Fluffy babies

It's that time of year again... the time for fluffy babies.

Juvenile Robin

This one's starting its post-juvenile moult, getting the orange breast feathers

Wren

Blue Tit

Coal Tit

Great Tit

Another Great Tit

The fluffiest of them all... baby Long-tailed Tit

What are you looking at?

The first Robin I've caught in my garden!

photo taken with iPhone

Spring green

Spring is here. Let's celebrate.

Seven-spot Ladybirds

Primroses

Robins threatening to punch each others' lights out (it ended peacefully when one walked away)

Brimstone slurping on hyacinths

Tulip

Celandine

photos taken with Canon EOS 30D

Brought to you by the colour orange

A young Red Fox which appeared today and seemed to be munching on sunflower seeds just like our regular Badger does.


A Robin at that awkward inbetween stage - half speckly juvenile, half grown-up orange adult.

Why do people say Robins are red?


photos taken with Canon Powershot A640 or Canon EOS 30D, EF 300mm f/4L IS USM

Spring, sprung

Marsh Marigolds in the pond


Cheeky Robin at The Lodge


A bright green plant


Which reminds me... I need to mow the lawn...

photos taken with Canon EOS 30D, EF 300mm f/4L IS USM

Singalongarobin

Sorry, don't do sound, so you'll have to whistle your own soundtrack this time. Today's video contains real sunlight.

video taken with Nikon Coolpix 995 + Leica Apo Televid 77 with 20x eyepiece

Cornish Robin

Nearly forgot about this Robin, which I encountered in the Cot Valley the other week. It was the only time I used my DSLR all week.

photos taken with Canon EOS 30D, EF 300mm f/4L IS USM

Suffolk heathland

Hobby hawking for dragonflies

Grayling basking on gorse

gorse

Robin's pin-cushion gall, made by the wasp Diplolepis rosae

Gorse and blackberries

Marsh Harrier - not a very heathy species, but it was flying over it!

Robin (without its pin-cushion)

photos taken with Canon EOS 30D, EF 300mm f/4L IS USM

The Lodge

I went to The Lodge this morning to do some recceing for the Beds bird race team. I failed on that front, but had some photographic successes.

Birds. Yes, I photographed some birds!

Here's one that fledged earlier: baby Blackbird

Another delivery of still-wriggling caterpillars on its way to a Robin nest near you

A tiny Grass Snake swimming in one of the ponds. Whether it was after insects or newts (both plentiful, I'm not sure)

Odonata. Yes, it's dragon- and damselfly time again.

Female (I think) Hairy Dragonfly

Zoomed-in, you can see the hairs

Large Red Damselflies: mating

and teneral (just-emerged)

Lepidoptera (butterflies and moths)

Speckled Wood

Small Copper

Holly Blue (nectaring on holly, appropriately enough)

Green-veined White

Adela reamurella - weird, long-antennaed moths

And now for some leaves..

Rowan (I think)

Oak

Maple

Lime

Horse-chestnut

Bracken

Beech

Miscellaneous bugs:

Green Shield-bug

Bee-fly on bluebell

photos taken with Canon EOS 30D, EF 300mm f/4L IS USM