Margaret J Walker
Scottish Crossbill Silhouette
I was photographing Crested Tits at our site on a bitterly cold winters day but I was warmed up by all the wildlife that surrounded me.
Not only did we have our faithful crested tits and coal tits but we also had a pair of woodpecker pottering around in the trees nearby and a treecreeper bouncing about the trees next to me. The squirrels arrived for a short time as well as a flock of long tail tits but the icing on the cake was a number of Scottish Crossbills that were making their was down to some water near where I was standing.
Unfortunately I did not have a great deal of time to compose an image and I was shooting towards the sun so I knew that the best outcome would be a silhouette of this rare bird.
The Scottish crossbill is a chunky, thick-set finch with a large head and substantial bill. It is the UK's only endemic bird species (ie one found nowhere else in the world).
They are confined to the Scots pine forests of the Scottish Highlands, both ancient Caledonian forest and new commercial plantations.
I have always considered how lucky we are with our crested tit site as it is in such a beautiful location but to have all this wildlife surround me made it all the more special. This was a day that I will remember for a long time.
Scottish Crossbill Silhouette
I was photographing Crested Tits at our site on a bitterly cold winters day but I was warmed up by all the wildlife that surrounded me.
Not only did we have our faithful crested tits and coal tits but we also had a pair of woodpecker pottering around in the trees nearby and a treecreeper bouncing about the trees next to me. The squirrels arrived for a short time as well as a flock of long tail tits but the icing on the cake was a number of Scottish Crossbills that were making their was down to some water near where I was standing.
Unfortunately I did not have a great deal of time to compose an image and I was shooting towards the sun so I knew that the best outcome would be a silhouette of this rare bird.
The Scottish crossbill is a chunky, thick-set finch with a large head and substantial bill. It is the UK's only endemic bird species (ie one found nowhere else in the world).
They are confined to the Scots pine forests of the Scottish Highlands, both ancient Caledonian forest and new commercial plantations.
I have always considered how lucky we are with our crested tit site as it is in such a beautiful location but to have all this wildlife surround me made it all the more special. This was a day that I will remember for a long time.