April 2022 Viewfinder
Returning species encourages a change of focus in this month’s Opposite View Wildlife Photography newsletter.
I am weird; it’s official. My friend confirmed what I already knew; I should be more excited that spring is in full swing.
Don’t get me wrong - I relish the thaw of winter and the new life and rejuvenation that comes at this time of year. I just also crave the colder weather or, more accurately, what the wintry conditions do to my local patch. The shrinking vegetation combined with the low sun reveals and illuminates the wildlife that calls the burn and meadow near my flat home. I particularly miss watching the foxes frolicking in the snow and basking in the heat from the sun on freezing days (more on that below).
That said, I am grateful for the moments with them earlier this year and love posting the resulting images and videos on my channels. It was sharing one such photo of one of my foxy stars, Smokey, on Instagram that led to a film company contacting me to ask if there was an active den on my patch. When I read their email, the initial rush of pride and excitement dissipated as I realised my response would have to explain that all the foxes I watch seem to be dogs. I’ve scoured my images and trail camera footage and have only heard one distant scream from a vixen. While I go out with my camera most days full of hope, I have to admit that any sighting of the foxes will be a rare event until the cold weather returns.
So yes, I am the weirdo who misses the winter, but that just means it is time to shift my focus from the foxes to other urban subjects. The lesser black-backed gulls will soon return to the rooftops (check out my recent blog on gull feeding behaviour below). The kingfishers will become azure blurs as they hammer up and down the river with hungry beaks to feed. The swallows will soon be skimming the pristine grass carpet of the bowling green. I may miss pointing my lens at certain species, but one of the many benefits of photographing nature is knowing that it won’t be long before the cycle repeats itself and the opportunities arise again. There is also plenty to look forward to in the coming months, and I will continue to share these encounters with you.
Talking of returning, I will leave you with an image of a bird I thought I had missed out on photographing. I captured this black guillemot last weekend at a location where I had spotted a pair a year ago. I had assumed that I had lost my opportunity to photograph this species, as I had left my camera at home on the day of the first sighting due to appalling weather conditions. I needn't have worried. This year, they returned. This time, I was ready.
Best wishes,
Rhiannon
Opposite View Wildlife Photography
Through my lens
Mussel bound - why the fate of herring gulls is tied to the fortunes of marine life
It’s that time of year again. Sadly, I don’t mean spring and strolling through sunny days with birdsong ringing in my ears and the signs of new life all around me. No, I am talking about the proliferation of news articles about “nuisance gulls”. But not all gulls are convicted chip thieves. With some gull colonies now preferring to forage for natural food rather than feeding on our waste, we must better manage our coastal waters to save the Red listed herring gull.
Species spotlight
House sparrow - the gregarious garden visitor
The humble house sparrow has been crowned top of the UK (bird) table in the RSPB’s Big Garden Birdwatch for the 19th year in a row. I say humble but this bold little bird always succeeds in making its presence felt. During the pandemic, I felt comforted by the sparrows buzzing about in the tree outside the window of my makeshift office. This species must become a household name again.
And finally…
Chris Packham is sharing an image or video of a fox every day across his social media channels to celebrate these often misunderstood mammals. We can all join in by tagging our posts with #FoxOfTheDay.
Today's #FoxOfTheDay from me is sun-worshipping Sonny!
I captured this video on a freezing day back at the start of March. If you look closely you can see Sonny's breath and the steam rising from his coat.
Don’t forget that you can watch more videos, including the camera trap clips from my time in the Lake District and lots of footage of my urban foxes, on my YouTube channel.
Please subscribe to my videos to keep up to date with all the antics on my local patch.
Keep in touch
Thanks for reading this! If you have any comments or questions, opportunities for photography or if you would like to use any of my images, please leave a comment. I’d love to hear from you.
You can also follow me on: