Garden Insects up close and personal!!

I just love my Raynox DCR250 macro add-on lens and have been trying recently to have a bit of practice with it.  These photos are all hand-held, even though I know it would be better to use a tripod - but by the time I set that up, the moment would be gone!!  As it stands I have deleted more photos than I have kept, but that's one big advantage of digital images!!  Here are a few recent photos.

Fly

Hoverfly

Hoverfly

The beautiful wings of a bee

Hoverfly

Hoverfly

Daddy longlegs/Jenny longlegs/Crane fly

Hoverfly

Woody Woodpecker came back - with another baby!!

I am so pleased to be able to report that daddy Woody came back to the garden, and after a few days he brought his new baby with him!!  Now it's baby who comes mainly on his own, but on occasions both are here at the same time.

Baby Woody

Daddy Woody

Baby Woody showing an interest in the cherry tree!

I don't know how long they will stick around this time, but I'm just so very pleased to see them back again. They rule the roost when they're in the garden and chase the starlings away from the food while they're eating, so they must be quite high up in the pecking order!!

I found a skeleton in the garden!!

I'm always looking for something unusual to photograph and, while working in the garden the other day, I found a skeleton.  It's not what you think - I haven't dug up a body and it's nothing sinister, it's just the skeleton of a flower from last year, almost perfectly preserved under a small mountain of leaves!! Anyway, here a few photos of my unusual find.  I've kept a hold of it so that I can practice taking more photos later - I prefer to think of it as a Fairy Lantern!!

Rocky Robin posing for photos

Wee Rocky Robin is still with us and still bothering the car wing mirrors on occasions, but yesterday and today he posed for a few photos!!  The quality isn't brilliant as they've been taken through glass, and he's really quick on the move, so it's difficult to catch him standing still!!

Daddy Woodpecker arrives with baby!!

Although not just as regular as he was, daddy woodpecker still visits the garden, but I was thrilled to bits a couple of days ago when he arrived with baby!!  Then, just yesterday, baby woodpecker arrived on his own, so I am hoping that both will become regular visitors.  I did manage to take a couple of photos of baby, but they're not good quality as they were taken through glass that needs a good clean at the moment after the atrocious weather we have been having!!

So, here we are - meet baby Woody!!!

Chasing Bumble Bees

I've been playing with my camera again and have been chasing bumble bees in the garden as they try to collect nectar from the flowers.  I just hope that one of these days they don't get too angry and try to chase me!!  Here are the results of my efforts:

'Woody Woodpecker'

I am pleased to say that 'Woody' has been a regular visitor to the garden for the past few days.  He seems to possibly be feeding and taking food back to his family, so I'm hoping he will bring the 'babies' with him one day soon.

A Flock of Goldfinches

I just couldn't believe my eyes tonight when I looked out of the livingroom window after having topped up the bird food.  There were no less than 14 goldfinches!!  This is the first year that we've seen these birds in the garden - it all started last year when I thought I saw a baby goldfinch a few times, but then early this year we began to see two, then three, then five and then eight, but today when I counted 14 it was just marvelous.  We are also now beginning to see siskins appearing alongside the greenfinches, chaffinches, blue tits, coal tits and great tits, plus of course the starlings, blackbirds and pigeons.  The garden is just alive with birds of all shapes and sizes, but they are eating me out of house and home!!  It's costing a fortune to keep them going in food!!

Here are some recent photos of my winged garden visitors

Acrobat

Cutie-pie

Who da ya think you're lookin' at??

Pole dancer!!

Springtime

Although it has been a bit colder of late, it's springtime for sure with the garden coming to life with colour and the birds coming in flocks to feed in the garden!!  I just thought I'd share some recent photos taken around the garden.  This first one was taken in the waterfall part of the rockery playing with the star filter

Yellow tulips

These next ones were all taken looking through the livingroom window at the tree with the bird feeders where lots of birds are now coming to eat

Goldfinch waiting his turn

Goldfinch doing an impression of a woodpecker!!

'Punk Rocker' chaffinch!!

Garden Birds

We now have quite a variety of birds coming to feed in the garden and I'm particularly delighted to see goldfinches coming as well.  We've never had these birds before in the garden and we started off with just one a few weeks ago, but I'm sure I counted five this afternoon.  They are very quick and it's difficult to get a good photo, but I was VERY lucky to have captured this one.

Goldfinches

Garden produce

Although the garden in general this year is pretty poor, we have had four peaches on the tree this year, once of which I've eaten and it was so juicy!!!  I can't wait to get my teeth into the others!!

Makes you just want to reach in and pick it!!!

 

 

 

 

 

The tomatoes are also doing well in the greenhouse, although there are so many I have no idea what we're going to do with them all!!

Juicy ripe tomatoes

And the next photo is of the strawberries taken via the mobile phone - needless to say, they have all been eaten already!!

These were VERY tasty!!

An Unwanted Garden Visitor!!

As much as I love having birds visit the garden, this is one that I really don't want to have visiting!!

Down for a drink or looking to capture his next meal?

On the lookout for his next meal!!

Woody came back!!

I feel really honoured today as Woody Woodpecker came back to feed in the garden.  This time I managed to get some half-decent photos!!  It was lucky that I still had the camera at the ready!!

Woody in the bird feeder

I think he might have spotted me!!

Isn't he cheeky?