DAN FORDER WILDLIFE

On a day spent exploring new areas & scoping out unpublicised but potential birding spots closer to the coast, I had some amazing luck... Just 10 minutes or so from our hotel I found a small fairly secluded river valley, rich with vegetation, alive with birdsong, buzzing with insects, & full of reptiles & amphibians. Higher up the adjacent slopes the thick vegetation gave way to steeper rugged mountainside, where crooked trees gripped the crevices precariously, the terrain gradually becoming more craggy nearing the main peak, which held inaccessible cliff faces & edges. Over the peak & away the landscape was more rolling, but still unpassable to those without poise on their feet. This beautiful oasis & dramatic scenery a stark contrast to the neat & ordered little town we'd just driven through, & the holiday apartments & hotels just down the road. Adult Bonelli's Eagle, Costa del Sol - one of a pair (or third bird - see foot note). 15

Male Honey Buzzard flying in off the Mediterranean sea on spring migration, at Atalaya Isdabe, Estepona, Spain. 15/05/22 On the 15th of May, the wind was blowing through the western Mediterranean quite strongly from the west - this can cause migrant raptors heading north, attempting to cross the sea at the Strait of Gibratar, to drift eastwards, missing their targets of Gibraltar or Tarifa, & instead making 'landfall' further east along the Costa del Sol. Positioned about 70km north-east, at Atalaya Isdabe, Estepona, I was able to watch good numbers of European Honey Buzzards come in off the sea, pass over the coastal urban areas, & continue on their way north into Andalucia, with this one passing low & close enough to me for a decent photo. They continued to come in to the bay here on a few days throughout the week depending on the wind, usually in small groups, but numbers stated to fizzle-out by the end of the week - in past years it has usually the week prior th

WILDLIFE IN THE WORKING WEEK - Autumn Dragonflies inc. Southern & Migrant Hawker, Where to Find Whinchats.   Break time sub-urban birding & wildlife watching in the working week. Spending time in nature, finding & photographing wildlife, & just enjoying the outdoors, wherever you are, even with the limited time of a 9 til 5… SUBSCRIBE to the channel for new episodes. At 1K subs, 3 lucky subscribers will win a nature related prize - wildlife winners will be announced in a future video. Share to inspire others to care for the environment & appreciate our natural neighbours. Wherever you go, the wonders of nature are there to behold - just get out there & you will find it. Subscribe to my YouTube Channel for the latest videos...

WILDLIFE IN THE WORKING WEEK - Surprise Little Ringed Plovers, Late Common Swifts, Eurasian Teal Arrival.   Break time sub-urban birding & wildlife watching in the working week. Spending time in nature, finding & photographing wildlife, & just enjoying the outdoors, wherever you are, even with the limited time of a 9 til 5… SUBSCRIBE to the channel for new episodes. At 1K subs, 3 lucky subscribers will win a nature related prize - wildlife winners will be announced in a future video. Share to inspire others to care for the environment & appreciate our natural neighbours. Wherever you go, the wonders of nature are there to behold - just get out there & you will find it. Subscribe to my YouTube Channel for the latest videos...

WILDLIFE IN THE WORKING WEEK - Green Sandpiper, New Urban Common Blue Butterfly Colony, Yellow Wildflowers.   Break time sub-urban birding & wildlife watching in the working week. Spending time in nature, finding & photographing wildlife, & just enjoying the outdoors, wherever you are, even with the limited time of a 9 til 5… SUBSCRIBE to the channel for new episodes. At 1K subs, 3 lucky subscribers will win a nature related prize - wildlife winners will be announced in a future video. Share to inspire others to care for the environment & appreciate our natural neighbours. Wherever you go, the wonders of nature are there to behold - just get out there & you will find it. Subscribe to my YouTube Channel for the latest videos...

WILDLIFE IN THE WORKING WEEK - Spotted Flycatchers & Jersey Tiger Moths.   Break time sub-urban birding & wildlife watching in the working week. Spending time in nature, finding & photographing wildlife, & just enjoying the outdoors, wherever you are, even with the limited time of a 9 til 5… SUBSCRIBE to the channel for new episodes. At 1K subs, 3 lucky subscribers will win a nature related prize - wildlife winners will be announced in a future video. Share to inspire others to care for the environment & appreciate our natural neighbours. Wherever you go, the wonders of nature are there to behold - just get out there & you will find it. Subscribe to my YouTube Channel for the latest videos...

I was a bit surprised to see this 1st Summer (?!) ARCTIC TERN feeding a couple of hundred yards from my flat at Watermead last night, especially in June - this is very unseasonal as the Artic Terns that do wander inland should be moving through north between end of April & beginning of May, but making it even more unusual is the fact that 1st year birds usually don't migrate north from their wintering grounds, & are rarely seen in Europe. 1st Summer ARCTIC TERN, Watermead, Bucks, 07/06/21 1st Summer ARCTIC TERN, Watermead, Bucks, 07/06/21 It was feeding far out on the large lake from 19.55 at least, until 21.25, when it circled-up very high, until only just visible as a dot to the naked eye, then headed off slowly S/SSE. 1st Summer ARCTIC TERN, Watermead, Bucks, 07/06/21 Although the light was very nice, it was tricky to photograph, especially at distance - the light was actually not that bright with the sun just dipping behind the tree-tops, so with such an active bird I n