Daisy Nook, 5.9.2108.

Daisy Nook today with mate David and his foster puppy Pug Geoff!.

Drinks and grub first at the Cafe, non for you Geoff , I'm afraid, don't look so sad!

We had a good walk round the canal walks and fields with Geoff and Pepe getting on well since Pepe told Geoff off for being disrespectful to his elders, they get on well now.

A nice change for them both from Etherow, plenty of new smells.

Nice Heron on the top canal, great fishers no wonder the fishermen don't like them, think the're jealous really.

Juvenile Coot luckily survived the Herons attentions when younger. 

Not so safe are these baby Moorhens, on the first pond after the Cafe, only saw two babies last week and friend Mary said they had seen three, obviously they had been hiding in the reeds all along.

I had seen a heron investigating the area last week 

Back at the Cafe after a good walk round and a drink or us all, including the dogs!.

So another good day at Daisy Nook.

It got better as on the way home we called at Mate Bob and Joyce's, they like to see Pepe on a regular basis to make I'm taking care of him I think!.

So after a chat and a drink I was given the "Order of the Kingfisher" for snapping my first Kingfisher last week!.

What a lovely present and so lifelike!.

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Down at Reddish Vale.4.9.2018.

Down at the Vale the last couple of days there was plenty of wildlife though the Kingfishers seemed to be hiding today.

The last young Grebe standing seems to be having trouble at the moment, its parents have disappeared and trying to fend for itself  can't get the hang of diving for fish.

In the end it came over to where I was feeding the other ducks and pigeons and started to eat my seeds!

Looking quite handsome now and starting to get its head tufts.

Perhaps get the hang of fishing soon, at least its eating something.

Visiting the neighbors!

Sun bathing.

The monster still about!.

Goosey Goosey gander.

Nice walks.

Islands in the stream ( Dolly Parton).

Chaffinches with their bumble feet.

Trying to find out about the markings on this Swans head must ask Darren the warden.

I'm shy!, is he still looking?.

My nails are catching in this netting.

Friend David turned up today with his Foster Puppy Geoff!

Getting quite used to walking with Pepe and like all dogs needs a good walk to quieten him down for the evening.

About 15 weeks now.

There you go well exercised and sleeping with his Mum!.

We're all off to Daisy Nook in the morning and Geoff is quite a hit there with the ladies!.

That's it for now folks call back again soon.

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More Birds, 31.8.2018.

The start of this week (Sunday) saw Pepe and I at Reddish Vale again, where we were lucky to see a Kingfisher again, there was a young fisherman with his tent at the end of the lake where the Kingfishers usually flit about so that might have made them hide more.

Still managed to snap this little beauty.

Again at the limit of my zoom on the other side of the lake, so not as sharp as I would like.

Met a Lady called Sheila who had been on the Reddish Vale Photographers website and she had said she wanted too snap a Kingfisher so it made her day seeing this one and christening her new camera!.

Its nice putting a face to a name on the website isn't it!. 

Mum Grebe is still fishing well for her youngster.

Ahh Mum can't I stay up a bit longer?.

Just a bit longer then!

A look across the lake.

There was one of the terror- pins.

Who has the biggest beak?, just watch it or it will have your leg off!

The nesting box under the viaduct doesn't seem to have been used much this year?.

On the way home from Daisy Nook on Monday called at the small lake behind the Tram station at the Snipe to see how the Swan family there were getting on, there were only eight babies now but saying that they aren't babies anymore but quite grown up.

You can just see the blue sign at the tram station behind the trees.

One of the proud parents.

All the family, as I was passing a couple of days previously was surprised to see the whole family walking along the pavement and for all the world looked like they were walking to the tram stop, would have made a good picture but at the time there was a lot of traffic  about and couldn't stop but that's what photography is all about isn't it being at the right place at the right time!.

Ah well perhaps next time!.

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Kingfishers galore!, 27.8.2018.

After only seeing Kingfishers flitting about in the past down at Reddish Vale Country park, this past week snapped my first one!.

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That was on the Tuesday, then on the Saturday I was lucky enough to see a family of Five!.

Mum and Dad were busy diving into the water and feeding the three babies all sat in a row patiently waiting for dinner.

A chap on the Reddish Vale photographers website snapped a beautiful picture and informed us that  the collective noun for kingfishers are A Crown and thought they could have picked a better word, but as I said they are quite regal aren't they , then a lady came up with A Rainbow which describes them a bit better hey!  

My phone appt reckons that the babies have darker wings, as you can see on these below.

So there you are, plenty of Kings and though some of them aren't too clear they were at the far side of the lakes, that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it!.

Mum Grebe was still pulling big fish out of the lake, but still mostly too big for the baby to swallow.

Baby dropped it and a Black headed Gull nipped down and pinched it!.

Don't think baby has got the idea of diving for food, he's gone over to see that guy in the hat feeding the ducks, don't think he's going to like seeds!.

Elsewhere on the lake it was bath time 

Big Daddy still there lazing on the bank.

Can hardly keep my eyes open!.

The tiddlers, 

A nice Chaffinch having a snack.

My mate Bob brought up details of a Blue Heron on the internet which it seems are resident in South America, there were plenty of pictures of them catching stuff to eat and one even had a terrapin!.

Chap at Reddish Vale had said he'd seen one there but looking at Bob's picture they don't seem much different than our Grey ones!,

Well that's it for now, ready for another trip down the Vale tomorrow.

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