Top dogs

No wolves on this trip, but again some great times with canids,

The best of the encounters were with coyotes, but we had one day when foxes seemed to be all around - maybe not as close as this one in 2018 ………

but with a big lens you could still get some nice shots.

One even crept into my long lens flora shot. (What do you mean mis-focus).

The coyotes though supplied the closest and longest encounters - some of them are just so accommodating.

One was exploring a small island near the road, but I felt didn't make the most of the chance.  I hadn't realised how close it was when I got out of the Bombardier and in hindsight I wish I'd grabbed the 100-400 to allow a bit more space.  Still you can feel the apprehension before it walked the log.

My favourite was the one we watched hunting in a meadow.  Being in one of the more thermal areas there were patches of vegetation peeking through the snow which added a bit of colour, and I just loved the way it systematically worked the area, listening, sniffing, poking it's nose into gaps and even catching a few rodents.

Then to top it all it came and had a closer look at us.  Just brilliant.

If you want to get a feel for what the Yellowstone experience is like check out this video by Steve Mattheis - https://youtu.be/56t6TKzqm_k  He is based one of the Parks making up the Greater Yellowstone area.

If you like this one look also at his bison in the snowstorm video - again may help you understand why this place has really captured me.  https://youtu.be/0vM7MHqQh50

Red kites, Black Mountains and a Mandarin stream

I've been starting to explore some new sites for photography, including a red kite feeding centre in the Black Mountains.  In the past I've been to Gigrin Farm which offers excellent opportunities to watch and snap the kites, but I'd seen a couple of photos from Llanddeusant and was quite keen to try and get some more environmental shots which I never felt Gigrin really offered.  The day was a bit bright and contrasty which wasn't ideal, and  with wildlife you can't just put the subject where you want it but in the end I made a start on achieving what I was looking for.

Red kites are beautiful birds, but in flight the best view in my opinion is of the 'back' which obviously isn't ideal when you are looking up at them!  At Gigrin the raised hides can help, but even there the opportunity comes as they bank to change direction or dive down for food.  The classic shot is at the 'decisive moment' at which the birds starts to dive, but that is tricky to catch and I  haven't really got a picture I'm happy with yet even from Gigrin.

Here are a few standard flight shots from Llanddeusant, which probably reinforce my comments about the best 'side' for kites.

In terms of the environmental shot I can see the potential and will go back to try again.  I liked the view with the mountain dipping down but it was frustrating trying to get a kite banking at just the right distance and position.  I'm sure it's just a matter of time, and I did find an angle with an even better background to try next time.

A bonus buzzard.

A couple of trips to try and snap dippers in the Forest of Dean proved unsuccessful, once because I managed to drown my camera (RIP) and then because the birds wouldn't land on the chosen rock - I know they use it from the amount of droppings so I will try again but need a cloudy day for the background.  I did get to snap an FOD special, although not a native species. Get out your sunglasses!

All these pics look better at larger size, so click on a picture get a better view.

Urgings by Ravens

The raven has to be in my top 5 birds.  I remember 20 years ago how amazed I was to find that they regularly flew over our new house in South Wales; the day at Gigrin Farm when I first realised just how massive they are as one hopped past a smaller buzzard; the amazing range of calls we heard sitting overnight in a Finnish swamp waiting for bears - 33 vocalisations according to one set of researchers - bell-like or knocks so far removed from the standard in-flight 'cronk'; my sheer frustration at how the one visiting one of our feeding sites always knew that my camera and I were there despite all my subterfuge and patience - crows and jays down and relaxed for ages, the raven flying in but just sitting in the tree watching.

On my first trip to Yellowstone I was sad not to get a good view or shot of one.  On the trip this year they were queueing up to be snapped, and Cooke City 'Steve' sat on a car outside the diner and just shouted in my face as I tried to get back far and low enough to focus.

Back home a trip to another red kite feeding station at the weekend didn't lead to any pictures of note, but again those lovely resonant bell calls.

One day I'll get a shot of our local birds.

“Needless to say, urgings by ravens are ignored at one's peril.” James D. Doss