THE SILVER PHEASANT, GOLDEN PHEASANT, and THE SADDLE- BILLED STORK.

The lovely Silver pheasant is an exotic bird  I saw in 2015 in a bird sanctuary. This species of pheasant is found in forests, mainly in mountains of main land Southeast Asia, and southern China, with introduced populations in Hawaii

This is the male Silver pheasant lophura nycthemera, 

 

It's not a very close image, which is a pity, as it's white feathers are extremely beautiful seen at close range.

The body of the male measures up to 125 cm from head to tail but I didn't manage to get the whole length of it's beautiful lace-like tail.

I'm also including the only photo I took of this exotic pheasant.The Golden Pheasant, or Chinese Pheasant, Chrysolophus pictus. It is also native to forests in mountainous areas of Western China, but feral populations have been established in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom.....

 The Saddle - billed Stork.

Ephippiorhynchus senegalensis.

and one of the largest and most spectacular species of storks. It's a wading bird, a resident breeder in sub-Saharan Africa, from Sudan, Ethiopia, and Kenya, to South Africa and west Africa. It is considered endangered in South Africa.

MOTHS

Last year I took numerous photos of moths, but hesitated to post  them without knowing their ID. I saw them during the day time, as I don't have a moth trap, but it was not my intention to look especially for moths, rather a pleasurable encounter, just by chance. Moths are so difficult to identify, so I will only name the ones I think I know first. Research  has helped a little, but as there are so many different kinds of moths, it has been a difficult task, in which I have failed miserably. I hope you enjoy these images, and just maybe you know some of them.

Chickweed Geometor Moth

Hummingbird Hawk-Moth

Minsmere Crimson Underwing    Catocala conjuncta

Such a pretty, and delicate looking moth.

The Common Emerald

The Peach Blossom  Thyatiridae

 The Yellow Shell Moth

They can be variable in appearance

The Yellow Shell Moth

There appear to be small eggs on the branch.

The Male Yellow Tailed Moth, photographed on my balcony.

 

The Passenger Moth    Dysgonia algiro

A tiny moth, which could be a Dock Moth. 

The Passenger Moth   Dysgonia algira                  

Another yellow shell moth.

 They are the ones I see most frequently, and they do look like shells  you find on the beach

Broad - bordered Yellow Underwing    Noctua fimbriata

Blairs Mocha   Cyclophora puppillaria

I have added this one, which I have had in the archives a long time.

  Minsmere Crimson  Underwing

THE WAGTAIL, and VARIOUS NATURE IMAGES.

These are some nature photos taken recently in my garden and on the farm. A mishmash of images I took on my walks. It still hasn't rained, and the soil is very dry. It's warm during the day, but after six or seven pm it gets very cold. I start my walk about 3 pm and am back home before five, usually with a few photos to share. There is always something of interest to find.

The Pied Wagtail    Motacilla alba

As above.

Same as above

Ladybird  Coccinellidai

As above

The Oxalis wild flower.

 

Clouded Yellow butterfly on wild flower

The Clouded Yellow  Colias crocera ( Pierridae)

The Crested Tit   Lophophanes cristatus

Don't know ID of this tiny caterpillar.

  Juvenile Female Chaffinch    Fringilla coelebs  

Greenfinch   Chloris chloris

As above.

Same as above.

The Crane Fly  sometimes known as Daddy long legs.  This is the only photo not taken recently

Two more Pied Wagtail.

                            The adult male Sparrow Hawk. on my balcony  

  

The Red Squirrel on my balcony.

The Great Tit    Parus major

Rosemary bush flowers that are in bloom in the garden....

and this is the huge bush, standing far taller than myself.

The Siskin    Spinus spinus.

I'm including the Firethorn hedge just to show you that it's still full of berries. This photo was taken yesterday. 

 The Coal Tit  Periparus ater.

A SPOTLESS STARLING Sturnus Unicolor.

Yesterday, I saw this black bird in a tree on the driveway, and from a distance it looked like a Blackbird, but when I zoomed in, I realised that it was a bird I have never seen before. It wasn't even a juvenile Blackbird, because the beak is too long and pointed. 

   

Then, I thought Starling, but although it showed a suggestion of spots, they were not so pronounced as a Starling. It's feathers were glossy black though, like a Starlings feathers. It seemed nervous, and only stayed a few seconds.

The branches kept getting in the way of a really good picture, and also the bird kept moving from branch to branch.

Here it just looks black, and I noted once again, how shiny the feathers looked. Starling never come up here, they can usually be seen in large numbers far away in the fields. 

You can see a few tiny spots on it's feathers here, and on the first

 photo so I am concluding that it is a Starling, and stand corrected if it isn't.

I now know the ID of this bird, thanks to David Gascoigne.  It is a Starling, but a Spotless Starling   Sturnus unicolor. I must admit to never having heard of this bird before. I'm so grateful for the ID.