DAN FORDER WILDLIFE

Here's my attempt at photographing today's partial solar eclipse with a budget DIY solar filter, taken through a brief gap in the cloud at 11.35... Partial Solar Eclipse, 10/06/2021, Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, UK. To take the photo I just used my Nikon D500 with Sigma 150-600 DG OS HSM Sport handheld with 2 layers of mylar survival space blanket from Wilkos tied over the front of the lens. These were the settings for this best result I could get with the above equipment: f/9 (where my copy sharpest) 1/160 sec ISO-50 Focal length C.570mm

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

I took part in the #BigGardenSit from 8.30 til 9.30 this gloomy, drizzly morning at Watermead, & managed to record a surprising 43 bird species. Wintering male BLACKCAP with BLUE TIT The Big Garden Sit is organised by Bucks Bird Alert & runs during Lockdown periods - the aim being to record as many bird species as you can from your home in one hour on a Saturday morning. The records are then entered into a database & used by Bucks Bird Club, or shared with your county recorder if not based in Buckinghamshire My highlights of the hour were... Juv. PEREGRINE 7 WIGEON over. 360 LAPWING in 3 flocks to the north. Wintering male BLACKCAP just outside my balcony. RAVEN GREY WAGTAIL Plenty of FIELDFARE movement. Earlier in the morning I had seen the same 7 WIGEON over on Large Lake, as well as a wintering CHIFFCHAFF ( collybita ) & a GOLDCREST during a my stroll. Juvenile PEREGRINE WIGEON in flight Some of the 360+ LAPWINGS

This interesting Juvenile RED KITE was at Watermead today, with a superficial resemblance to Black Kite, mostly due to the tail shape & wing shape - though this is most likely due to an odd moult. Juvenile RED KITE resembling Black Kite These are the features that made the bird stand out from the other Red Kites about... dark, slightly convex tail (rather than concavely forked) with lighter upper-tail coverts broad, square wings 6 ‘fingers’/P5 quite long (though missing P5 on right wing) P9 longer than P7 not much orange tone, even less obvious with bright sky behind from above even the head appears darker than expected for Red Kite On closer inspection the tail is a bit too red & white 'windows' on the underwing too defined, the head is typical of Red Kite, but most obvious of all is how pale the bird's underside is - diagnostic to juvenile Red Kite. I could definitely see this bird being reported as a Black Kite if care isn't taken in identification. Juvenile