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A week in the Derbyshire Peak District was full of surprises, who knew that once wallabies roamed the high ground. Alas, that's no longer the case but it didn't stop me looking nevertheless.

I treated myself to a rare workshop day out with the talented Ben Hall who is a master at creating photographic masterpieces, showing local wildlife in it's natural habitat.In full dramatic and techno-coloured fashion may I add.





I never realised that dippers could sing, although I knew they were distant relatives to the wren. The red grouse wore comical expressions and the pipits were tenacious catching all manner of insects for a hidden brood. Despite the wet weather which was to be expected I had a great day out!

At least little owls seem to be doing okay, despite the dramatic increase of raptors like buzzards and kites.

Being diurnal probably helps as they can feed both day and night. Their muted plumage makes the perfect camouflage while hiding in a hole in a large sycamore or under the beams in one of the farm cart sheds.



I wondered where all the house sparrows had gone and why the house martins had moved out of the yard, they may be little in size but little owls are tenacious hunters.

I think it's a natural tendency for them to always look grumpy though!

It's been a very slow start to the year for me, not least given the horrible weather and a reluctance to prise myself out of bed early in the morning.

There is never any guarantee that my favourite wildlife will make an appearance but I try to keep the faith, even when I return home with a blank camera card.

Sometimes though I do get lucky when the magic comes to me and that early morning start seems justifiable.

Just a week old and this little foal is a fast learner and even faster on his feet. I was very privileged to be invited to meet him when so young and also being allowed so close to him by his beautiful mother.



I am pretty certain that as well as getting taller he will be faster on those long legs before very long.

With the weather being so depressingly damp, the thought of trudging through the muddy tracks to my favourite spot to photograph hares hasn't really been motivation to get me out of bed first thing in the morning.

But with the joy of a second dry day in succession I thought I would start this year's hare fest. Surely they would be as pleased to see me as I them?

Alas the hares didn't get the memo as apart from a couple of early ramblers it was decidedly quiet but at least this years' hare campaign has begun.

Maybe, the hare social media channels will spread the word that it's time to come out and play.

I am just back from a rare sortie out of Norfolk to the awesome Yorkshire Dales. Majestic scenery with so much wildlife spotting and photographic opportunities but sadly lacking in fine weather.

I went equipped with a bag of hazelnuts, in the hope of enticing a red squirrel to conveniently pose for the camera but I certainly wasn't expecting such close encounters as I was lucky enough to have.

Shame about the rain, the muddy conditions and the light but what a treat to photograph such charismatic little creatures.

Driven in by those early winter storms, there doesn't seem to be a shortage of short eared owls this year. Having arrived at the coast before Christmas they have now dispersed and established temporary territories inland.

My thanks go to Ian, a friend, neighbour and fellow wildlife photographer enthusiast, who researched where the best locality was to find the visiting owls.



Hunting during the day made for no shortage of opportunities to see the owls but given the slightly unpredictable weather conditions, it was as usual a test being in the right place at the right time. Seemingly unfazed by a line of photographers, the owls hunted and quartered the fields without one worried glance our way from those huge amber eyes.

Grey Squirrels are just too clever!

Try as I might to put them off the scent of a peanut, left for a woodpecker or hungry blue tit, it doesn't take them long to find the hidden treasure.

Not only are they very intelligent but also very tenacious ..nothing was going to deter this particular squirrel from finding a peanut!

The feeders are very busy at the moment with copious numbers of Great Tit, Blue Tit, Coal Tit and Marsh Tit.




Despite the odd squabble from time to time they seem very well organised waiting their turn, being considered about the queue behind them and not hogging the feeders.

The finches are a little slower coming back and the woodpeckers have only just started to feed on the fat balls. It's either an indication the mild temperatures have provided food reserves else where or more likely the eight squirrels who visit the garden have put everything else off!

Despite the trend for ecards and the move away from glitter and sparkle of Christmas cards, I was very intrigued to find that lovely friends and family sent me more cards with the traditional Christmas robin on them than ever before.

Even I had moved onto other festive subject matter but I guess you can always count on a robin of brightening up the garden at this festive time of year. Shame that the weather has brought us rain, rain and more rain rather than a little light dusting of snow.

Amongst the many grey seals that are now in residence along the Norfolk coastline some sweet little harbour seals sit quite happily amongst the big beach master bulls.

Born earlier in the summer, most have lost or have nearly lost their baby coats and will soon be grey, sleek and streamlined ready for serious seawater excursions.





They are cautiously curious but very photogenic and come in a variety of colours.

Just when you think wildlife should be winding down for the winter exciting developments are happening along our coastline.

Grey Seals are all now appearing in numbers to give birth to this years brood and then eventually breed again for next year. 2022 was apparently a bumper year with 4000 seal pup births but there is no telling just yet whether this number can be beaten or if the population has now peaked.



Susceptible to the high tides and stormy conditions grey seal pups are very ill equipped to be in water, despite their furry coats. Hopefully the worst of this years storms are now behind us but as the fisherman tell me there are only two types of weather to be had this time of year.

It's either raining or it's going to rain!



Meanwhile, bull seals are already establishing their territorial pitches and obviously saving their strength and energy for what will come in the next few weeks. Whilst the expectant females are taking every opportunity to relax and bask in the sun.

All the rain we have been getting is having a very positive effect on the amount of toadstools appearing in the woods this year.

Like little miniature umbrellas or parasols popping open at the first hint of a fine drizzle they are everywhere at the moment.




Sadly, the wet weather does mean their full splendour doesn't last for long and some practically melt before my very eyes. Whilst they don't move at speed like my other preferred wildlife species, in order to capture them just in the right light in between the rain showers, does pile on the sense of urgency.

I have had a few more visitors to the garden perch set up today, although I still am working on the wrens and the coal tits, its great getting a few different faces down the lens.

In between the rain showers I am trying to get back to basics with the garden birds. Now in full plumage once again and looking rather colourful it's my favourite time of year to photograph them.

Having said that I am focusing on two of my favourites at the moment, the ubiquitous wren and the irrepressible coal tit. Whilst neither of them are very colourful, they do have bags of personality.

It's that time of year when the deer are rutting and heads are banging at Holkham. Although sadly I didn't get much fighting action on camera this year I did have one or two close encounters with curious stags looking down my camera lens.



I can't imagine the headache all that antler clashing could give the stags but it doesn't put them off. Maybe the weather will allow me a second visit but it's a very late autumn so far.

I think our garden furniture has spent more time under cover this summer than in the sunshine. It's a good thing that the covers have offered protection not just to the seats but also to the amphibians that visit the patio.

Sometimes by lifting the covers I find lots of toads, all different sizes, on the odd occasion we get newts but this this morning a lifting of the cover revealed a very, large, common frog.

It sat for a while on the patio and threw a few poses in front of the camera before it inevitably made a leap for freedom.

So imagine you are a young hare, left by your mum for most of the day to fend for yourself. Despite all her advice and instructions left, it's inevitable that curiosity gets the better of a young hare.

"Stay inside the fence in the safety of the asparagus and I will find you" she probably said! However, just to contradict things the farmer probably would say "Stay outside the fence and off my asparagus beds"

So it would seem plausible that with youthful hare logic being applied, to keep both mum and farmer happy, that you just keep popping back and forth under the fence.

Shame then that someone with a camera has rumbled onto the fun.

It's not very often that I choose to photograph injured animals or certainly ones that have some form of physical disability. From time to time I do see a hare with injuries usually sustained from bouts of boxing and fighting, it's heartbreaking to see but not necessarily life shortening.

Hares are fully equipped with sharp incisors and a powerful neck should they wishing to bite down on another in battle. Cheek teeth in the lower jaw can be used for vicious biting and tearing of tender ear lobes. A powerful punch or kick from big feet often cause eye injuries. Brambles and wire fencing also causes horrific injuries to wildlife during high speed chases.



But here is a story of a happy bonding between two injured hares I have been enchanted to observe over the last couple of weeks: Male 1 obviously has at some point lost its right eye completely. The wound has healed and the hare seems strong and fit.
Male 2 has suffered a serious blow to its left eye. Again able to feed, forage and fend for itself and seems fine.



Nature and maybe a little sprinkling of fate has somehow enabled these two one eyed hares to find each other. They have bonded to become a pair of hares with one working pair of eyes between them. Time and time again I have seen them running up the field towards me, working in partnership, ensuring that one has its good eye to the left, the other to the right.

They must obviously use their other strong senses of smell and hearing to make up for having a blind side to danger but isn't that remarkable that two hares have become a carer for each other.

Despite the very early hour the temperature was already into the low 20's and this little vixen was obviously hungry.

Coming out of cover from the barley field she was surrounded by 6 or more hares, pheasants and rabbits but she was clearly in plan sight. There were just to many pairs of eyes on her to even try and make an attempt on getting a meal.



At one point I thought she going to come and join me behind the camera but she at the very least encouraged the hares to run up the field for a couple of action shots.