Lesser black-backed gull v Raven

The recent post of the lesser black-backed gull (Larus fuscus) reminded me of a photograph I took last year of this species. It was unusual because in the frame there was also a raven (Corvus corax). The two birds were scavenging for morsels of food that people had dropped at a Forestry England visitor centre in the Forest of Dean. Whilst they were strutting about in search of delicacies they were clearly keeping a very close eye on each other. As I watched them I was reminded of two wild west gunfighters, each acutely aware of the other, but pretending otherwise.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Nikon P900

Saxifrage

Growing up in the Yorkshire Dales I became quite familiar with saxifrage once my interest in wild flowers had been kindled by a primary school teacher. A particular favourite was the purple saxifrage (Saxifraga oppositifolia) that grew among the outcropping limestone. Consequently it only seemed natural that when I came to choose plants for the garden I should be drawn to the cultivated saxifrages. Our current garden has a pink saxifrage that has just come into flower and which will be brightening that area of planting for the next several weeks.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Olympus OMD E-M10

Lesser black-backed gull

As a young bird watcher, barely into my teens, I remember thinking it remarkable that there could be a gull that lived its life without seeing the sea. Yet it isn't inconceivable that a lesser black-backed gull (Larus fuscus) might do just that. During the 1960s I remember seeing Britain's largest colony of lesser black- backed gulls nesting on Walney Island on the edge of the Irish Sea. A little later I also saw a nesting colony on the high moorland of the Forest of Bowland, Lancashire. Today the bird can also be found nesting on the roofs of town and city buildings. The bird in the photograph was a solitary individual that had alighted on a large woodland pond in the Forest of Dean.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Nikon P900

Goat Willow catkins

Along the River Wye in Herefordshire the goat willow (Salix caprea) are displaying their catkins. Many species of trees have flowers in the form of catkins including hazel, alder, silver birch, white poplar and walnut, as well as willow. The goat willow is also known as the great sallow and pussy willow. The trees growing by the Wye provides a useful service by anchoring the bank and slowing its erosion. In the past it was known for its medicinal value in reducing fever, acting as a pain killer and for its anti-inflammatory properties. It was also a source of charcoal, particularly for use by artists.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Lumix FZ1000 2

Holy Trinity, Tewkesbury

The church of Holy Trinity, Tewkesbury, was consecrated on 30th August 1837, a couple of months after the succession of Queen Victoria in June of that year. The architect was Ebenezer Trotman, son of Daniel Trotman, Tewkesbury's Baptist minister. The brick building with stone dressing takes Gothic forms and assembles them in quite novel ways, especially on the west front (seen above). A west door is traditional but doors in the flanking aisles are not. A large west window is also traditional but here the arch does not contain tracery or glass but opens onto a recessed blank wall with a clock: church clocks are usually on a tower The narrow, symmetrical composition of the west front is placed opposite a street that leads to the High Street and is an eyecatcher visible to anyone passing by.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Nikon D5300

St Mary's Lane, Tewkesbury

The Gloucestershire town of Tewkesbury has more than 380 Listed Buildings, that is to say, old buildings subject to legislation regarding how they may be modified. The purpose of Listing is to preserve notable examples of of our built past. Many of Tewkesbury's Listed Buildings are timber-framed. On a recent visit we walked down St Mary's Lane and came upon this view as we were about to exit on to Church Street. The combination of aged timber, old brickwork, painted wood and plaster, and the fact that none of it had been insensitively restored, gave us something of a feel for how that thoroughfare might have looked five hundred years ago.

And what do you see when you walk out of the end of St Mary's Lane?A fine collection of old buildings each one pretty much built with no regard for its neighbour. And none the worse for that.

 photos © T. Boughen     Camera: Lumix FZ1000 2

Jackdaw

The first syllable of the name of the jackdaw (Corvus monedula) is onomatopoeic, being akin to the bird's call that is frequently transcribed as "tchack". The second syllable, "daw" is the old (at least fifteenth century) name for black, crow family members, especially the jackdaw, and also given on the basis of their "cawing" call. English church towers and spires, offering the cliff-like nesting sites favoured by jackdaws, are locations where the bird is often found. The jackdaw in the photograph was at the very top of a churchyard yew tree a few yards from the church tower.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Nikon P900

Motorcycle reflections

The onset of spring brings with it sounds that are less frequent in winter and that will increase in volume and frequency as the weather gets warmer. I'm not referring to bird song, but rather, to motorcycles. I get the impression that today a majority of motorcyclists choose that form of transport as a hobby or past-time rather than a means of transport. It's my further impression that this is a pursuit mainly of older men who not only love to burnish their steed but also like to increase the volume of sound that it makes. Walking through a carpark recently I passed a large motorcycle with a glossy sheen that proclaimed its owner's passion, and I took this photograph of the gleaming metalwork and my reflection.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Lumix FZ1000 2

Illustrated front doors, Tewkesbury

On the basis of a couple of recent walks around Tewkesbury in Gloucestershire I have come to the conclusion that the fashion for painting an illustration on your front door is spreading. The leftmost door above has, to my recollection, been painted for a couple of years. However, the rightmost appears to be recent - or at least I haven't noticed it before. On the day I photographed these two doors I saw another newly painted example featuring a couple of silhouetted giraffes against an orange sky. Is this a local phenomenon or is it country-wide? Or even world-wide?

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Lumix FZ1000 2

Cyclamen flowers

Over the winter months a few pots of cyclamens have brightened our conservatory. Though they look like delicate plants they actually thrive in lower temperatures. Now, with the days lengthening, the sun higher in the sky, and other colours coming into view in the garden, I set out to photograph the pink flowers against their multicoloured backdrop. A macro lens with a shallow depth of field achieved the somewhat "dreamy" image that I sought.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Olympus OMD E-M10

An adventurous Canada Goose

Canada geese are pretty widespread in the UK. Many large stretches of water have a flock, and many people consider them a pest. They are an introduced species that has flourished and some say they have usurped the habitat of native species. Introduced species often have to adapt to the particular cicumstances of their new home and, prior to taking this photograph, I would not have counted the Canada goose as one of those. But perhaps the ability to land on a roof ridge and stand there at length surveying the surroundings is an evolutionary adaptation in the making. It's certainly something I've never seen before.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Nikon P900

Window sill planters

This house opens on to the public pavement on Barton Street, Tewkesbury. It dates from the late eighteenth or early nineteenth century and has a plain, though not unattractive, brick facade laid in Flemish bond. I photographed it for the way the owner had decorated each window with potted box shrubs. It's a device that adds to the interest of the facade, and is all the better for featuring just one type of plant rather than many.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Nikon D5300

Cherry plum blossom

A small amount of blossom has been in evidence since the second half of February. Much of it is in gardens in the form of the popular cherry plum (Prunus cerasifera "Pissardii"). In some respects, like the snowdrop, this blossom can be a false harbinger of spring. However, it is now (in early March) being joined by the wild blackthorn and this is a clear sign that at least "meteorological spring" has arrived.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Lumix FZ1000 2

Foggy churchyard

Churchyards in the UK are often havens of tranquility and wildlife. On a foggy day these qualities are accentuated as the number of visitors is usually fewer. We came upon this contemplative couple as we passed through St Mary's churchyard in Ross on Wye. Were they observing a squirrel or a green woodpecker? Perhaps they were reflecting on the information on a gravestone. Or maybe they were just having a quiet breather during their lockdown walk. Whatever the reason, they added a visual focus to the arch of trees and so a photograph as we passed by.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Lumix FZ1000 2

Foggy pond

We are at a time of year in Herefordshire when both fog, and sun in a cloudless sky, closely co-exist. For the purposes of enjoying a walk in late February and March my wife and I prefer the sunny day. However, for photography there is possibly more to be said for the fog. The perfect blue sky is quite limiting from a photographic perspective and I'm much happier when there is cloud to add interest to the sky. The photograph above was taken late in a walk around Ross on Wye at a point when the fog looked like it might soon be burnt off by the sun, and the modest pond took on a more interesting character in the mist.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Nikon D5300

Watery play park

The younger children's play park at The Ropewalk, Ross on Wye, has a nautical theme. On the days when the River Wye overflows its banks it seems very appropriate.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Lumix FZ1000 2