Friday 11 February 2022

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.



35 comments:

David M. Gascoigne, said...

You are a skilled photographer, Sonjia, and these photographs are delightful - every one of them. The camera is like a finely tuned instrument in your hands, and your keen eye ferrets out interesting subjects from many taxa. We walk at opposite ends of the day. I usually start my walks early in the morning, and I am back at home by lunchtime, unless a full day's outing is on the agenda. Soon the first migrants will be arriving from the south and we will be out there to greet them. What a wonderful time of the years! Hugs from Ontario. David

Marit said...

Hello Sonjia!
I love to see your photos of the wagtail. In my northern garden it is the first sign of spring and summer. When I see it I am so happy.
Your other photos are also very beautiful.
Happy weekend!

Hugs from Norway.

MadSnapper said...

I love cold at night and warm in daytime. my favorite weather type. You hit the jackpot on cute sweet birds and i love yellow birds and yellow flowers. that moth on the yellow flowers is so beautiul. glad you are able to get out and walk each day

Phil Slade said...

Hello Sonjia. That’s a great set of photos today, especially the Crested Tit. I saw lots in Heulva, more than I’ve ever seen in the UK. That Sparrowhawk is quite dark, and a lovely orange eye, an adult male.

More than once I have accidentally deleted someone’s comment. It’s easy to do when using a phone, and then I curse my thick fingers but it's too late.

Your wagtail is interesting as because as I live in the UK, it’s one I would call a White Wagtail, Motacilla alba alba, the black & white wagtail that is widespread in Europe and a migrant only in the UK. The wagtail sub species Motacilla alba yarrelli is our widespread black & white wagtail and known as Pied Wagtail. It’s all very confusing that we are both correct, you in Portugal me in England.

http://files.biolovision.net/www.faune-rhone.org/userfiles/Documents/THE-SEPARATION-OF-WHITE-AND-PIED-WAGTAILS.pdf

sami niilola said...

Fantastic photos. The Crested Tit is my favourite.

LEN said...

I have never seen a crested tit. Your photos are first class. What a skill you have in focussing or does your camera do that automatically?

Mike Attwood said...

Lovely post Sonjia, I agree with every word David said. Excellent photo's Take care.
Mike.

La Biosfera de Lola said...

Hola Sonia. Tus fotos son maravillosas y que bonito lo que en ellas nos muestras, muchas gracias y feliz fin de semana. Besos y abrazos.

Marijke said...

Good morning dear Sonjia
It´s good for the health to go out and you brought a lot of beautiful photo´s with you.
Have a wonderful weekend
Marijke

Debbie said...

spectacular captures and such a wide variety of birds!! awesome capture of the crested tit but i think the lady bugs were my favorite!!

i can't help you identify the caterpillar, but what a great image!!

Elderberry-Rob said...

You have some fabulous pictures there, the crested tit I haven't seen before, it looks delightful... the mystery caterpillar is pretty too - I wonder what it will turn into - I have found the prettiest ones usually house the ugliest things! lol. In nature though I guess everthing has beauty in some form.

Irma said...

What great photos.
The white wagtail and the crested tit are beautiful.
The bottom photo is the black tit (Parus ater), you have also photographed it very well.
Greetings Irma

eileeninmd said...

Hello Sonjia,
What a beautiful collection of birds. You do see a nice variety in your garden. I love the cute Wagtail, the Crest Tit and the pretty Greenfinch and Siskins. The Sparrowhawk looks a little too close to your bird feeder, he looks hungry. Cute shot of the Red Squirrel. Gorgeous photos, I loved them all. Thank you for linking up and sharing your post. Take care, have a happy weekend. PS, thanks for leaving me a comment.

John's Island said...

Hello Sonjia, :=) As I went through your post I kept saying "Wow" over and over. What a wonderful set of photos. Truly you have the "eye" for great photography. It would be so hard to pick out a favorite among your photos. The bird photos are excellent and the macro shots are so interesting. I love the yellow butterfly. The style and quality of your blog inspires me. Thank you for sharing. Happy weekend to you! John

Shiju Sugunan said...

Some really nice sightings from your walk. The wagtail, ladybird and coal tit are among my favourites.

Richard Pegler said...

Hi Sonjia. I have very much enjoyed this post from you, and your excellent photography. Like you, I tend to take my walks in the afternoon at this time of year, It's not necessarily the most productive of times but it tends to be the most comfortable.

I see that Phil, in his comment above, has already spoken of the difference in common names for the wagtail, with yours being what we describe as a White Wagtail. The same problem arises with Motacilla cinerea, which, in UK, we call the Grey Wagtail. I remember once in Scotland being scolded by a Dutch lady when I pointed out a Grey Wagtail. She said I was wrong and it was a 'Yellow Voggtail', which, of course, to us English is a totally different bird. It was a year later when I was relating the story to a Dutch birder that he pointed out to me that the common name for Grey Wagtail, was indeed Yellow Wagtail in the Netherlands, and our Yellow Wagtail goes by a different name, which I can't remember. Anyway, my wife and I now tend to refer to any visiting wagtails as voggtails, and our currently regular in the garden Pied Wagtail is referred to as 'the voggster'!

Stay safe - - - Richard

~Lavender Dreamer~ said...

The red squirrel is so neat and you saw a nice variety of critters!

Bill said...

Spectacular photos, the Crested Tit is my favourite.
Enjoy the day!

Tom said...

...I'm enjoying our snowy winter, but your beautiful images are making me excited about spring. Take care and enjoy your weekend.

Teresa said...

Un gran y bonito reportaje. Besos.

Lowcarb team member said...

What a fabulous collection of photographs.
I enjoyed them all, especially the red squirrel :)

All the best Jan

Bob Bushell said...

A beautiful series of birds Sonjia. I love the Crested Tit and Clouded Yellow butterfly.

Twilight Man said...

Hello Sonia. I am glad to visit your blog from Jeevan's post. I love all your photos of nature. Thank you for sharing the beautiful photos.

Anni said...

The unknown caterpillar...
Perhaps a grey dagger?

Your photos are so perfect. The lighting in each is spectacular.

We birders enjoy your post. Thanks for taking time from your day to link in with us at I'd Rather be Birdin'. And happy day ahead!

Debbie said...

sorry to read about the trouble you have been having with your comments. it is very frustrating when you take the time to read a post and comment, only for it to disappear!! rest assured, it appears now and i am always so happy to read them!!

Yvonne said...

All your photographs are quite breathtaking and very enjoyable.

Jeanie said...

Oh my! Your images are just breathtaking! You must have great patience to not only see so many beautiful birds but capture them so well. Each photo is a gem.

carol l mckenna said...

Wow! Magnificent nature photography ~ Xo


Wishing you lots of love in your days,

A ShutterBug Explores,
aka (A Creative Harbor)

NatureFootstep said...

wow, so many nice species. If the wagtail has arrived at your location they might soon arrive to mine. :) I hope!

Linda said...

Delightful images! Thanks for sharing.

Rostrose said...

Oh, how nice, you have a squirrel on the balcony. And it's sensational that a hawk is also coming... Could it be that he's trying to catch songbirds on the balcony? Your photos of all the beautiful animals are definitely a great pleasure for me. And I smell the scent of the rosemary bush!
Happy Valentine and all the best,
Traude
https://rostrose.blogspot.com/2022/02/blog-post.html

DeniseinVA said...

Thank you! I thoroughly enjoyed all your nature photos, a wonderful selection.

Jeanie said...

The detail on your images is remarkable (as are the beautiful subjects). What a glorious post!

Nancy Chan said...

Beautiful photos from your walks. Some of the critters are so cute, like the Crested Tit and the Red Squirrel. I didn't know that Rosemary can grown into such big bush. The flowers are pretty.

Amila said...

wow! All these are great photos from your garden. I really like the butterfly captures.Usually, they fly when I try to capture them.So, I know it is not that easy to capture a butterfly. :)
Thanks for sharing and have a lovely weekend!

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