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Recent wildlife sightings (Read 648633 times)

JackAus

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#1550 Re: Recent wildlife sightings
August 01, 2015, 05:36:01 am
Working on a building in North Sydney and had a Peregrine Falcon flying around us. Landed on the roof a few metres away and could hear its mate calling out from another roof. Watched it soar and dive through the buildings. Great site. Love Peregrines.

andy_e

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#1551 Re: Recent wildlife sightings
August 06, 2015, 10:07:56 am
Fairly sure I saw a pair of goshawks riding the breeze (below a gnarly contrail shadow) at Rothley the other week. They were big, but not buzzard big, sparrowhawk-shaped but bigger than sparrowhawks...

Johnny Brown

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#1552 Re: Recent wildlife sightings
August 08, 2015, 01:13:13 pm
Good spot. Size is tricky (as it is in flight anyway - few distance cues), male Gos are not that much bigger than female Spar. Female Gos are Buzzard sized. Still, outsize Spar is definitely the jizz, a bit bulkier, slower wingbeats.

andy popp

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#1553 Re: Recent wildlife sightings
August 08, 2015, 01:16:50 pm
I saw a groundhog. It was pretty cute. But I missed the raccoon snaffling the cat's food because I couldn't be bothered to get up.

Fultonius

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#1554 Re: Recent wildlife sightings
August 09, 2015, 06:04:25 pm
I was out near Dunkeld today scoping out a potential new route and saw 2 birds that I'm struggling to identify.

The first was a pair of what I, at first, thought were crows. However, they spent a long time just soaring above the crag. They also made kind of crow(ish) type sounds but I was wondering if there was something else, as the behaviour seemed uncrowlike.

The second was a small brown winged falcon sized and shaped bird. I saw it from above  and it kind of darted along under me fallowing the line of the crag. Didn't see it hovering or anything but it looked quite falcon like, small, angular wings and a straight tail Maybe a juvenile?

Next time I should take a camera!

andy_e

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#1555 Re: Recent wildlife sightings
August 10, 2015, 10:36:50 am
Ravens (and crows) like to play around on thermals so it could be that. Was the noise very deep? The other one sounds like a kestrel to me!

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#1556 Re: Recent wildlife sightings
August 10, 2015, 11:01:56 am
What Andy said Fultonius...

Recent Lleyn spots included lots of Choughs at Talfarach and in the quarries above Nefyn. Getting spectacularly dive bombed by a buzzard on the walk in to Talfarach, never had this before, quite intimidating! Also more Stone Chats than I could shake a stick at. More Sand Martins than I can ever remember seeing on the beaches around Nefyn. And highlight of the week, a very low flying male Hen Harrier above the mini beaches at Towyn near Tudweiliog... Psyched!!

Fultonius

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#1557 Re: Recent wildlife sightings
August 10, 2015, 11:30:15 am
I think you're spot on Andy - just listened to the sound of crows (which I was sure it wasn't) and ravens - it's definitely the ravens, very distinctive noise.

As to the Kestrel, seems likely. Not many photos online from the vantage point I had (looking down, gliding not hovering) but size and colour seems about right. Nice.

tomtom

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#1558 Re: Recent wildlife sightings
August 10, 2015, 06:27:13 pm
Over in Norfolk this weekend - and captured this dragonfly nymph 'hatching' and the dragonfly sat there for 3-4 hours inflating and changing colour. Before and after pics...


SamT

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#1559 Re: Recent wildlife sightings
August 10, 2015, 07:20:53 pm
Crow or raven is dead easy...

Raven has a Diamond shaped tail,
Crow has a fan shaped tail.




andy_e

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#1560 Re: Recent wildlife sightings
August 11, 2015, 01:29:29 pm
Also, crow = big, raven = massive.

SA Chris

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#1561 Re: Recent wildlife sightings
August 11, 2015, 01:48:13 pm
Almost flattened a red squirrel near Tomintoul, luckily he survived. Ospreys with fresh catch in the Spey. Salmon jumping at Falls of Feugh, first time I've seen them, quite amazing.

SamT

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#1562 Re: Recent wildlife sightings
August 11, 2015, 03:33:09 pm
Size is tricky (as it is in flight anyway - few distance cues)

Fultonius

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#1563 Re: Recent wildlife sightings
August 11, 2015, 09:57:14 pm
Size was not obvious, they seemed a bit big for crows but not ludicrous. The call was what gave it away. Really distinctive.

SamT

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#1564 Re: Recent wildlife sightings
August 12, 2015, 07:14:17 pm
They kind of 'honk' I always think.

Anyhow, mrs T was on her way to work through Sharrow cemetery at about 7am this morning and saw a small deer.  Yep, a small deer.  Wasn't entirely sure she hadn't dreamed it, however, it seems she's not the only one..

https://www.sheffieldforum.co.uk/showthread.php?p=11039994

mad.

fatneck

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#1565 Re: Recent wildlife sightings
August 13, 2015, 08:28:16 am
Quality!!

tomtom

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#1566 Re: Recent wildlife sightings
August 13, 2015, 08:46:01 am
Muntjac?

Saw loads of these in Norfolk last week... (well a handful..)

SamT

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#1567 Re: Recent wildlife sightings
August 13, 2015, 09:26:13 am
Not sure what type.  Pretty amazing really though since this is right in the city centre, and there is no green corridor direct to the park. My only guess is its come down the mayfield valley, bingham, endcliffe parks, then wandered down eccy road till its somehow found its way into the cemetery. 

I can see how it could remain tucked away in the cemetery as its very overgrown and rambling, but amazed its found its way to there.

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#1568 Re: Recent wildlife sightings
August 13, 2015, 09:16:48 pm
watching a family of firecrests grow up over our 2 weeks in Brittany added a bit of extra magic for me

one of the youngsters landed on my shoulder and an adult took a fly from 18 inches in front of my face (I sat on a chair wedged in the hedge where they patrolled)

fucking ace!

snap shot of a very busy parent




« Last Edit: August 13, 2015, 09:24:38 pm by lagerstarfish »

fatneck

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#1569 Re: Recent wildlife sightings
August 14, 2015, 11:15:26 am
Boss!

Fultonius

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#1570 Re: Recent wildlife sightings
August 16, 2015, 09:51:11 pm
The only saving grace from today's shittiness (we picked the only wet crag, in the clag in Scotland by the sound of things and the route was lichenous, the route description poor and my abilities worse) was that I saw these nice wee fungi - Aleuria aurantia, Orange Peel Fungi. 

Apologies for the phone snap:


fatneck

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#1571 Re: Recent wildlife sightings
August 17, 2015, 08:34:57 am
Nice! Saw a weasel on Saturday, first one in a couple of years!

SA Chris

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#1572 Re: Recent wildlife sightings
August 17, 2015, 09:56:32 am
Spotted a Peregrine on Saturday. While waiting for a train at Sutton Station. Was buzzing around the office block opposite, cool to see in a big city.

andyd

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#1573 Re: Recent wildlife sightings
August 17, 2015, 03:32:16 pm
I reckon we saw a couple of golden eagles (separate places) in ardnamurchan at the weekend. Bit difficult to rule out the possibility of them being a sea eagle though.

Johnny Brown

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#1574 Re: Recent wildlife sightings
August 17, 2015, 04:14:06 pm
The differences are fairly obvious if you know what to look for; perhaps easier to split than Golden eagle/ Buzzard..

Sea eagles have big square wings like a flying door. Head size is useful too but I haven't got a book to check - I think Golden eagles appear to have the smallest heads of the there relative to the overall silhouette.

 

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