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

This is, I believe, a species of Honey Bee which was visiting a growth of Himalayan Balsam - Impatiens glandulifera. There are several species of Honey Bee and although I have tried, I cannot accurately identify this one for you (hopefully some kind person will help). The Himalayan Balsam, a relative of the Busy Lizzie, is an invasive species native to the Himalayas which produces large amounts of nectar making it very popular to many flying insects. 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.

Whilst walking, I rounded a bend in the track and spotted this Little Egret – Egretta garzetta – perched high in a tree a little way away. I found two places to get shots of it from and this seemed the best. This beautiful bird is actually a small white Heron which first arrived in the UK in significant numbers in 1989 and first bred in Dorset in 1996. Its arrival was a natural expansion from Europe and is now at home here both as a breeding species and as a winter visitor. 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 Azure Damselfly – Coenagrion puella – is very common throughout the UK and found pretty much anywhere there is water, be it small ponds, larger lakes, streams and small rivers. The male is blue and black and is similar to the Common Blue Damselfly whereas the female is green and black. 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.

Yes, this beautiful pair are both in the Tit family, the one on the right is the Great Tit – Parus major and the one on the left is the Blue Tit – Cyanistes caeruleus – both are very common in the UK and seen pretty much everywhere especially on garden feeders. The great Tit is the largest in the family at 14cm weighing 18gm with a wingspan of 24cm whilst the Blue Tit measures 12cm and weighs 11 gm with a wingspan of 18cm. Both eat a variety of insects, seeds and nuts. These were seen sharing a meal 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 Reed Bunting – Emberiza schoeniclus – is a sparrow sized little bird but slimmer and with a deeply notched tail. The male has a black head which is streaked with white in winter, a white collar and a drooping white moustache whilst the female is streaky brown all over. Found near wetlands with reed beds and scattered bushes they feed on seeds and invertebrates, often invading farmland in winter to feed on seeds. 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 Nuthatch – Sitta europaea – is a small tree climbing bird which loves to run up, down tree trunks and along branches in search of small invertebrates which it plucks from crevices with its long pointed beak. In winter they feed on seeds and especially nuts which they will hide in gaps in tree bark to be eaten later (hence its name). They prefer broadleaved woodland with large old trees but will also visit parks and gardens especially if food is involved but they rarely travel far from the area in which they were hatched. This beauty was seen at Pennington Flash. Explore No 227, 10 January 2024. 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 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.