Red Squirrel - Sciurus vulgaris
Canon f6.3 for 1/200th @ iso1250th
Following a hearty breakfast at "chez David" and a short drive to the forest we plonked ourselves down in the forest. When we arrived the sun had broken through the milky grey clouds and that was probably to be our final view of any sunshine for the day !
Still recovering from the drive north - the journey the more times you do it does not get any easier and for me the longest stretch is the run from Glasgow up past Stirling and to the roundabout that starts the 140 mile trek north - the sat nav showing a left hand turn 140 miles away - a straight run up the A9, albeit through some great landscape.
The A9 although continually being modernised is a road that definitely keeps you on your "toes". The winter weather having in some places severely eroded the road surface making for a less than enjoyable driving experience.
Just two of us were out on this trip to the forest as Margaret was off photographing landscapes in Norway. No doubt they will be available for viewing on her website on the image of the month page shortly.
Sitting quietly and comfortably in the forest we waited - the wind howled through the tops of the trees - the BBC weather app had predicted sunshine - that sunshine was not evident and the grey and black clouds moved quickly across the sky.
It is surprising how noisy the forest can whilst the forest dwellers go about their daily business, The squirrels in particular make quite a lot of noise when moving through the canopy and then up and down the tree trunks their claws making a loud scratching noises and announcing their presence.
The nosiest forest dwellers being the Greater Spotted Woodpeckers drumming on the tree trunks.
Sudden outbreaks of complete silence, the chaffinch. goldcrest, coal tit etc stopping their calling usually indicates the presence of the local sparrowhawk the forest falls as quiet as the proverbial grave.
We staid put for several hours the squirrels coming and going until a point was reached where they had moved on elsewhere. In a few hours the nocturnal forest dwellers would be on the move. Probably the most enigmatic of those nocturnal wanderers is the Pine Marten. David has trail cam footage of the Pine Marten along with a few shots of a Goshawk reducing the local Jay population.
The venue is completely natural so photography can be both challenging and rewarding, a venue without carefully positioned props - it is simply a place where squirrels come and go and clamber over the previously logged stumps the bark fragile as they weather down. They jump around in and out of the clumps of heather and clambering over fallen branches.
A short video clip of a Red Squirrel feeding in the forest.
No sun shone on the squirrels and as forest appeared to be devoid of any wildlife and before the day drew to a close we drove out to have a look at the hare. Although we knew there would be no hare in snow as the warm temperatures of the previous days of January and February had either melted any snow that was lying on the ground or snow had simply not fallen. Strange weather.
Arriving at the venue the rain poured down and so we sat in the car - one of us snoozing ! Large black clouds scudded east dumping tons of water on the hills.
Whatever the weather and regardless of the number of photographs taken it is a great "playground" to be in.
Following a hearty breakfast at "chez David" and a short drive to the forest we plonked ourselves down in the forest. When we arrived the sun had broken through the milky grey clouds and that was probably to be our final view of any sunshine for the day !
Still recovering from the drive north - the journey the more times you do it does not get any easier and for me the longest stretch is the run from Glasgow up past Stirling and to the roundabout that starts the 140 mile trek north - the sat nav showing a left hand turn 140 miles away - a straight run up the A9, albeit through some great landscape.
The A9 although continually being modernised is a road that definitely keeps you on your "toes". The winter weather having in some places severely eroded the road surface making for a less than enjoyable driving experience.
Just two of us were out on this trip to the forest as Margaret was off photographing landscapes in Norway. No doubt they will be available for viewing on her website on the image of the month page shortly.
Sitting quietly and comfortably in the forest we waited - the wind howled through the tops of the trees - the BBC weather app had predicted sunshine - that sunshine was not evident and the grey and black clouds moved quickly across the sky.
It is surprising how noisy the forest can whilst the forest dwellers go about their daily business, The squirrels in particular make quite a lot of noise when moving through the canopy and then up and down the tree trunks their claws making a loud scratching noises and announcing their presence.
The nosiest forest dwellers being the Greater Spotted Woodpeckers drumming on the tree trunks.
Sudden outbreaks of complete silence, the chaffinch. goldcrest, coal tit etc stopping their calling usually indicates the presence of the local sparrowhawk the forest falls as quiet as the proverbial grave.
We staid put for several hours the squirrels coming and going until a point was reached where they had moved on elsewhere. In a few hours the nocturnal forest dwellers would be on the move. Probably the most enigmatic of those nocturnal wanderers is the Pine Marten. David has trail cam footage of the Pine Marten along with a few shots of a Goshawk reducing the local Jay population.
The venue is completely natural so photography can be both challenging and rewarding, a venue without carefully positioned props - it is simply a place where squirrels come and go and clamber over the previously logged stumps the bark fragile as they weather down. They jump around in and out of the clumps of heather and clambering over fallen branches.
A short video clip of a Red Squirrel feeding in the forest.
No sun shone on the squirrels and as forest appeared to be devoid of any wildlife and before the day drew to a close we drove out to have a look at the hare. Although we knew there would be no hare in snow as the warm temperatures of the previous days of January and February had either melted any snow that was lying on the ground or snow had simply not fallen. Strange weather.
Arriving at the venue the rain poured down and so we sat in the car - one of us snoozing ! Large black clouds scudded east dumping tons of water on the hills.
Whatever the weather and regardless of the number of photographs taken it is a great "playground" to be in.