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Tuesday 20 February 2018

LETS GIVE IT ONE MORE TRY AT THE EGLETON RESERVE FOR THE SMEW DRAKES.


It appears to me that every one has been visiting the Egleton reserve and having good views of the Smew, that is except for me, so at last the sun was shining and I decided I would have another try for some images of these beautiful ducks. Having previously visited several times but entering to the reserve from the Volunteer Centre entrance, this time I decided to follow the normal route and walk in from Egleton.

So having booked in with David who told me he had seen a Smew earlier in the on Lagoon 4, so I got on my way {in the sun for a change} and firstly had a visit to Redshank Hide on Lagoon 2, nothing much to be seen from this hide, so onto Grebe Hide. I had a walk through the woodland walk which with the sun shining was delightful but a little muddy under foot. I arrived and was greeted by a gent already in the hide with his scope and camera who said we had a Smew Drake on the far side of the Lagoon. Having since checked the distance it was 220 metres plus away so not an easy image, its getting the camera to focus accurately over such a distance. I took some record shots and then on my way again heading for Sandpiper Hide on Lagoon 4.

On arrival I could see a few Mute Swans, some Coots and what I think were Scaup but no sign of the Smew. After waiting for about 15 minutes  a small white bird appeared from behind an island, was it a duck or a gull? through the bins I could see it was a Smew Drake but this time farther away than previous, I would estimate about 250 metres away. As the wind was blowing towards me I decided to give it time and sure enough it gently swam and drifted my way. I started to take some images when it got 140 metres away and the results are all below

After this I visited some other hides and took numerous images of other Ducks etc that will become part of my next post. 









Smew Drake, Lagoon 2, Grebe Hide.

Why do these birds stay on the far side of the Lagoon, these next images were taken purely as record shots, it's all well and good taking images at 220 metres when the bird is an Osprey or Buzzard but for a little Smew??? 






















Smew Drake, Lagoon 4, Sandpiper Hide.

Upon entering the Hide I had no site of any Smew, but after about 15 minutes a white looking bird appeared from behind one of the islands, so a quick check with the bins and it was a Drake Smew. The bird at this time was approximately 250 metres away from the hide and having just taken some silly distance images I thought as the wind was coming towards the hide and the bird was doing a mixture of swimming and drifting, give the bird some time and it should get closer. This image was me not being able to wait any longer, I'm always impatient to get an image but the bird was still 140 metres away. 







By this time he had come a little closer to 100 metres away, trouble is you are never sure as to when or if they are going to fly.





Another swim and the bird was 80 metres away, praying everything would carry on in my favour!!







 It then seemed to speed up a little as this Mute Swan looked somewhat angry.
Passed with a "How do you do, I'm a Smew." 








And at last the bird came within 50 metres but kept drifting behind some reeds on one of  the islands on the Lagoon.







A quick call, probably calling his mate, but I never saw a Red Head.







They really are such a handsome bird.
























Unfortunately the stem of a reed has partially obscured the bird but still shows the markings fine.






Final image of what for me is one of my favourites amongst ducks.








Little Owl Site No 2.

Had a drive through the Little Owl sites but this was the only bird I saw, mind still glad to see it appears to be taking up residence staying at the site, I just hope its got a mate.





Thank you for your visit, I hope you have enjoyed it as much as I did in the getting of the images.

The next post will have some of the other birds I saw on this sunny afternoon.


Barn Owl Update.

I am still finding pellets under the large box but have not managed to put the cameras on to check what's in residence.

16 comments:

  1. Hi John, and this night you have a Smew, what a wonderful being. I love the Smew against thew Mute Swan, fantastic.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi Bob,
    I am at last happy to have seen some of the Smew. I was surprised that even having put in some minus EV how the white was burned, are we ever happy with the light??
    The Smew and the Mute swan was most enjoyable, it was only after that the bird really got under way and came that bit closer.
    All the best. John

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hi John.
    I want him me too. He's very beautiful. You are lucky.
    Bye 😀

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Nathalie,
      They really are a beautiful duck that I have been trying to get an image of for several visits to Rutland.
      At last I have managed to see them, but I must try again to to get the Drake and Duck together.
      Thanks for the visit, all the best, John

      Delete
  4. Hi John!!! Very nice pictures of this wonderful duck ..
    About your comment .. Many people are in a mistake with the climate of Madrid and Spain in general .. Spain is a country of strong contrasts .. It can be extremely cold in winter and very hot in summer. It is so different the very rainy north and the hot and dry south too .. Hence the variety of birds and wildlife habitats .. The north reminds your country the southern most part of Morocco .. We are neighbors .. :-))) Madrid is in the middle .. A lot of cold and snow in the mountains and a lot of heat in summer .. The best season to come here is Autumn and spring .. a fantastic climate ... Ok!!! many thanks for your comments.. Bye!!! :-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Ana,
      I should have known better, I visited Spain in my youth many times but never visited Madrid. It really is very similar to England and Scotland. As you mention Morocco, we have flown over this country so many times and we always see snow on the Atlas mountains.
      Your dog Bruce most certainly enjoyed the snow.
      The Smew Drake is a really beautiful duck and I am going to try and get some images of the duck {Red Head} and Drake together before they head North.
      Thank you for your visit and interesting comment.
      All the best, John

      Delete
  5. Replies
    1. Hi Ana,
      Thanks I am starting to see more of these little beauties.
      John

      Delete
  6. Wow!!! Espectacular esa Serreta chica (Mergellus albellus), un ave muy rara en mi área. Enhorabuena por las fotos John, me han encantado. Todo lo mejor desde España.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Hola German,
    Esto sin duda es alto en mi lista de patos favoritos.
    Tuve una tarde muy agradable viendo estas aves.
    Solo los recibimos como visitantes de invierno y pronto estaran en marcha hacia el norte.
    Todo lo mejor de Englaterra, John

    ReplyDelete
  8. Hello John,
    Indeed what a beauty, I wish I could see one up close one day!
    These pics were well worth your patience, congratulations!!
    Keep well and enjoy your week and wishing a good weather :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Noushka,
      My next challenge is to get both the duck and drake together!!
      You will have to visit North instead of Africa in Winter to see these beauties, German states they don not see these birds in Spain.
      Have really enjoyed your posts from your trip to Africa, some fabulous images.
      I am keeping well but the weather forecast for us this week is awful with very cold temperatures and heavy snow, Ugh.
      All the best and look after yourself, keep away from the mountains in high winds and the cold.
      John

      Delete
  9. From: "Margaret Hilyer"
    To:
    Subject: [Norton AntiSpam][ Owls and Other Things of Interest:] New comment on LETS GIVE IT ONE MORE TRY AT THE EGLETON RESERVE F....
    Date: Monday, February 26, 2018 1:53 PM

    Margaret Hilyer has left a new comment on your post "LETS GIVE IT ONE MORE
    TRY AT THE EGLETON RESERVE F...":

    Patience rewarded! Fantastic SHOTS of Smew, really like the header and the
    head on image. Nice image of swan and Smew saying hello to each other.
    Snowing here now. M



    Posted by Margaret Hilyer to Owls and Other Things of Interest: at 26
    February 2018 at 13:53

    ReplyDelete
  10. Hi Margaret,
    Sorry I had to paste your comment across again, cannot understand as to what is happening.
    The Smew is to me an absolute delight, I admit it took some time to get a result, but the next challenge is to get a drake and duck together.
    Next blog was virtually complete then I deleted it!!!! fool.
    Tell himself we had two games on the new pitch last Saturday.
    Hopefully see you soon if the Snow allows.
    All the best, John

    ReplyDelete
  11. Hi John: A male Smew would be a dream come true for me. It would rank just about as highly as the Barn Owls in your backyard. A few years ago there was an immature drake Smew in Oshawa, ON and I got to see it but it was nothing compared to the pristine adult-plumaged bird you show. I envy you this one!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Hi David,
    I must admit to this bird ranks at the top of my ducks, they are such a beautifully marked bird.
    It took me many visits to catch up with the drake, wherever I was told they were, by the time I arrived-gone.
    All the best to you both, John

    ReplyDelete

About Me;


Titus White:
Hi I am Richard Peglers friend Titus White, and those who follow Richards posts will understand the name and reason for it. I have been birding with Richard for 3 years and a volunteer at Rutland Water on the Osprey Project for 2 years. My early images were taken on a Nikon D80 with a 70 - 200mm lens. I updated the lens to a 70 - 300mm VR lens but still was not happy with the results. Eventually when Nikon announced the D7100 I decided to change so upgraded the camera and also invested in a Sigma 50 - 500mm lens.
I first met Richard through Arthur Costello as I was having the occasional visit from Little Owls on our land. We eventually found the Little Owls through another contact about 100 metres away. Photo's will follow on future posts.
I have recently upgraded my camera to full frame, this is a challenge I am at the moment enjoying trying to get the best out of the beast.
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