DECIMATION OF WILDLIFE BY TAXPAYERS

I spent a good hour this morning wondering whether or not to cycle to one of my favourite spots for wildlife photography?! Fishers Green.

The Met Office had previously stated, well up until the point when the weather did not match what their app was telling me for the umpteenth time this year, that it was going to be sunny and partly cloudy from around 10 to 11 in the morning on-wards.

Only when I got ready and left the house the floor was soaking wet, the garden soil was sodden and there were dark clouds everywhere.

I changed my my mind several times before venturing up to my spot which is an 8 mile ride...

...ONLY I NEED NOT HAVE BOTHERED!

When I got there I could not believe what I was seeing and walked about rubbing my eyes in disbelief. The site for Orchids, though introduced and the site artificial despite them saying it is natural, the Orb SPider, the four spcies of Blue Butterflies, the other species of butterflies and all the thousands of Damselflies and Dragonflies had all been KILLED!!!

By a bunch of IDIOTS that YOU PAY millions to, TO DO!!!

Here are a bunch of pictures I sent my brother who was absolutely stunned at what they had done and I doubt that right now, 7 hours after sending him the pictures, he is STILL not over it?!

...

YES THIS REALLY IS THE SAME SITE THAT ALL THE RECENT PICTURES OF...

BROWN ARGOS, CHALK HILL BLUES, COMMON BLUES, HOLLY BLUES, SPECKLED WOODS, WILD PRIMROSE (and INTRODUCED PRIMSROSES), WASP SPIDER, RUDDY DARTER DRAGONFLY, COMMON DARTER DRAGONFLIES, SOUTHERN HAWKER DRAGONFLIES a great many others including Orchids.

Yes these pictures really ARE the same place!!

BANDED DEMOISELLE MALE - CALOPTERYX SPLENDENS

I have been searching to get up close and personal with one of these guys ever since I took those distant photos and video of one?! I home chuffed with this encounter and a couple of others I had but boy was I in for a shock when I found another site with hundreds performing aerial acrobotics, lol.

This one was spotted at my Alpine Meadow site near the Bee Orchids!

Fishers Green.

LONG TAILED TIT FEEDING & VIDEO

While first waiting for the Bearded Reedlings and then moving over as a Reed Bunting had darted over and dropped deep into reeds a Long Tailed Tit, there are many of them up there, actually fed which is about the only time they stop for two minutes?!

VIDEO...

SHOVELLER DUCK & VIDEO

Started jaunt around a lake to do one circuit back to Reed Buntings and the Bearded Reedlings, this was last before I sat in wait before the Buntings appeared.

VIDEO

REED BUNTING - Emberiza schoeniclus: & VIDEO

Yes well after returning and waiting I finally got photos AND a video of that elusive make Reed Bunting!

He was not as elusive as the female, or hen, and I did see her briefly.

VIDEO OF REED BUNTING MALE

MISTLE THRUSH or SONG THRUSH - Turdus pilaris or philomelos & SONG VIDEO

Here is a photo and then a video of a Mistle Thrush that caught my...EARS! Well I think its a Mistle Thrush?! lol!

Not seen a Song Thrush in years and too big for a Redwing, too thin and light in colour for a Fieldfare.....hmm maybe it IS a Song Thrush after all?! LOL.

VIDEO WHILE SINGING

GADWALLS AGAIN

Always like seeing Gadwalls.

Here are two I saw today and one darker than the other...

CHAFFINCHES - FRINGILLA COELEBS: & SONG VIDEO

Oops too quick with this one...

Will come back and add sonf once uploaded to YouTube!

I went back today to see if I could get to photo and film those Bearded Reedlings. I DID get a Reed dwelling bird but not them?! Was told someone saw them around 9am but nothing after that.

While there I get a series of more videos and pictures...

VIDEO OF SINGING CHAFFINCH

GOOSANDER VIDEOS

Couple of Goosander Videos I took while up Fishers Green...

Be careful or they will...DIVE! OOPS!

40x Zoom and no DIVING?! HAHA!

LAPWING SHOVELLER ROBIN

A mixture of photos here with first up a Shoveller Duck...

Next up a collection of Shovellers and iif you looke you will see a few other bird species and among them are a few LAPWINGS

A path towards Fishers Green

Couple nice shots of a Robin who had been singing his heart out

THE GREAT CRESTED GREBE

No dancing or zooming through the water like a turbocharged torpedo but as well as the photos below I do have a video of another individual!

The Great Crested Grebe and as majestic as they look you shoould really see their courtship dance and even more rarely when they are under water chasing fish. They move at speeds that seem quite impossible and improbable! A brother and myself saw this taking place and a small roach leaping out the water. While standing on a bridge by the Bittern Hide at Fishers Green in Lea Valley Park we BOTH thought this fast moving missile was a PIKE?!

Even so we were amazed at the speed it was travelling but when it came up out the water with the Roach in its beak we looked at each other with awe.

All the years we have spent around animals both British and exotic and something we think of as an everyday species of British Bird wows us with something quite stunning indeed!

VIDEO:

THE WATER RAIL

While waiting for two hen Bearded Reedlings this Water Rail appeared instead!

Oh and a very clear video!!

THE TEAL DUCK

A favourite of mine since a kid due to that....TEAL stripe on their face!

When I took the picture they were very far away and had thought they were more Gadwalls. However and just in case I did take a video of them too?!

VIDEO FROM MY YOUTUBE

GADWALL & A DARK GADWALL?

Right a Gadwall and then some pictures of one that threw me somewhat as I had never seen one like that, if indeed it IS a Gadwall that is?!

It was very dark and i am not brilliant with Water Foul if I am honest and do not know if they change their plumage. Or perhaps just a freaky dark one or something else I am not familiar with I just do not know, lmao!!

 There are videos on my YouTube account

The DUNNOCK

With the Chaffinches and Tits was this Dunnock right outside the Bittern hide where I had been waiting for the appearance of two hen Bearded Reedlings I was 30 minutes late for?!

WAHHHHH!!!

LMAO!