Month off to a flyer!!!!

What a super start to the month, two more Little Owl territories located tonight that now takes my overall tally to 122! I was checking out site No 18 over at Hinckley, only 1 bird heard calling there (of unknown age), after a good half hours wait I decided that it wasn't going to show for any photo's so it was time to move on. I'd only driven for a few minutes down the lane when I chanced upon another superb looking area that just oozed owls! Open fields/paddocks, boarded by a nice thick hedgerow, loads of low fence posts and a couple of very nice looking mature Ash trees. I sat quietly giving the general area the once over when I heard an owl calling from beyond the hedgerow, I couldn't believe my luck! A 30 minute wait then produced the goods as it showed. No images were possible due to the dam branches in the way but hey ho another new site!

During my rounds I stopped off at Site No 22 near to Whetstone Gorse, although very distant both adults were out and sitting in the nest tree getting some late evening sun. Can you see them both in this image?  

I then moved over to the adjacent paddock at site No 22 where the juvs are normally located and true to form they were there again, all 3 of them! The light by now was pretty crappy but I did managed this one distant effort of one of the juvs sitting in a xmas tree.

The next new site (No 122) was located at Whetstone Gorse West, here I was driving along a real narrow lane when an owl landed on top of a telegraph pole 20 yards in front of me. It was calling out loud and making a right old racket, then to my astonishment it was joined by a second bird!, both adults. They then vanished as quick as they had appeared, I've previously checked this area time and time again and nothing, just goes to show how secretive they really can be.

Not a bad evenings owling, with birds also being seen at site  96 x 1, site 39 x 1 and site 53 x 2 making a tally of 13, hope that number doesn't prove to be unlucky!!!!!!

Fluff Ball

Not much to shout about this weekend in terms of Little owl's sightings, my intentions were to have a nice early start on Saturday. This didn't happen......I think the drowning of my sorrows the night before took its toll, too many toasts to our gloriously useless England Football Team (what a bunch of TO#*ERS!!!!).

After the late start (and still throbbing head) a nice lazy day was planned, but not as lazy as it turned out! I went over to my site 33 at the local quarry. My intention was to hopefully get some adult images bringing in a variety of food for the juveniles. I was in situ and in my hide for 11.30am, after half an hour a juvenile appeared and sat at the nest entrance.  Great the plan was coming together, all I needed now was the adults to appear...........at 7.30pm I packed up, no adults showed after a wait of EIGHT hours!!!!!!

All I had to show for a very loooooooooong day was this "fluff ball" of a juvenile Little Owl.

  

Sunday found me checking out a few local sites with the hope of seeing some "out of the nest" juveniles. First call was at site 53 near to Countesthorpe, here a juv was spotted almost immediately sitting in a cavity below the nest hole.  

During the morning another 6 sites were visited but all to no avail, no more juveniles were sighted but en route a few adult birds were seen but all too distant for any decent images.

A single bird was located sunning itself at site 77.

Another single bird was seen out hunting from the posts at site 105.

Hopefully the lack of juvenile sighting will be put right in the week to come, that is if they haven't all gone into hiding and don't want to come out to play...........just like our football team!!!!! 

En route to 75.

Today found me being escorted by Richard Pegler, another photographer and birding supremo from the north west of the county. Richard and I had a day out owling on my patch at the back end of last year and since then he too has also got the little owl bug! He has been doggedly searching around the area where he lives and now has a very creditable portfolio of 9 unique little owl sites, you can catch up with Richard, his owls and many other bird related items at Peglerbirding. 

Anyway, today was a little different rather than go owling all day we decided to spend the morning over at Eyebrook reservoir to see if the ospreys had returned back after their long migration from Africa. 

On the way over to Eyebrook Richard was telling me he hadn't seen a little owl for a few weeks so I made a slight detour to see if my favourite owl "scabby" was showing (see my very 1st post). As we pulled up he was there, sitting at the nest hole entrance posing for the cameras!

Scabby the owl, Site 16, Kilby - Newstead Farm.

As we drove down the approach lane to Eyebrook I pulled over and pointed out to Richard that the isolated oak tree in the field was home to a pair of little owls, after a bit of straining we picked out the pair in the tree.  

2 little owls, can you see them?

When we finally arrived at the reservoir we parked up at the bridge and started to survey the surrounding area, there wasn't much showing (not a single wader of any description ) this wasn't surprising though as after the recent heavy rain the Eyebrook was so heavily swollen it had covered the mudflats.

 

Eyebrook Reservoir from the bridge (into the sun!). 

With nothing of any note showing in or around the waters edge we turned to the sky, this is where all the action was! Within a minute or two we picked up several buzzards, a red kite and our target for the morning, a returning osprey. As the image below shows it was quite distant but still good to see.

A long distant traveller.

Eventually we lost sight of the osprey so we moved along the reservoir to the Stoke Dry car park, here we bumped into John Turner (whom I went out with last weekend). John had earlier had some very good views of the osprey and you can see his excellent picture by clicking on this link birdguides.

After a good morning watching the raptors at Eyebrook it was now back down to business of little owls on my local patch. I wanted to take Richard over to my site 75 as the pair there had been showing really well recently. On route we stopped off at site 31, Crossways Farm. Because I was driving I wasn't able to take any images here but I managed to position the landrover in such a way Richard was able to capture some of the action, click here to see  Peglerbirding.

Still on our way to site 75 we went by site 53, here we pulled over and had some distant views of the little owl feeding on the ground.

Site 53, Countesthorpe - Soars Lodge Farm - Site B.

We finally arrived at site 75 and true to form both of the resident owls were located with-in minutes. Here we both managed to get some images of the very showy male bird.

Show off.

Just before we departed the male owl joined his partner and again some pleasing images were obtained.

Site 75, Peatling Parva - Preistlands

Not a bad day at all, I think the final tally was; Little Owl - 10, Red Kite - 1, Buzzard 11, a few Kestrels and a single Osprey.

Masters of Disgise

Nipped out for an hour or so this morning, over at Countesthorpe I picked up this bird sunning itself in the middle of a pollarded willow............can you see him?

Site 53, Countesthopre - Soars Lodge (site B)

Willoughby Waterleys was the next destination, and after drawing a blank and seeing nothing at 3 other near locations this site provided the goods. I had an inclin to investigate an old apple tree and this proved to be a great hunch as a single LO was located low down in a crevice. He was enjoying what little warmth he could get from the winter sun in between the snow flurries. Very pleased it wasn't a "fruitless" visit as I hadn't previously managed a LO image from this site;-)

Site 60, Willoughby Waterleys - West End Farm .