Pictures of British Birds: The Coot

Meet the Coot  

Female Coot on water

Coots are one of my favourite water birds so it was a joy to make this page to share my pictures. I've included some interesting information and facts you might enjoy including how they take off into flight and how they attack or defend themselves.  If you like my pictures, please feel free to share the link but the photos are copyright to me. Thanks. 

Little Mama the White Goose

Wildlife Photography by AnnMackieMiller
Copyright 2011
'Little Mama covers the eggs before leaving them'

 This white goose laid her eggs around the 14th March on the Greenhill, under an ancient hawthorn tree.  She is actually one of a threesome and the little grey companion laid her eggs in the same nest much later in March.  This one seems to be doing all the sitting and is very dilligent.  However, she doesn't want to miss out on any treats going.  She sees me coming complete with plastic bag of dried pellets but she doesn't have time to wait in queues. 
She very quickly covers the eggs then she flies right to my feet on the tow path for her share.  I love it.  Just look at her underbelly where she has been plucking the feathers out to line the next.  What a mama!

Goose picture by AnnMackieMiller
Copyright 2011
'INCOMING!'

TO SEE MORE GOOSE PICTURES - CLICK!

Going Goofy on Valentine's Day

The facial expression says it all...

love makes goofs or us all

As one would expect, lots of pairing off today at the canal.

brown-headed male mallard and mate

The Greenhill geese were quite spread out: some (with Canada geese) along in the field above the weir (they spooted the plastic bag with food but couldn't figure out how to get to it), more in the field beside the allotments (also with Canada geese), some in the canal near the bramble field and the rest along at Greenhill.

above the weir, below Micklethwaite

I spotted one moorhen at the weir another at the coppice and two along at Micklethwaite Wharf though they didn't come close to each other while I was there.  It is early days I suppose. 
No sign of the swans or of the female goosander - they are very nervous birds so maybe she has flown.
TweddleDum and TweedleDee were out at Micklethwaite Wharf with VERY dirty beaks and the Swedish ducks gave me an excellent display of field running on the Greenhill.

Swedish ducks doing a runner

I'll be off for a few days while my camera gets cleaned, so hope nothing monumental happens meantime.

Introducing you to the Coppice Pond: St Ives Estate Bingley

We had a light dusting of snow overnight but this morning (Friday) the sun came out.  It was a beautiful day: sun shining on snow, so perfect for a visit to St Ives.  St Ives is a huge estate just outside Bingley that is now open to the public.  Needless to say my favourite place is a lake known as Coppice Pond. 

It is home to a resident flock of noisy Canada geese.  The geese are managed by a ranger so any eggs laid are coated with petrolium jelly to prevent them from hatching.  These are the same Canada geese that pay us visits down at Micklethwaite Wharf and last year one pair mated and nested at Greenhill and they produced seven goslings who all survived.  I had great fun watching them getting flight lessons on the Greenhill.  Hopefully we will get more this year.

There is also this interesting little family. 

Two large white domestic ducks make their home there, both males I think and last year one mated with a female mallard and produced this fella.  I'm pretty sure the hybrid is a male because of the green sploches on his head but I could be wrong.  If I don't know something I feel quite justified in making it up :0) I'm no expert after all and will never claim to be.  I am fascinated by bird behaviour and these four stick very closely together.  I think the female will probably mate again this year judging by her behaviour.



It is always a joy to watch and listen to the coots - I just love those huge feet

 

The Coppice pond also has moorhens plus I saw a couple of male gooseanders but not close enough to photograph. 

The feeding station for woodland birds had a delightful colony of grey squirrels.  Unfortunately they were chased away by blooming dogs let loose by careless owners.  I saw loads of robins, some chaffinches and blackbirds and various tits.  I didn't stay there long as Big Bertha, my Sigma 50-500mm lens, was playing up and I was sulking at having to use the little lens.  I have yet to take a decent photo with the big lens but ONE day I will master it!  Watch this space. 



Welcome to my new blog: Watching Bingley Birds

As you will gather, I am a keen birdwatching and photographer.  I prefer water birds and am lucky enough to live near the Leeds to Liverpool canal, near Bingley in West Yorkshire, England. 

This year I plan to document in words and photographs the wonderful array of birds in this part of the world.  I am particularly interested in bird behaviour so I hope I can capture the essense of what makes these creatures tick.

To start I need to introduce you to my neighbourhood.  There are three main areas I tend to go to most around here:

The Leeds to Liverpool canal at the bottom of my road - this is a stretch less than two miles long but teeming with life.  For me it starts at the top of the Five Rise Locks at Bingley.  This is a series of locks that raise and lower barges and canal boats.  Yorkshire is hilly - and the canal was a major feat of engineering in tackling how to get these heavy industrial boats up and down the hills.  You can read more about the canal in my lens on Squidoo -  Walking the Towpath
This stretch of canal is the most important for me but I do visit other stretches of the canal so will include sightings along there from time to time.

Coppice Pond on the St Ives Estate, Bingley - this is a large estate near Bingley that is now open to the public.  On part of it is the Coppice Pond, home to a large flock of Canada geese as well as coots, moorhens and so on.  The ranger has set up a feeding station for woodland birds so I often go up to watch them and the squirrels.

Myrtle Park in the centre of Bingley - this public park has the Aire River running through it.  So far I haven't studied the wildlife there much but mean to rectify that this year.

I spend most of my time at the canal.  Last year I was lucky enough to follow several wildfowl families through the breeding season with all the ups and downs that entailed.  I produced several small photobooks of their stories on Blurb.com and make several lenses on Squidoo.  This year, I mean to do even better and this blog is the start.  Part of it will be a diary in words and pictures, and part will be articles on the various birds I come across.  I may even throw in a little history now and then!

You can find the complete list of my storybook photography lenses that cover last year's stories of my favourite wildfowl families CLICK HERE - on Squidoo

A Tale of Two Swans by AnnMackieMiller | Make Your Own Book