Dawn Chorus - Sunday 1 May 2022

Gainsborough Area Group joined the 2022 International Dawn Chorus Celebration on Sunday 1 May with a walk led by Tony Towers through Mercer Wood in Gainsborough. It was cool and grey when we met at 5:30am but nevertheless nineteen species were recorded singing thanks to Tony’s expertise in picking out individual songs. 

A small urban woodland managed by volunteers, it is well frequented by local residents, but at 5:30am we had the site to ourselves, and enjoyed the signs of Spring, with cow parsley spilling onto the paths and the trees sporting their fresh green leaves. Summer migrants had returned, blackcap, chiffchaff and willow warbler were present, and hopefully the cuckoo will soon be heard there again. We thank Tony for an interesting start to the day.

Wildlife Photography during lockdown - Wednesday 20 April 2022

Des Lloyd's talk was illustrated with photographs taken locally during and after “lockdown” with all the constraints that it entailed.

We were treated to a stunning sequence of birds that visit his garden – close-up images of among many others, great, blue, coal and long-tailed tits revealing how handsome these birds really are, common though they be. 

On his local patch, there had been a decline in wildlife, and particularly numbers of hares, possibly due to illegal hare coursing, and/or disease, but he had some brilliant images – including of birds such as skylarks and yellowhammers, rarely seen close up. As regulations eased, he concentrated on a nearby field, that had lain fallow for some years. From his hide set up in the long grass about 40 metres from the hedgerow to one side, he patiently waited to see what came near, after his initial visits suggested that foxes were present in that area of hedgerow and possibly barn owls were quartering the fields and nearby drainage dykes.

Patience was richly rewarded – the warren housed a family of foxes, and one by one they posed unknowingly for a splendid series of photos. To his amazement owls too found the hide a convenient perch, firstly a barn owl, presumably attracted by the rich pickings in the fallow field, so he set up a perching post about 20 metres from the hide. He was soon rewarded with a barn owl which became a regular visitor. Kestrels were seen in the area - an old tree stump was set up as a feeding station for them. They visited on an infrequent basis but allowed some good photo opportunities. The greatest prize though was a long-eared owl that joined the throng – what amazing photos resulted.

Once he could, Des ventured further afield and shared his shots of a black-browed albatross which turned up off the Yorkshire coast, a very long way from its usual haunts in the Southern hemisphere. It has an 8-foot wingspan.

The final sequence focussed on a brood of kingfishers which Des watched for 35 days from hatching to fledging – altogether a wonderful evening.  

Find out more about the Gainsborough Area Group and their events.