see who else would be there. When I arrived, Plucky wasn’t around. There were, however, lots of other lake residents out. Two young Herons, probably born last spring, and a
I went to the lake this morning, with trepidation. I wanted to see how wee Plucky was doing but was also afraid to find out. The odds were stacked against him, on his own and injured. When I got to the lake, it was busy, busy, busy. Babies and parents
Two weeks ago, I spent a few special moments with a Mandarin Duck family – mum, dad and their single chick. I noticed the male first, of course. His brash oranges, purples, blues and whites. He knows he’s the man with all of his colourful finery. His partner was more