Tag Archives: Wildlife

Butterflies/moths at Moor Copse, West Berkshire

Having been to Reading yesterday to run a few errands it was time to get out into the green again today. Late this morning I drove to the Moor Copse nature reserve (BBOWT site) in the Pang valley near Tidmarsh, West Berkshire. While my original plan had been to get some bird pictures I soon changed my focus to butterflies and/or moths (I’m not sure what any of these are, if anyone can help with identification please feel free to do so in the comments).

(click on the pictures for larger versions)

Birds and Bluebells around Aldermaston wharf

Following yesterday’s 1.5 hours walk I doubled my efforts today and walked for three hours until the clouds came in. Today I stayed locally and walked to Aqua Vitae Copse and Padworth college. On the way I spotted a variety of birds: a Sparrow was carrying grass in its beak, I assume for nest building. Two Blue Tits were sitting among the fresh shoots on a tree. But the highlight was a Red Kite eating its catch while in flight before resting on a tree. Finally I enjoyed Bluebells carpeting the woodland floor.

(click on the pictures to view larger versions)

Two bird sightings on a nice afternoon out

One of my New Year’s resolutions was to have a at least one hour walk of some sort every Saturday and Sunday (unfortunately having a daily one-hour walk isn’t logistically feasible). While I have already failed that resolution for various reasons I’m still trying to achieve that goal when possible. Today I managed 1.5 hours at the Hosehill Lake nature reserve near Theale.

Among many other birds I spotted two birds I don’t think I have taken pictures of previously. I’m not sure if I identified them correctly, if I’ve got it wrong please let me know in the comments. I believe the first one is a Gadwall Duck, the second one I think is a Garden Warbler. As I said, if I got it wrong please let me know so that I can update the post.

(click on the picture for a full-size version)

A few local birds from this weekend

This weekend I visited two local nature reserves, on Saturday I visited Decoy Heath, on Sunday I visited Padworth Common. While I didn’t spot any rare birds there were a few common local birds around. Here are a few of the pictures I took:

Click on a picture to see the larger version.

Woodpecker and Shovelers

On a cold February Sunday afternoon with short sunny intervals I went out for a short walk to see if I could spot any local birds. There wasn’t an awful lot around but I managed to get decent shots of a Great Spotted Woodpecker and two pairs of Shovelers.

I also spotted a Kingfisher at the pond just outside my flat, but unfortunately didn’t manage to take a picture of it.