Rock-Bunting-20090506, originally uploaded by Paradise in Portugal.
I adore Rock Buntings and we’re lucky enough to have them nesting in the garden – so why did I feel it was necessary to trek to the top of a mountain for this shot? No reason really, the shot was there and sometimes one simply doesn’t see the beauty we have on our own doorstep ….
Melodious-Warbler-20090507, originally uploaded by Paradise in Portugal.
This is a species that a lot of people like to see when they come to the Quinta. They arrive back late from migration, typically getting in during the first week in May, one of our last arrivals, but they make their prescence felt from day 1 by singing from any available perch.
Linnet-20090506, originally uploaded by Paradise in Portugal.
Friends and family will know of my quest for a decent shot of a male Linnet in breeding plumage …. Well, this shot’ll do for the present and I’ll keep trying for that one I know is waiting for me somewhere!
Kingfisher-20090511, originally uploaded by Paradise in Portugal.
Another shot that I’ve been longing to take – I just must get closer next time and wait, wait, wait …..
Corn-Bunting-20090504, originally uploaded by Paradise in Portugal.
It’s funny how one’s always learning; I see these birds every day – I mean EVERY day – and always thought they were seed eaters and nothing else …. until I took this photo!
Another favourite, not just because of its coloring but because it heralds the start of the summer. They arrive in our neck of the woods regular as clockwork within 36 hours of 1st April and leave again 31st August. These individuals are not from my local group but from a colony I’ve been watching about an hour and a half’s drive away on the Plains.
