Oldt1mer - Keith's photos with the keyword: Pennington Flash

This was a lucky grab shot which actually turned out very well. I was sitting, watching absolutely nothing happening on a small lake, small ducks bobbing around, a Mute Swan – Cygnus olor - swimming peacefully, a couple of gulls flying about …. Then something must have spooked the swan, it reared up and started to run on the water and take off. I lifted my camera, the zoom was on full reach, no time to focus, zoom out or even get a good bead on him, and took the shot. That was it, I didn’t even bother to check if I got anything. Then, when I got home and downloaded my pics for the day, I was amazed at how the shot had turned out. The picture is out of camera on width, just a bit cropped off the top for balance. Seen at Pennington Flash. Explore No 380. 06 Dec 2023. This Picture is fully © Copyrighted. None of my images may be copied, reproduced or altered in any form or manner or placed on the internet or any other social media, or in any form of publication either print or otherwise, in any form or manner without my written permission.

The Grey Heron – Ardea cinerea – is a large and quite shy bird which will usually fly the moment it spots you getting anywhere near to it. Feeding on anything living from insects to small mammals such as ducklings, voles and even young rabbits and large fish like eels and carp they can often be seen wading along in the shallows searching for prey. This one was seen walking along by the side of the water at Pennington Flash. This Picture is fully © Copyrighted. None of my images may be copied, reproduced or altered in any form or manner or placed on the internet or any other social media, or in any form of publication either print or otherwise, in any form or manner without my written permission.

This beauty is the male Banded Demoiselle – Calopteryx splendens – which is a species of Damselfly which flies with fluttering wings similar to a butterfly. The male, as you can see, has broad dark spots across the outer parts of his wings whereas the female has translucent pale green wings. Mainly found near slow flowing streams and rivers the female can lay up to 10 eggs per minute for 45 minutes which is a lot of eggs for such a slim narrow body. This one was spotted landing a number of meters away so is quite a big crop. Happy that the camera and lens did so well. This Picture is fully © Copyrighted. None of my images may be copied, reproduced or altered in any form or manner or placed on the internet or any other social media, or in any form of publication either print or otherwise, in any form or manner without my written permission.

Here we have a female Eurasian Bullfinch – Pyrrhula pyrrhula – which has the same black cap as the male but rather than the rose red (as seen in my picture of the male a few pictures back) breast, the female is pinkish-grey and not quite as striking overall as the male. Other facts can be found with my picture of the male. Seen at Pennington Flash. Explore No 362, Oct 11 2023. This Picture is fully © Copyrighted. None of my images may be copied, reproduced or altered in any form or manner or placed on the internet or any other social media, or in any form of publication either print or otherwise, in any form or manner without my written permission.

The beautiful Azure Damselfly – Coenagrion puella – is a medium sized Damselfly which can be seen in a wide variety of slow moving aquatic habitats such as ponds, sheltered lakes, canals etc. Found throughout most of Europe, they fly from May to September and usually stay close to the vegetation near the water. This male was seen at Pennington Flash. This Picture is fully © Copyrighted. None of my images may be copied, reproduced or altered in any form or manner or placed on the internet or any other social media, or in any form of publication either print or otherwise, in any form or manner without my written permission.

The lovely little Long-Tailed Tit - Aegithalos caudatus – is apparently also known as the Long-Tailed Bushtit but I have never heard anyone say it. These lovely little birds fly in small groups along hedgerows and treelines leapfrogging each other in the search for insects and other delicacies. Luckily this one kept still long enough for me to take his picture at Pennington Flash. This Picture is fully © Copyrighted. None of my images may be copied, reproduced or altered in any form or manner or placed on the internet or any other social media, or in any form of publication either print or otherwise, in any form or manner without my written permission.

The Common Darter - Sympetrum striolatum - is a small dragonfly that loves to perch on twigs or vegetation, especially in the sunshine, waiting for insects of any kind to fly past then it will suddenly dart out and catch its prey in mid air. They are very common and can be found pretty much anywhere near water. This female had chosen the leaf of a water reed to sit on at Pennington Flash, Leigh, Lancashire. This Picture is fully © Copyrighted. None of my images may be copied, reproduced or altered in any form or manner or placed on the internet or any other social media, or in any form of publication either print or otherwise, in any form or manner without my written permission.

This is the male Northern Shoveler – Spatula clypeata – in its breeding/winter colours. Originally classed as Anas clypeata, a study of DNA sequences caused it to be moved into the Spatula genus. It feeds on aquatic invertebrates such as crustaceans and plankton by swinging its bill from side to side and filtering the food through small comb like structures on the edge of its bill. This one was seen at Pennington Flash. This Picture is fully © Copyrighted. None of my images may be copied, reproduced or altered in any form or manner or placed on the internet or any other social media, or in any form of publication either print or otherwise, in any form or manner without my written permission.

The little Red-Headed Cardinal Beetle – Pyrochroa serraticornis – also known as the ‘Common’ Cardinal Beetle, is a red to orange beetle about 20mm long and found throughout Britain. Normally found at the edges of woodland, adults usually emerge around May and stay under the shelter of loose bark etc. until warmer weather when they disperse and can be found basking on large leaves. This one was found at Pennington Flash. This Picture is fully © Copyrighted. None of my images may be copied, reproduced or altered in any form or manner or placed on the internet or any other social media, or in any form of publication either print or otherwise, in any form or manner without my written permission.

The captivating European Robin – Erithacus rubecula – or Robin Redbreast to many, is a very friendly little creature and is the UK’s favourite bird. They sing nearly all the year round and have very loud voices for such little birds. It belongs to the Old World Flycatcher family as opposed to the American Robin which belongs to the Thrush family. This lovely little one was seen at Pennington Flash. Explore No 485, May 23 2023 This Picture is fully © Copyrighted. None of my images may be copied, reproduced or altered in any form or manner or placed on the internet or any other social media, or in any form of publication either print or otherwise, in any form or manner without my written permission.

The Mute Swan – Cygnus olor – is a very common Swan throughout Europe and is an introduced species in North America. It is called the Mute Swan because it is less vocal than other Swan species. Despite it being of Eurasian origin, its closest relatives are the Black Swan of Australia and the Black-Necked Swan of South America. This one was caught having a good stretch at Pennington Flash. This Picture is fully © Copyrighted. None of my images may be copied, reproduced or altered in any form or manner or placed on the internet or any other social media, or in any form of publication either print or otherwise, in any form or manner without my written permission.

The Great Tit - Parus major - is the largest of the Tit family and is a very common sight in gardens, woodland and many other habitats. They eat insects, seeds, berries and nuts as well as offerings at bird tables etc. This one was seen at Pennington Flash. This Picture is fully © Copyrighted. None of my images may be copied, reproduced or altered in any form or manner or placed on the internet or any other social media, or in any form of publication either print or otherwise, in any form or manner without my written permission.

The lovely little Long-Tailed Tit - Aegithalos caudatus - is also known as the Long-Tailed Bushtit and is a common bird found throughout Europe. Easily recognised by their distinctive colouring, very short beak and a tail which is longer than its body they eat mainly insects but will also enjoy seeds in autumn and winter. Because of their diet, they can be seen anywhere that insects can be found, especially where bushes and shrubs are prevalent. This one was seen enjoying a freebie at Pennington Flash, Leigh. This Picture is fully © Copyrighted. None of my images may be copied, reproduced or altered in any form or manner or placed on the internet or any other social media, or in any form of publication either print or otherwise, in any form or manner without my written permission.

The Dunnock - Prunella modularis - is a small brown and grey bird which is normally seen, on its own or with a mate, moving around on the ground foraging for food in parkland, woodland, and especially under feeders in the garden. Also known as the Hedge Sparrow or Hedge Warbler because of its love for hedgerows, bushes etc. which give them shelter from prey and also food in the form of seeds, worms and insects including spiders. Living throughout temperate Europe they have also been successfully introduced into New Zealand. This one was seen in a large bush at Pennington Flash where it had found, what looked like, some juicy insect eggs or aphids. This Picture is fully © Copyrighted. None of my images may be copied, reproduced or altered in any form or manner or placed on the internet or any other social media, or in any form of publication either print or otherwise, in any form or manner without my written permission.

This sleepy looking Grey Heron - Ardea cinerea - was in fact stood on an island in one of the lakes at Pennington Flash having a snooze in the sunshine but kept waking up to have a quick look round then back to sleep again. The Grey Heron stands up to 1 mtr tall with a wingspan of up to 2 mtrs and eats lots of fish but will also take small birds such as Ducklings and other baby water fowl, voles, frogs and other amphibians, and even rodents which they will search for in fields. This Picture is fully © Copyrighted. None of my images may be copied, reproduced or altered in any form or manner or placed on the internet or any other social media, or in any form of publication either print or otherwise, in any form or manner without my written permission.

This is, I think, a female Eristalis pertinax which landed, for a very short time, on a small patch of Ragwort - Senecio jacobaea. The Eristalis is a large genus of around 99 species of Hover and Drone Flies which makes it very difficult to positively identify this one, especially from just the side view. (Maybe someone with more knowledge of this can help?). Common Ragwort is a very widespread 'weed' which grows up to 1m high and is highly attractive to Bees and other insects. Seen by the Leeds-Liverpool Canal near Pennington Flash, Leigh, Lancashire. This Picture is fully © Copyrighted. None of my images may be copied, reproduced or altered in any form or manner or placed on the internet or any other social media, or in any form of publication either print or otherwise, in any form or manner without my written permission.

This is the, very cute, Little Grebe - Tachybaptus ruficollis - also known as the Dabchick, which, at 9 to 11.5 inches (23-29cm) long is the smallest of the European Grebe family. A quite shy bird it often remains out of sight hiding in waterside vegetation and if it feels threatened when on a rare trip into open water, will quickly dive and only surface unseen some distance away. Because it is such a great diver and underwater swimmer, its feet are placed towards the back of the body making it rather clumsy on land, which is why it spends most of its its life on the water only coming ashore to breed and occasionally eat. Even its nest is built on the water, using waterweed to make a floating platform. This one was seen in its summer breeding colours at Pennington Flash, Leigh, Lancashire. This Picture is fully © Copyrighted. None of my images may be copied, reproduced or altered in any form or manner or placed on the internet or any other social media, or in any form of publication either print or otherwise, in any form or manner without my written permission.

The Eurasian Oystercatcher - Haematopus ostralegus - is also known as the 'Common Pied Oystercatcher', the 'Palaearctic Oystercatcher' or just the 'Oystercatcher'. Contrary to its name, oysters are not a large part of their diet, preferring mussels, cockles and other molluscs which they smash or prise open with their strong beaks, they are very partial to earth worms when inland or when molluscs are in short supply. They are so named because they are actually capable of opening oysters which few, if any, other wading birds can. This one was spotted at Pennington Flash. This Picture is fully © Copyrighted. None of my images may be copied, reproduced or altered in any form or manner or placed on the internet or any other social media, or in any form of publication either print or otherwise, in any form or manner without my written permission.