Confessions of a Photographer

The post title says Confessions of a Photographer but I wouldn't really call myself a photographer. I am someone who dabbles in Wildlife Photography, I have taken some, in my opinion, good photos and photography is most definitely a hobby for me.

I enjoy being immersed in wildlife and I like the long-term value a nice picture of a wildlife experience can give you. That is why many of my blurry pictures of rare animals and birds can mean so much to me. They are by no means technical masterpieces but the capture a viewing.

I do of course try and take good photos and sometimes that takes a little work. Many professional photographers stage their work, and for me, that usually only involves removing stray twigs from eye line or where I hide. I am averse to heavy photoshop editing and will only ever crop, play with the light levels and perhaps do a little sharpening to an image.

In this particular case, I decided to make use of the fact that we are regularly getting Wood Mice visiting the garden to get a nice shot of a mouse. That nice shot is the one shown above. However, to achieve this shot I experimented with some staging.

At the moment the mice visit the bird table which isn't especially natural looking in aesthetic. So instead I built a stage. I used some wood to create a bridge between the table and the hedge and covered in natural material, moss, twigs, bark and brambles. I then baited this and waited for the mice to use it.

It took a little while for the mice to get used to the new bridge but pretty soon one ventured on and I got the shots. The two shots at the head of the post are the results, but even that still took time, I still had to compose correctly and focus right. Even now the focus of those pictures is a little out.

I make this post as a kind of warning of the shots you might see out there. People with more talent and time can create all manner of wonderful images with each tweak you lose a little of the naturalness and wonder. Some amazing photos are heavily photoshopped or even used stuffed animals. Of course, not all do this but it's important to be aware of the facts, modern technology has made photography achievable by all but it has also raised the possibility of erasing its veracity.

I am content with my limits, I want to see my subjects as natural as possible, I want to leave the animals with the option to take part, the ability to leave at any minute or to not even to show up. I also respect their right to peace and quiet. In this case, I waited only 20 minutes so as not to disturb them and to allow them to forage happily once I had a few shots in the can.

This was a fun experiment but do not expect me to roll out this for all shots, nature is best seen in its raw form.

Nature, red in tooth and claw

The cycle of life was brought into sharp relief yesterday when a Sparrowhawk caught a juvenile Starling in the garden. 

The young starlings have been quite prolific this year and there are several noisy families on the estate. Starlings once a common sight in gardens is actually in decline nationally even though locally they still seem to be doing well. The species have been red-listed by the IUCN and are a local biodiversity action plan listed.

Sparrowhawks, on the other hand, have a favourable conservation status and in the UK have increased in number considerably since 1974. This is partly due to reduced persecution and increased brood sizes.

The individual show in the picture is a female, no doubt catching food for some nestlings somewhere. You can tell it's a sparrowhawk rather than another raptor or falcon by the distinctive thin 'knitting-needle-like' legs. You can tell it is a female from the brownier plumage and lack of yellowish buff neck and front.

Disability day at the feeders

First of all, I apologise for not posting for awhile but a touch of the flu laid me out for 2 weeks. I am all better now and this weekend I have been out and about, checking my trail cam, counting swans and watching the birds in the garden.

We have a new feeding station which contains mealworms, suet pieces and white sunflower seeds and this afternoon I watched the birds adjust to this new item in the garden in the sunshine. The first to approach was a Starling followed shortly by a Robin which has started to exhibit mating signs and nesting behaviour. 

Most interestingly a single Blue Tit came to feed exclusively on the dried mealworms. This individual had a dishevelled look and a deformed beak - see below.

Such deformities are not uncommon in Blue Tits. In this case, the beak is longer than normal with a hyperextended upper mandible. 

Such deformities are found in many Tit species and the BTO Garden Watch has documented the rise of this possible disease. 

Data from British Trust for Ornithology - https://www.bto.org/volunteer-surveys/gbw/about/background/projects/bgbw/results/types 

Such deformities in the beak are not fully understood and is named as Avian Keratin Disorder (AKD). This relates to the fabric of the beak itself which is a keratin sheath over bone. It has been suggested that because keratin continues to grow like our fingernails that the defect is due to the beak not getting worn down but this does not explain many of the cases.

If the beak deformity is too extreme then it will have a negative effect on the ability for the bird to feed itself and die fairly quickly. In this case, the beak has not hindered the birds feeding although it is possible that such birds only survive at feeders and would struggle foraging for itself. It would be interesting to see if the deformities occur in wild populations. Are they an example of over-identification in well-watched gardens or is their survival greater in gardens.

Whilst the causes are not fully understood some research has been taken in America. AKD was first recorded in Alaska in Chickadees (North American relatives of the Tits) in the 1990's and was subsequently recorded in Nuthatches and Crows. USGS scientist Dr Colleen Handel began investigating the occurrence and originally started looking at organochlorine poisoning and strontium depletion before coming across the possibility of a pathogenic cause.

Blacked-Capped Chickadee. Photograph by: Alan D. Wilson, www.naturespicsonline.com

Her studies involved genetic level studies of the birds and revealed an RNA virus in the  Picornnavirus family that she named Poecivrius. This virus was found in 100% of birds studied with the deformities and only 22% of those without it. The paper was published in 2016.

It is likely that the real cause is more complicated than just a virus and although promising this was a small study which so far has not been followed up and there appears to have been no work to identify the virus in British populations.

You can report any sightings of birds with deformed beaks to the BTO - https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/MF9PHYJ?sm=8eLw8z78HLBP8EQrk4oCQA%3d%3d

Whilst the Blue Tit continued to feed a Woodpigeon tentatively approached the bird feeder. He seemed less skittish as usual and his behaviour was slightly off and it soon became apparent. He was blind in the right eye, in fact, he had no right eye at all. It's hard to tell from the picture if this was a result of injury or a birth defect.

The bird seemed well fed and otherwise unaffected, such a disability is rarely seen it usually increases their chance of predation that they do not last long. However, by looking around more and shifting his head the pigeon seems to be doing fine although the loss of depth perception gained from two eyes meant his landing was a little clumsy.


References:

Zylberberg M, Van Hemert C, Dumbacher JP, Handel CM, Tihan T, DeRisi JL. Novel Picornavirus Associated with Avian Keratin Disorder in Alaskan Birds. mBio. 2016;7(4):e00874-16. doi:10.1128/mBio.00874-16.

Pecking order

Amidst the slushy snow that arrived overnight the birds in my garden struggled against the cold. Whilst I ate my breakfast I watched with interest as each species behaved differently. Sometimes it is just be watching the commonest of birds the most interesting things can be observed.

Here then is a photo essay of the birds in my garden this morning (Apologies for the picture quality but it was cold and so most pictures were taken through the patio window!).

The first bird I saw was the Pied Wagtail. We only ever see the wagtail in the winter months. We can get up to two at a time but never more, unlike the town centre which can get small flocks of between 20 and 30 that all roost together. For such a small and seemingly cheerful bird, it was interesting to note that today he was near the top of the pecking order. Usually placid and cautious he guarded the ground feeder where the seeds were zealously seeing off Blue Tits, Sparrows and even the Robins.

The usually feisty Robin would normally be chasing the smaller birds off however a second Robin seemed to take all its attention. Robins are well known for their aggression between each other. Even in this cold weather, they had made the decision that it was more important to defend territory and then feed itself. This shows some measure of long-term planning, its energy levels were high enough that the pay off in the long run of having access to a stable food source was more important than the short term food gain and the possible loss of the food in the future.

Here you can see the Robin in an aggressive pose with tail up low beak and wings out.

Also on a territorial defence footing were the Blackbirds, at this time of year there is a large influx of Blackbirds from the continent. Our native birds are joined by individuals from Scandinavia, the Low Countries and Germany.

Whereas the Robins fought consistently the Blackbirds were able to tolerate each other's presence a little more only chasing each other off if they got too close to each other.

The usual bully boys, the Feral Pigeons, Starlings and Woodpigeons all relaxed their aggressive behaviour and focused instead on feeding. They have large bodies more insulated from the weather but have strong flight muscles that need refuelling, in this case, they opted to eat rather than chasing off competitors of other species.

The ubiquitous House Sparrows seemed to behave no different than normal. They whizzed around like a mix of a squadron of fighter jets and a horde of excited children. Chattering and squabbling and diving into feed whenever a feeder was free. The picture below shows a male with his feathers plumped up against the cold. Birds do this to trap a layer of air next to the skin that creates effective insulation against the cold.

The Hedge Sparrow or Dunnock likewise did not change behaviour, skulking around the edges bothering no one and being bothered by no one.

The last two species to mention are two rare visitors to the garden, both with different strategies, the Goldcrest and the Blackcap. Both are warblers although the Blackcap is considered more of a spring/summer bird.

The Goldcrest is a specialist of conifers and is tiny in comparison to the other birds. It remained cautiously in the leylandi darting quickly from branch to branch. Their small size means they have a high metabolism and must feed nearly constantly to ensure they can survive each night. They have dainty beaks that they use to hunt out hibernating insects and spiders in the branches.

Like the Goldcrest the Blackcap is insectivorous. It can usually be seen hunting green caterpillars in the spring, but insects are scarce in the winter. Like many warblers, Blackcaps are actually migratory and spend the winter in the Mediterranean or North Africa however they are many that have started to overwinter in the UK. Some might not be British birds but individuals moving south from Scandinavia. Like many birds they can change their diet, Sparrows feed their young insects but feed mainly on seed themselves whilst in this cold spell the Blackcap could be seen pecking at peanuts and taking seed from the grounder. Seeds are excellent food in this weather, containing important energy stores like fats and oils. Its is because of well stocked gardens that this usually summer only visior can now stay all year round.

These were not the only birds to visit today, Blue Tits, Great Tits, Chaffinch and Goldfinch all entered into the web of politics which is the English garden, vying for space and food.

What is on exhibition here is a model called Optimum Foraging Theory, something I studied in detail at University. It dictates the optimum time to feed, how long to feed and what to feed on, It guides organisms by causing them to evaluate costs and benefits of their actions. What is interesting is that their motives may seem strange to us, perhaps nonsensical but survival is the name of the game and each has adapted itself to ensure it lives to see another day.