As the beautiful summer continues we had a pleasant trip this morning to the World Wildfowl Trust’s centre at Slimbridge in Gloucestershire.
There were a few pleasant surprises with a wood sandpiper that was a little reticent to perform at first but came close and displayed very well. We don’t often see spotted redshank so they too were a pleasant surprise. Common crane are quite regular here now and we saw 11 in total and two flew over very close. I managed to photograph a sparrowhawk in flight but it was a last minute effort and a poor photograph. Green sandpipers have been here for our last two visits and again came fairly close as did the ruff. We haven’t seen little grebe here for a while and there was also a pair of common terns to complete the morning.
A greater flamingo was a surprise too but it was not a sign of global warming, simply an escapee from a zoo.
Hope you enjoy the photos.
Spotted redshankWood sandpiperLittle grebeLittle grebeCommon craneCommon craneCommon ternLittle egretPied avocetsWood sandpiperSpotted redshank (left) and ruff (centre)RuffCommon ternSparrowhawkCommon redshankEurasian lapwingWood sandpiper in flightWood sandpiperFemale and male ruffRuffGreen sandpiperWood sandpiperGreater flamingo Greater flamingoPainted lady was the only butterfly on display
We feel we get very good value out of a number of annual subscriptions we have to bodies such as The National Trust, the RSPB (Royal Society of the Protection of Birds), the WWT (World Wildlife Trust) and, at this time of the year, to the RHS (Royal Horticultural Society).
We were very excited when the RHS announced that, this year, they were going to replace the annual Garden Show at Hampton Court in London with a show much closer to home at Badminton House (famous for its Horse Trials). However, come the day earlier in July we were rather disappointed as we had chosen a day in the middle of a heatwave and didn’t enjoy ourselves as much as when we had visited the RHS Garden Show at Hampton Court a few years ago. This year there were long traffic queues to get there (at least at Hampton Court a lot of people were able to use public transport which was not really an option here in the heart of Gloucestershire); the popularity of these events also meant that there were huge number of visitors and the facilities were stretched to their limit.
There is no doubt that the setting for the RHS garden show in front of Badminton House was very specialWe did enjoy seeing some of the “show gardens” but were not allowed to venture through them as had been the case at Hampton CourtAs close as I could get, fighting my way through the crowdsAn award winning “Cricket Pavilion” show garden – a six would have cleared the crowds of onlookersEveryone was considering drought tolerant plants
Although there are no major RHS gardens near to us there are a number of “partner” gardens that we can visit with our RHS membership. One of our favourites is the Yeo Valley Organic Garden close to Blagdon Lake in North Somerset, south of Bristol.
Our visit last week also corresponded to another very hot day but, at least, we didn’t have to contend with large numbers of visitors. There are some fabulous sections to this garden, which I have reported on in the past, but on our last two visits I have been fascinated that they have developed a new section (replacing “The Big Grass Bed”) which I would describe as the sort of terrain that you might see on the edge of a quarry or next to a building site. This “dry” garden is well suited to the hot conditions which we are enjoying at the moment and feature lots of plants which are drought tolerant. Clearly something all gardeners are having to consider in this part of the world as climate changes affect us.
Salvias are doing well in my garden too this yearA sneaky photo of a salvia in my garden before we set off on our trip to the Yeo Valley Organic Garden – they have been attracting bees in huge numbers.Quarry/building site?Gatekeeper butterflyDaucus carota – wild carrotDigitalis ferruginea – rusty foxglovePainted Lady butterfly on verbenaKniphofia – I like its common name of “torch lily”Painted Lady would be well camouflaged in the KnophofiaThe gravel garden is full of pollinators and butterfliesThere are great views of Blagdon Lake from the gardenMy only bird photo – very very distant cattle egret next to the lakeNow there’s a thought if you have the spaceInteresting water feature surrounded by drought tolerant flowersCommon blue damselflyWater feature to die forSouthern hawker in the bronze gardenLarge white butterfly attracted by the verbenaFlower bed in the Gravel garden
Still loads more to see but the heat was getting more intense and the garden café was irresistible: the frittata and the zero degrees Goram IPA (from the local Butcombe brewery) are both highly recommended.
We have just arrived on holiday on the south coast of England, in the county of Dorset. The area we are staying is known as the Isle of Purbeck on the Jurassic Coast. Despite its name, it is not actually an island—it is a peninsula bordered by the English Channel, Poole Harbour, and the River Frome.
Today we visited the RSPB nature reserve at Arne. Arne is situated on Poole Harbour and within the Dorset Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The landscape of heathlands, ancient oak woodlands, wetlands and mudflats is truly stunning and teeming with wildlife.
When I visit such nature reserves I can’t help thinking about the thousands of hours that volunteers have dedicated to making them such phenomenal places to visit. On our visit today we met a number of such people who helped us by telling us about osprey and white-tailed eagle projects and even helped us to spot both of these birds.
Some of the photos of our first day in this area showing the variety of wildlife:
The ruins of Corfe Castle, close to ArneTree pipit on the heathlandHeather on the heathlandEuropean herring gull catching a crabEmperor dragonflyFour-spot chaserCinnabar mothFoxgloves between heathland and woodRed admiral butterflyPainted lady butterflyUnderside of painted lady butterflyRhododendron, very attractive but quite invasiveOystercatchers on the mudflatsLittle egret flying over the estuaryBlack-headed gullShelduckGrey squirrel in woodlandSikka deer in the woodlandCommon buzzardOsprey on nestWhite-tailed eagle being mobbed by another (smaller) birdOutdoor entertainment – a poetry and song event on a Jurassic theme at our local pub, The Square and Compass, at Worth Matravers.A great way to start our holiday – the local beers and ciders were good too.
Definitely one of our favourite gardens to visit locally, Yeo Valley Organic Garden set in the beautiful countryside of the Chew Valley and adjacent to Blagdon Lake was as stunning as ever this morning. This was not a birding visit but it was pleasing to see our first hobby of the season, even if it was rather distant hunting dragonflies over the lake. There were also a few butterflies and insects to challenge my photography skills.
A distant Eurasian hobby in flightThere’s always a robin Painted lady butterfly on alliumSpeckled wood butterfly on beech hedgeRose chafersRose chafersThe wisteria were probably the stand out plants of today
Selection of photos of some of the wonderful plants in the garden:
It was definitely fresher this morning on my walk to the local park.
The annex to the main pond with the telecommunications tower on the hill at the backThe view away from Duchess Pond with the Dower House on the hill
My highlight was a jay, but I loved watching a sparrow hawk and a pair of buzzards testing each other out.
JayJay in flight in front of Lady Elizabeth Somerset’s obeliskJay in flight – down beatJay in flight – up beatLady Elizabeth Somerset’s obelisk overlooking the whole park, the obelisk was erected in 1762. It was built by Thomas Paty. It bears a Latin inscription to the Duke of Beaufort’s niece, whose death it commemorates. She died when she fell from her horse here. It is listed Grade IIView from close to the monumentA delight for walkers and runnersSparrowhawkOne of two common buzzards
The autumn colours are beginning to show and the berries on the trees look as though there will be plenty of food for many of the birds this winter.
The trees on the island beginning to show some colours of autumn
On Duchess Pond I briefly saw a little grebe (so cute but sadly no photograph) and as well as the mallards, coots and moorhens there was a grey heron and a tufted duck.
Grey heron flying over Duchess PondGrey heron landing next to the annex pondCattle looking enviously at the Duchess PondMoorhen straddling the lilies on Duchess PondTufted duck on Duchess PondMoorhen and reflectionThere are so many wood pigeons around at the momentSmall white butterfly and bindweed
Around the pond there were coal tits, greenfinch, goldfinch and chiffchaff but there is still too much cover for photographs.
What a surprise! Just as we seemed to be moving into autumn we get a late summer’s day. The French call it l’ėtė de la St Martin and we call it an Indian summer, but I’m probably getting carried away as St Martin’s Day isn’t until the 11th November. Anyway it reached 22 degrees in sunny Gloucestershire and, although I was wearing a T-shirt, I wished I was in shorts.
Slimbridge seemed to be moving on. There were flocks of greylag geese and quite a number of Canada geese too. From our favourite hide there were loads of bar-tailed godwits which were nice to see but difficult to photograph as there didn’t seem to be a focal point. A redshank amidst the group helped a little and then when they scattered from the threat of a peregrine it was easier to pick a focal point. There were some ruff too but very far off. Common snipe are some of our favourite birds but they were quite coy too.
The highlight of the day was a male grey phalarope (not as attractive as the female) but miles away so don’t hold your breath for any great images.
A brimstone greeted us on arrivalThere were several big groups of black-tailed godwits like this
What a beauty – a black swan, certainly no ugly ducklingSloes from a blackthorn – think lots of gin!Common snipe being very coyBlack-tailed godwitRuff at the back of the poolLapwings are always present hereRedshank amongst the godwitsRedshank jumping for joyGodwits take to the airCan you spot the grey phalarope? Bang in the middle of my photo with a 400 mm lens and heavily cropped. It looked just as tiny with a x60 telescope. Oh the joys of birding!
A very popular bird watching area local to us is Chew Valley Lake, just a few miles to the south of Bristol. The lake was created in the early 1950s (officially opened in 1956) to provide water for the city of Bristol. I remember at that time standing in the street waving my Union Flag. I hasten to add that this was in no way a demonstration of political affiliation the likes of which we are currently seeing a lot, I was simply lining the street with my Junior School to see Queen Elizabeth II as she made her way to open the lake. That’s what you did for entertainment in those days.
We last visited Chew Valley on May 16th when, even after a dry start to the summer, the lake was surprisingly full to the brim. We were quite surprised today to see how low the water had dropped over the summer in the very dry spell we have had. Today we had a few showers but I don’t think it would have made much a difference to the water levels.
A distant view of Chew Valley lake (from Herriot’s Bridge) with a chance of rain
Our main reason for visiting, in fact, is that a white-tailed eagle has been at the lake for the last few days. We had no luck on that score and, as a consequence of the low water levels, we didn’t see that many birds up close.
Nonetheless, we really enjoyed the scenery and enjoyed another day birding.
The view from Stratford hide with a peregrine at 2 o’clock (in front of the reeds) and another at 8 o’clock (next to the tree stump)A sparrowhawk flying over Herriot’s Bridge.A hobby from Herriot’s BridgeThe view from Herons’ Green – this was totally covered in water in MayA glossy ibis from Herons’ Green and a greenshank to the leftLittle egrets at Herons’ Green BayYou can see how dry it is beneath the black-headed gull in flightA small copper butterfly and a painted lady butterfly at Herriot’s BridgeWe were told the white-tailed eagle was on the island at the back of my photo – I know they are big as we have seen them in Scotland but I don’t think even a very good telescope would have helped At least we got to see some birds up close – here a cormorant at Herriot’s Bridge… and here an African Grey Parrot whose owner brings it here regularly to take the air – this is England after all!
We managed to get to visit the RHS Garden Rosemoor near Great Torrington today.
They were busy getting ready for their annual flower show which starts tomorrow. That and the dull weather meant that there were not too many people around, although more than my photos suggest – hoorah!
Hope you enjoy the photos as much as we enjoyed the garden (in spite of a short rain shower).
We saw and heard a fair number of birds (common buzzard, carrion crow, goldfinches, gold crest, blue tit, chaffinch, stock dove, wood pigeon, great spotted woodpecker, house martins and swallows) but especially enjoyed the trees and shrubs.
GoldfinchesSwallowHouse MartinSwallowMeadow sweetThere’s an insect in there among the grassesGreat spotted woodpecker
Photos from a slightly different morning walk on the Stafford Barton Estate in Devon before it got too hot for us with temperatures reaching 30C in the afternoon.
The peacock joined us for our breakfast coffeeGoldfinches waiting for their opportunitySpeckled wood butterfly in the woodsScandinavian style log cabin under construction on the estate with its lovely sedum roofEmperor dragonflyMid-air collision averted just in timeEmperor dragonfly heading straight for meMust be great seeing the seasons change hereEmperor dragonflyDon’t know much about these – water boatmen I presumeDamselfliesFortunately plenty of shade on the way homeCommon buzzard showing us the way
For 47 years of my working life as a teacher I had to take my holidays with the majority of the population in July and August. So now, in my retirement, we rarely go away at this time of the year. However, it’s such an exceptionally wonderful summer that we could’t resist another trip when we saw a cottage advertised on a private estate in north Devon. It’s a beautiful part of the country and only just over a 100 miles from home. The fact that there is a major RHS garden just down the road was an added attraction. So far we haven’t visited RHS Garden Rosemoor as we are so enjoying the peace and quiet of the gardens, the heaths and the woodland of the estate and visiting a couple of local nature reserves.
Stafford Barton in north DevonStafford Barton’s peacockOur accommodation – the Old StablesA very warm Devon welcome with cream sponge and a selection of local cidersVery comfortable and cosy inside
The estate took on a different tone on our second full day here when the owners opened the gardens to the local villages and we were treated to live music, local ales and ciders and cream teas on the lawns. What is there not to like about all this?
Getting ready for the garden partyThe gardens were looking spectacular for the garden partyThe mad hatter’s tea party before the garden party startedEnglish country life at its very best
This is such a special place that I wanted to keep a memory of the estate and so have prepared a separate page which you can share by following this link to Stafford Barton Estate August 2025
Stafford Barton between Dolton and Iddesleigh (where we had lunch in the Duke of York pub on our first day and where I last stayed 55 years ago- now immortalised in Michael Morpurgo’s “War Horse”)
As for the nature opportunities: so far I have been able to practice my camera skills on the house martins and swallows but have had some difficulty capturing the large flocks (a charm indeed!) of goldfinches which swoop down to gorge on the seed heads in the lovely meadows which are left for the wildlife. There has been plenty of wildlife to photograph and keep me busy on our walks too.
House martinHouse martinSwallowSwallowHouse martinHouse martinSwallowGoldfinch gorging on seed headsGoldfinch beating a hasty retreatA very small section of a charm of goldfinchesBuzzard on our walk through the estateBuzzard calling loudly Holly blue butterfly on our visit to Halsdon Nature ReservePainted lady butterfly at Stafford BartonCommon darter dragonfly at Stafford BartonSpeckled wood butterfly at Stafford BartonGate keeper butterfly at Stafford BartonNo deer to be seen yet but plenty of signs of wildlife on our walk at Stafford BartonA bucolic scene at Stafford BartonClear paths through the woodlands … and across the heathUnderwing of painted lady butterfly at Stafford BartonScarlet pimpernel at Stafford BartonSo many insects attracted by the wild flowers on the Stafford Barton estateThe view from our porchOur walk on the third dayA section of the quarry at Meeth Quarry nature reserveSmall white Butterly at Meeth Quarry nature reserveCommon blue damselfly at Meeth Quarry nature reserveSpeckled wood butterfly at Meeth Quarry nature reserveBeautiful heather in full colour everywhere at Meeth Quarry nature reserveLittle grebe at Meeth Quarry nature reserveGreat crested grebe with chicks on its back at Meeth Quarry nature reserveTime for a swimCanada geese at Meeth Quarry nature reserveCormorants at Meeth Quarry nature reserveCentaury at Meeth Quarry nature reserveDevil’s bit scabious at Meeth Quarry nature reserveBeautiful demoiselle at Meeth Quarry nature reserve
That’s three day’s done with three more to go. I thought I wouldn’t get a chance to do a blog during the holiday as the only fault I could find with our accommodation was that the broad band was slow and yet three days in and the owner has got BT Open Reach to upgrade it! What service!
The WWT (Wildlife and Wetlands Trust) is a growing, global community of nature lovers who do brilliant things for nature, especially encouraging young people to engage with nature. However, we visit WWT Slimbridge in the school holidays with some trepidation as we know it is going to be packed with very noisy, excitable children. Yet today (as most times) we were able to visit certain parts of the reserve in relative peace and quiet. The only children we came across were well-behaved and already enthusiastic nature lovers, generally accompanied by knowledgeable and encouraging grandparents.
This is the time of the year when many “birders” turn to butterflies but today there was plenty to keep us engaged and the only butterflies of note were red admirals. We had a good walk down to the Severn Estuary and , although the tide was really too high to see much on the water, we saw plenty en route.
Red admirals are ubiquitous at the moment in this part of the countrySlimbridge is famous for its Bewick and Whooper swans in winter but today there was a black swan.The juxtaposition of this little egret to the black swan was quite splendidA young lapwingWho says we only have LBJs in the UK? Goldfinch having a drink.We are lucky to see so many egrets in this part of the world these days.Little egret in flightLapwing in flightA proud mum tufted duck… and one of her ducklings… and another (only because they are so cute)Clever planting attracts many beesI wish the achillea in my garden was as bright as this cousinOne of five green sandpipersGreen sandpiperGreen sandpiperSand Martin down on the estuaryThe light was poor down by the estuary but I could just capture these barn swallowsCommon sandpiper on the Severn EstuaryGoldfinch in flightKingfisher with a small appetiserKingfisherKingfisherKingfisherKingfisherKingfisherPied/white wagtailPied/white wagtailsBlack-headed gullBlack-headed gullGoldfinch
A spoonbill, common cranes and curlews (heard but not seen) all too far for my lens.
There was even a lovely exhibition of very accomplished textile wall hangings
Martin's Bird Blog & Nature Photos 