One wonderful Easter Sunday from Dawn to dusk

While most people were tucked up in there beds early on Easter Sunday morning I was out enjoying the peace and the possibility of some wild encounters on my local patch. A few weeks ago I walked into a young Otter down on the local river catching it's breakfast before it saw me and disappeared off upriver leaving only prints on the muddy banks.

My wild encounters started when 2 Badgers ran into me and continued to chase each other into some bushes when I watched them have a roll around in the undergrowth with plenty of calling before returning to there sett at first light.

I continued on across some scrub land where I heard a Grasshopper Warbler and saw some Blackcaps gathering nesting material for there newly built creation in a bramble patch. The smell of the Hawthorn blossom in the fresh morning air was beautiful and combined with a sighting and the smell of a Fox made quite the spring aroma
Hawthorn/Blackthorn

Swans patrolling the canal

Sheep having lambs is wonderful to see at this time of the year

Grebes mating on the canal

A Coot searches for nest material under the surface

I thought I had stumbled into the Otter again but it turned out to be a Mink as the sun rose

A stunning sunrise along the canal

Canada Geese back in the warm sunlight

Sunrise over the picnic benches

When the sunrises under this bridge the light is so warm and refreshing

Lots more to come in the next few weeks as I'm off to Wales for a week!!!!

Stay wild and thanks for reading

Mike

A new local find :-)

With local wild places becoming crowded and closer to becoming developed with housing and various other plans. I decided to search in some new places outside of my usual wild places to find some quieter and more undisturbed places. I spotted this Fly agaric Mushroom at Shakerley Mere last Tuesday and the area is becoming one of my favorite weekly places to visit.

I have even found this perfect picnic bench by the lake with a perch where I can place some bird food and enjoy the birds coming back and fourth while I relax and enjoy the outdoors.

 I found this hidden spot which I will be exploring more the next time I visit and I will take a few more photographs of my wildlife findings and habitat.

I love wooden bridges over trickling streams

 Tonight I am trialing a new WiFi camera setup tonight in the garden. I am powering on 12vt mobile backup battery which is nearly lasting an hour which is perfect. I may even see some of the 16+ hedgehogs that pass through my garden looking for food each night which may be a record. A few are hibernating in the hedgie houses in the garden already but more are visiting lately. Luckily not many get squished very much on my concrete island and there main predator the Badger whose numbers are 0 on my local urban patch. As well as filming wildlife I'm hoping to use to catch a few poachers out with this new kit if I can run on a 3G network created my Iphone.

Thanks for reading my blog
Stay wild, be happy and be safe

Mike

A Local Family out in the meadows

A few months ago at the beginning of summer I was treated to a wonderful British wildlife encounter that I always await for over the long winter months. While out walking through a freshly cut field by a local river  as the sun was about to set and the wind dropped leaving wonderful conditions for an encounter with Fox cubs. We watched as the adult left an area where the Fox cubs were waiting for the all clear to come out into the open. One brave cub followed the adult into the open field to look for an small mammals killed by the grass cutting machinery.

The adult moved off while the young cub explored alone so we decided on seeing if we could get a little closer without disturbing the family. We got quite close using a dip in the field to get about 10 metres away for a couple of shots before a dog walker disturbed the adult Fox which made the cub follow the adult into the safety of the undergrowth.
One of the photographs before the dog walker disturbed this wonderful family

 Cub and Adult Foxes

 The Fox cub is left alone

A few months later I visited the area again and saw the whole family including 5 teen cubs sunbathing and bounding around in the early hours was an amazing and beautiful thing to watch. I could not get any photographs as I was on my bike without my camera so I decided on just watching the family until the sun went behind the clouds that blew in from North.

Thanks for reading my blog

Stay wild, be happy and be safe
 

Mike

Bees under the pond

A few weeks ago my brother noticed a few Bees buzzing around the pond so we decided to watch and see where they were going. We discovered they were going under the plastic of the pond and being no danger and knowing bees are in decline we decided on leaving them to go about there beesiness :-p

I'll try to photograph them to see what species they are as they are quite relaxed especially as the colder evening air comes in.

The entrance to the Bee hive under the Pond

Below is a few photographs of the rest of the garden as the trees we planted have really grown quite big this year and as I added some reeds and willow to the pond and an old fish tank its looking rather beautiful. I have no need to go out into the woods some days as we know have a small woodland in the garden. We should get quite a few birds in the winter now we have some proper branches to hang the feeders from.

The trees in the middle of our lawn are getting quite big 2 are Rowen trees and the other is a....

Our Pond from another angle (Red circle is where the Bee hive is located under the logs)

Our little wildlife area by the shed where Foxes, Hedgehogs and the shier birds can relax

Our little Bee hive Pond with our willow tree getting bigger

Hedgehog houses and bird bath reed area

 Anyway I must be off as I'm going for a long bike ride by the river Weaver where there is a Great crested grebe nesting in the perfect spot to get some wonderful photographs without disturbing, if I'm lucky there will be chicks hatching there soon.

The death of Flash :-(

Today I thought I would post about one of  my local patches characters and in this instance its Flash one of the local Mute Swans who had a territory here for over 16+ years. We last saw him in February this year when he was fighting with a new pair of swans. On the 11th February my brother separated them and put Flash in a safe place on the river away from the danger of the attacking pair. After that he disappeared and since then we had no clue where he was. Last week we got an email saying he was reported dead at Middlewich on February 14th 2016. He was a wonderful swan sometimes grumpy but yet very calm and intelligent. He will be sadly missed..........
Below is a video I made about the life of Flash

As a wild bird he did his job protecting his mates & cygnets over the years. I shall miss him swimming along side me in my kayak as the sunrises on a warm summer morning along the canal.

I took this photograph in the beginning of 2002 when he had one of his first brood of cygnets

One of his last broods a few years ago..

He was quite a poser

Flash at his main nest site which he held for many years without fail

Flash by the big lock pub

Thanks for reading my blog

Stay wild, be happy and be safe
 

Mike

Local patch Bird life and Springy things

Being quite a way into spring now it seems the birds are still holding back on breeding but we have alot of time left as it just beginning. I'm really loving the smells of all the flowering buds on the trees and plants especially first thing in the morning after abit of rain in the night makes it so stimulating to the senses. Back to the feathery subject now and as I have found a few good birds locally. On the edge of my local patch I found a pair of Kestrels nesting in a old barn Owl box, luckily there is a Hawthorn tree which is quite tight to the ground nearby which will provide a perfect if not spiky hide. I'll post some photographs soon as I will be observing them for a while before photographing as I love to appreciate Nature through my own eyes before looking at it through a lens.

My favorite thing to do at this time of year before work is to head off to a peaceful place to enjoy the birds singing as the sunrises into a clear blue sky. While out last week with my binoculars I got some lovely views of Whitethroats and Grasshopper warblers which seem to be every where on my local patch at the minute which I think is a first for here. Alot of the Mallard ducklings have disappeared from the local pond whether due to human interference or natural predators I can't say. I've seen an increase in distrustful individuals carrying air pistols in public places close to active Nature places. A quick reminder that with all the birds and mammals breeding please remember not every one loves and wants to protect Nature so if you see anything suspicious regarding wildlife then checkout my picture below.

New posts to come on bad weather days and as I'm on my holidays soon expect Welsh related posts :-)

Thanks for reading my blog

Stay wild, be happy and be safe
 

Mike

First Badgers of 2016 #cutebadgercubwarning

If you have been following my blog for a while now you'll know I visit a Badger sett at this time of year to see if the Badger family has any new additions. At this time of year the Badger cubs are taking there first steps  away from there setts with the rest of the family. I have been trying to see the cubs earlier each year and a few days ago I was treated to some short but sweet views of Brock woods newest youngsters. While out in the warm summer evenings over the past few days the family have gotten used to my scent after a long winter of not really visiting the sett other than to check the area had been undisturbed by those idiots who commit awful wildlife crimes.

The 2 cubs were chuckling away by the entrance but did not want to leave the entrance

Cheeky Badger faces the opposite way of my camera

A quick look before the little one disappears off back to bed

Badger cub looks right at me

Hiding in the undergrowth the second cub appears from a different hole

Hopefully this won't be the first or last time this Spring/Summer I get to photograph them more. Watching the Badgers is one of my highlights of the lighter and brighter days of the year.

Thanks for reading my blog

Stay wild, be happy and be safe
 

Mike

Middlewich Wildlife crime-Unexpected encounter 2.0

With the animals and birds still staying hidden It seems I am having abit of luck or not lately running into wildlife crime rather than local wildlife this year, as a few weeks ago I had another encounter with a suspicious individual. While out taking a walk with my DLSR camera on a Sunday morning a few weeks ago we spotted a suspicious looking individual with an air rifle and a black staffordshire bull terrier (not concerned about the dog) walking the local canal tow path with an air rifle out and loaded which is illegal.

 As it was quite misty and I only had my small lens on my camera I could only get a few far shots but you can see he has he gun up and aiming at something, just as a flock of Geese flew by.

As I know the law regarding fire arms and the public I decided to see what this individual was up to before I phoned the police. As I was worried about local wildlife and have seen the devastation a person with an air rifle can do if there not stopped. Below is the video I recorded on my DSLR camera, I recorded just encase the man got violent or tried to change his story of the behavior or action he took when I asked what he was doing. At one point he tried to make out I was a homosexual to try and knock me down but this had no effect on me as the last person he used an insult like that was my young nephew "A child" said so for a grown adult to be so immature was quite shocking.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m-y09LjMzzY

I decided to phone the police as I was worried about the local wildlife and people using the tow path. I find that when these people are committing these illegal actions they know they are doing wrong and the only thing they can do is bully and threaten when somebody asks them what there up to. I reported to the police with a description and the evidence I collected and hopefully with local people keeping an eye out plus all the social media sharing that's been done will make sure this individual and others like him are reported and stopped from injuring and killing wildlife that they see fit to kill. I know who the individual is as I have seen him fishing locally where he leaves his empty beer cans, we don't know his name for sure yet but nearby to where he was taking pot shots into a river where are otters have been filmed we found a camp fire. In the fire was a bill for rent arrears with an address and a name so for now I will be keeping an eye out for this individual to make sure he keeps away from any where wildlife is vulnerable. I now have a case with the police for this report so if your a local from Middlewich in Cheshire and you know who the guy is then let me know, I've often seen him with his dog fishing near the Town bridge close to the doctors usually drinking alcohol and leaving lots of litter behind.

Here's some advice on UK gun laws and how to report http://birdersagainst.org/air-rifles-and-the-law

 I have received lots of support and some people have said be careful as they could get violent or leave it to the police but my thoughts that if these individuals committing these crimes think the general public are not watching or are not going to stand up to them and defend the Nature then they will continue to kill and injure wildlife illegally. I believe we have to nip these things in the bud straight away before real damage is done. One day they will be shooting at something floating in the river the next day a duck then a swan then an Otter. For me once something has been killed then it's to late as the damage has been done and if I did nothing to try and stop it from happening I would not be able to forgive myself. So call me a fool or a crazy I'm not the one with a fire arm in a public place where people go to relax less than a few minutes away from residential areas.

Thank you for reading and if you see or think wildlife crime is going on get in touch and will help with all the advice I can.

Regards

Mike Mottram

Springing out of January!!!

Each year the British winter seem s to be getting more unusual and this one in particular has to be the most bizarre Winter yet. Over the past week or so I've noticed the nettles and other vegetation springing up very early the most surprising has to be wild garlic growing down by the river. I love to pick a leaf and give it a good sniff as it reminds me of the transformation that will be soon upon us. A few other local signs Ive noticed are the new green reed shooting up. The local Swans are pairing up and have started nest building on the local ponds but they seemed to have stopped since the windier and wetter weather has come in. I have also noticed the birds are singing and things are really bursting into life.

Some time in the next few weeks I will be heading off for a days camping on the coast to reignite my wildness. In my next few blogs I'll be posting about another meeting with an idiot with a gun and in a another post I'll be sharing some of my gear I have purchased for my next camping trip.

On another note I have recently just opened a shop selling my framed wildlife sketches and my wildlife photographs on Etsy. You can view and purchase them here https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/MikeMottramNatureArt?ref=hdr_shop_menu

Thank you

Mike Mottram

Stay safe and protect Nature where and whenever you can

My latest drawing of a Watervole eating a grass stalk

Unexpected encounters

One cold afternoon last week me and my brother set off towards some farmland near Davenam, Cheshire. We went to the area to see if there were any tagged Swans on the flooded fields in the area. There were about 7 Swans and a few were ringed which took a while to read the tagged due to them grazing in long grass. On the way back we saw a large group of Starlings gathered in huge groups in the tops of some trees but as we had to get back before it got we had to leave quite quickly.

Moonlit Murmaration

On the way back along the canal a bird flew past with a white belly and dark back. As we normally see Kingfishers zipping by we first assumed it was a Kingfisher but after seeing the colors and hearing the whistle we realized it was a Dipper. We checked a few days later, but we saw nothing I'm thinking it must have been pushed off its own territory in search of food in shallower water due to the streams up in the mountains flooding making it impossible for Dippers to feed in the fast flowing water.

On one of the wet and windy Dipper search days I was waiting to meet someone on the edge of Middlewich town near Croxton Recycling center. I was just about to cross the bridge over the river to return home when a man on a bicycle appeared and straight away my gut told me he was a hunter or poacher of some kind. Although hunting is not illegal, there are strict laws where you can hunt, what you can hunt and gun laws so to be sure I always keep any eye out. As soon as he new I clocked him he got off his bike, lit a cigarette and walked over with his bike. The first thing he said to me was are you checking your snares as I had my small camera bag on my shoulder with my dinner and flask in. I said no and told him I am a wildlife photographer who watches out for and reports wildlife crimes in the local area. We had a few conversations and awkward silences but my first thoughts were right as he started spilling lots of things about poaching. There was no aggression from me or him and I foundout a few things about how and when he poaches. He got abit cocky and said that I was going to report him anyway so I might as well see his ID which I never asked for but what he showed me next was hard not to react to but I managed to stay calm. He told me he was after a Male Mallard off the canal to eat I said how was he going to get one he said he had a net and then from his shoulder bag he pulled out an air pistol in public while there were dog walkers 20metres away. So I have a description a name and other evidence plus I asked him about another local poacher we have been keeping an eye on and he confirmed his involvement in poaching. I have reported and put out out an alert on social media to local Middlewich people to keep an eye out for him and if they see him report it to me through social media so I can report direct to the Police, CRT and Environment agency. Here's a quick description of the gentlemen he was in his 50's, glasses, 170cm he had an electric bike with a built in bike stand. He was wearing camouflage trousers, blue striped coat. His fishing net was carried in a blue long and thin pole bag on his back and his air pistol was in a burlap shoulder bag like the one below.

 With local Joggers, walkers, dog walkers, cyclists and boaters informed I am hoping this will be the last encounter with this individual as I am hoping I may have scared him off from trying anything in this part of Middlewich as I made it quite clear that he knows there are many people looking after the area.

Thank you

Mike Mottram

Stay safe and protect Nature where and whenever you can
Here's my latest bird sketch of a Male Capercaillie

A new year and a false spring in full swing

With the New year in full swing and my wildlife sketch book filling up quickly I have decided to get going with the blog again.  My focus over the Winter months changes from my summer favorites like filming, photographing wildlife and enjoying the outdoors, so from December to February I like to patrol and keep an eye on areas where wildlife is vulnerable to a few local Sport Hunters and people who like to go out commit wildlife crimes. With Spring and the longer days of spring in sight thanks to this Winters milder temperatures. I think Spring 2016 will arrive earlier than before as I have seen a few very early signs on my local patch thanks to the frost less December.

I have noticed the local Swans paring up and beginning to show nesting behavior with the female picking up reeds and placing them in a pile while the male chatters next to her as if to say it's abit early for that.

While taking and a wander through a local woodland I found that on one of the ponds the reeds and vegetation was growing quite quickly. Normally they start growing at the end of winter usually early March which coincides with the first Frog spawn of the year. I am thinking that we could see Frog spawn in the nest month or 2.

With the signs above showing an early spring my thoughts of days by the sea and in the mountains are at the though of my mind.

Thank you and stay wild

Mike Mottram

A few more drawings from the Diaries of a Cheshire wildlife watcher sketch book