Despite the pandemic, 2021 delivered some noteworthy firsts. In this first blog, of my first website, I look back at the most memorable firsts each month had to offer.
January
January was a pretty unhappy month. The world was in the midst of its second lockdown while rates of COVID soared.
But then something wonderful happened. It snowed. And while the snow didn't last for long, it was glorious for the few hours it did. Thankfully, it took place on a Sunday, meaning it was possible to photograph it.
My other January 'first' was that we counted over 20 different bird species for the first time when participating in the RSBP's big annual bird count. These species included all the usual bird table visitors, as well as some noteworthy migrants, like the redwing pictured here. (#Winter #snow #richmondpark #redwing)
February
February rivalled January as one of the year's most frustrating months, with lockdown continuing and forcing the cancellation of my long-awaited Scotland photography trip.
To compensate, I decided to raise my back garden bird feeding game by installing a shallow wildlife pond and adding wax worms and home-made suet cake to my standard birdseed mix.
The results paid off. By the end of the February, I had blackcaps, long-tailed tits, gold crests, nuthatches lining up at the bird feeders. And for the first time in my life, I persuaded a robin to eat from my hand. While it wasn't Scotland, it kept me entertained (#gardenbirds #blackcap #birdfeeder #squirrel)
March
March introduced two firsts to my bird species life list: the little bunting and the rustic bunting. Both birds are rare winter migrants that sometimes visit the British
Isles when overshooting their migration from south Asia to Siberia. Prior to their arrival, I did not even know little buntings existed.
Another March 'first' was a half-decent photo of a Dartford Warbler. After trying and failing miserably in 2020, I was very pleased to spot this male singing away just as the frost started to melt on a crisp, but cold, March morning. (#dartfordwarbler #Thursley #littlebunting #rusticbunting #lifelist)
April
The month of April was full of firsts. The first first was finally being able to get a shot of a gold crest in focus, after trying for several years. The secret of my success (which was still very fleeting) was being to identify it by its song and then photograph it while it sang away, unaware of my presence.
My second first actually was the trigger for an avalanche of firsts, as it was the first time I went to the Elmley Nature Reserve.
Elmley is the ideal habitat for many migrant birds, and on my first visit, I quickly ticked off four new species to my life list: the cattle egret, the corn bunting, the yellow wagtail and the English partridge. Every time I have visited since has always been a great variety of birds to see. (#Elmley #yellowwagtail #goldcrest #meadow #marshland #migrantbirds)
May
Two noteworthy firsts occurred in the month of May: 1) I saw and photographed a nightingale and 2) I persuaded a nuthatch to eat out of my hand.
Seeing and photographing the nightingale was particularly momentous, because it meant that nightingales had returned to our local common after an absence of six years. The bird's return was due to local conservation efforts involving the woodland encroachment of the nightingale's breeding territory.
The second first was when our nuthatch starting taking wax worms from my hand. This was particularly fun, because it was clear that the nuthatch was competing with the robin for the worms. After a brief period of daily squabbles, the two species decided to co-operate by taking turns. A great tit also tried to get into the game, but was just not tough enough. So he changed his strategy by waiting patiently until after the other two birds had their fill and then followed me into my hide, where he had his own secret stash. (#nuthatch #gardenbirds #springwatch #nightingale #bookhamcommon)
June
The garden feeding frenzy continued throughout the month of June, as more birds species brought their babies to the feeder once they fledged their nests. As fun as this was, I was more interested in what was happening on the ground. A little mouse had started visiting the feeder, making it possible to photograph him. This was a very important first, as it fulfilled one of 2021's New Year's resolutions to find and photograph a wood mouse outside of the confines of a cage or a trap.
A second noteworthy first in the month of June was an impromptu visit to Iceland to see the irruption of the Fagradalsfjall volcano. This was a jaw dropping experience and the start of many more fantastic firsts to come. (#bluetit #woodmouse #greattit #Iceland #Fagradalsfjall #aerialphotography)
July
July 1st marked the second half of our trip to Iceland that was devoted to watching birds. Iceland in the summer is a bird lovers' paradise, where I saw and photographed over 40 different species and added 12 to my life list. While many of these birds can be seen in the UK during the winter months, Iceland is one of the few place where they can be photographed up close in their spectacular breeding plumage.
I hope to devote a future blog to the birds of Iceland. In the meantime, my Iceland gallery can be seen here. (#Iceland #LakeMytvan #redneckedphalaropes)
August
August was a quiet month, but nevertheless delivered an important life-list first -- the first time I ever saw and photographed a willow warbler. The willow warbler can be distinguished from the chaffinch by its tell-tale pink feet and bright yellow plumage. It's a relatively common bird, but difficult to see, so I was pretty chuffed when this beautiful character popped in front of my lens, as if asking to be photographed. (#willowarbler #birdwatching)
September
September was a big month for me, on both a personal and a photographic level. Personally, it was important because my daughter got married. It was amazing that this finally happened, after the wedding was previously postponed twice on account of the pandemic. Sadly, we could not celebrate this special day with as many people as we had hoped, but it was nevertheless a beautiful event and thankfully, everyone remained COVID-free. (#wedding #COVID #marriage)
Photographically, September was momentous because I achieved the Royal Photographic Society's Associated distinction with my successful Nature Print Panel. I describe this experience in greater detail here, and further information about my panel and other successful ARPS submissions can be found in the RPS Nature Group's newsletter here.
My third September first was finding and photographing a whinchat. These pretty little members of the chat family rarely stay in the UK for the entire year, so finding one and photographing it was a real thrill. (#whinchat #Farlingtonmarshes #migratingbirds)
October
October was a very busy month work-wise, making it difficult to find time for photography. Hence, there were not any 'firsts' for the month of October.
However, I did manage to make it to the annual rut in Richmond Park early October. Although rutting activity was low in comparison to previous years, there were nevertheless plenty of opportunities for good photographs. (#richmondpark #reddeerrut #ruttingseason #casanova #rut #reddeer #stag)
November
November was truly a remarkable month, because my husband and I became grandparents for the first time. Little Nikolai arrived on the 14th of November during a prescheduled family zoom. (#baby #grandson #babynikolai)
November also marked the first time I tried selling photographic prints at a local craft fair. My 'soft launch' took place at the Shopfest Craft fair at the Denbies Wine Estate with the aim of testing whether my photos sell. I am happy to say that they did, so hopefully there will be more fairs in 2022. (#craftfair #denbieswineestate #shopfest)
The third noteworthy November first was being able to see and photograph a bittern at the London Wetland Centre. Bitterns are highly secretive members of the heron family, and were virtually extinct in the UK in the 1990's. Bitterns are making a comeback, however, due to conservation efforts aimed at restoring the dense reed beds where they like to live. (#bittern #londonwwt #londonwetlandcentre #reedbeds #conservation).
My final November milestone was that not one, but three of my photographs received awards. The first was Little Owl in the Woods, which received a bronze distinction from the Society of International Nature and Wildlife Photographers for the 2022 Bird Photographer of the Year in Aid of the RSPB competition. This was a nice surprise, as I originally had intended to enter five images, but four failed to upload properly. So I was very pleased when my sole entry received some recognition. (#SINWP, #RSPB, #competition, #bronze).
The second image receiving recognition, was Red Fox Smirking, which was awarded the Sue Sibley judges' award at the Surrey Photographic Associations' 2021 print competition. (#Surreyphotographicassociation #SPA #Suesibley #fox #redfox)
I was also very pleased when my second entry, Barn Swallow Feeding Chick received a perfect score of 15. (#swallow #barnswallow)
December
An early thrill at the beginning of December was being able to spend time at the outdoor hide at the Warnham Nature reserve. Many bird species were returning to the bird table, including a pair of beautiful bullfinches. I managed to get a few photos I was pleased with, but my ultimate goal is to photograph these birds in the snow. (#warnham #warnhamnaturereserve #bullfinch)
A second thrill was returning to USA for the first time in 22 months. I came for multiple reasons, including visiting my grandson and attending my brother's wedding. (#Milwaukee #downywoodpecker #lakemichigan)
The final noteworthy 'first' of the month of December was launching my website. This was a much more intensive project than I originally assumed, so was very pleased to have accomplished it by the end of the year.
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