A Tale of Two Eagles

After some torrential downpours, we got a break in the weather - a good job as Craignish Point is fairly exposed...

Views along the coast. 

Looking back towards the carpark - the path skirts the coast and then goes inland a little to the ridge that leads to the point.

Dramatic light - towards Crinan.

And then a flypast by an immature White-tailed Eagle.

Then it headed off - you can spot it in the clouds towards the righthand top corner.

Looking towards Jura and the Gulf of Corryveckan, between Jura and Scarba. Apparently it's the third largest whirlpool in the world! 

From the end of Craignish Point. Then we turned round and....

A different White-tailed Eagle gave us a flypast - note the huge yellow beak.

And white on the tail.

After that - we retraced our tracks. A good walk, only about a mile to the point, with a clear path - damp underfoot in places. 

Red-necked Phalarope

Well we took the dogs down Wedholme Flow this morning and to our surprise there was a lovely Red-necked Phalarope pootling round on one of the pools! To make it even better it was in amongst some very nice Ruff.

Autumnal colours.

The paths have all been recently mown.

Autumn...plenty of dragon and damselflies too...

The pond....

The Red-necked Phalarope.

Fledgling Ospreys...

 We have been really privileged over the past weeks to be able to watch the three Osprey chicks preparing to fledge at Campfield Marsh,  down on the Solway Plain. A quick visit last week in the sunshine was good for butterflies too! 

The adults Ospreys were sat on the fence...

While the young were clearly visible.

Small Tortoiseshell.

Red Admiral.

Peacock.

Speckled Wood.

Wall Brown.

Hodbarrow in the heat

On our way to a family bbq, on the bank holiday Monday, we stopped off at Hodbarrow RSPB reserve to see the Terns. It was an incredibly hot day, so the heat haze made it difficult to take good photos....

Walking along the coast to the reserve.

Male Eiders on the sand.

The reserve and predator fence. The Lakeland fells beyond.

Bird's-foot Trefoil.

Dingy Skipper.

Northern Marsh Orchid.

Plenty of activity!

Eider Duck creche.

Keeping cool...

Little Terns - in the foreground.

Sandwich Terns with a Mediterranean Gull - with its white-ringed eye and bright red beak. 

Local Ospreys

We are indeed very lucky to have these two Ospreys nesting locally...

The pair...

Walking on, it was good to see the Sphagnum in such good health.

What a great boardwalk!

Damp.

And back via the Ospreys.

Kestrel taking a rabbit

How the Kestrel managed to fly carrying the Rabbit...remarkable. A few photos of the poor Rabbit being eaten. 

Spot the Kestrel...(top left).