A pair of Lesser Scaup

10th November 2025. Lesser Scaup is pretty much an annual visitor down here in Cornwall and Devon these days, I,ve seen a few and got some record shots , but when this pair turned up on the boating lake at Helston in Cornwall, I had to eventually give in and go and go to take a look. Its a very easy site to visit, ( even free parking) with a number of water birds always presant and at quite close quarters. The weather was changable to say the least with brillint sunshine one minute followed by heavy downpours, but the Scaups were showing really well and lots of nice photos were to be had.

Young Swallow

A young Swallow balances on a blue rope of a tied up boat at Turf Locks on the Exe estuary in Devon.Soon be headed back to Africa.

Crows

Carrion Crows, bit of a marmite bird I suppose, but whatever you think of them , you have to admire their character, adaptability and oportunism. A regilar visitor to my feeding stations and pond , I,ve photographed a few in recent weeks, one youngster, one having just taken a bath and another which was eating a dead Red Legged Partridge. ( which I found near my hide and just moved it a few yards in front to see what might come along.) The local shooters and farmers moan about the number of Crows and Magpies etc then provide them with ready available Pheasants and Red Lagged Partridges, many of which are left and many which are roadkill.!

Hobby

THe Hobby has to be one of my favourite birds, I just love to watch them zipping over wetlands hunting dragonflies,being fairly small and fast photographing them is always a challenge. A couple of visits to Walmsley reserve in Cornwall during the summer went a little way into getting a few o.k shots.

Local White Stork

A White Stork had been doing the rounds locally and had been seen by a few people from nearby Launceston to Widemouth on the North coast, so I was'nt that surprised when our neighbour told me he had seen one the day before on a telegraph post at Liftondown , just a couple of miles away. AsI had to go into town, I made a slight detour and yes, the Stork was still there on the post looking like a big white statue . I took a few photos from the car before getting out and taking a few more,it was a very bright sunny day but from the side I was on it was way too bright so I just walked underneath it and it took little notice of me except making a little barking noise. Much better from the other side where I got some nice close up photos. It was wearing a yellow leg ring C41, which is from a breeding programme in the Exe valley.

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