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19th January 2026

The forecast had been so gloomy for the following week I'd nearly stopped checking it, and then the night of the 18th, suddenly all change, and a decent sunny day for the 19th was flagged up. I packed all the birdfoods I had kicking around. I didn't rush out of bed early as the sun does not land on the specific areas I had in mind in Cammo Estate until late morning. That said, I was probably a little too casual as I only got off the number 43 around midday.

On the upside the sky was blue and there was an early morning feel about the place as low-angled sunbeams cut through a damp ground fog, especially near the curling pond. The air temperature was quite mild but there had been a frost overnight. It was so atmospheric I wanted to change from the zoom to the wide lens to record the scenery but everything was wet and taking off the backpack and getting out the camera case would have been a major hassle. Instead I tried to use the zoom at 100mm to capture the views. Being a Monday there were fewer dogwalkers and visitors about, and the place I was going to was off the main paths. Which is not to say there were no dogs galloping through my temporary photo studio! 😆 

misty curling pond

I normally check out the North side of the curling pond first but since the light was not great there I went straight to the South side and got out the bag of birdfood. I placed a supermarket carrier bag on the wet leaves to keep my backpack dry. I had brought sunflower seeds, peanuts, hazelnuts, bread and monkey nuts. I didn't bother with the Autumn acorns this time having binned them last trip when the fresh hazelnuts were more of a pull. The monkey nuts were very popular although everything had been removed five minutes after I departed. I know this because I had a stroll round the walled garden then checked the pond site on the way back out. A few bread crumbs and peanut shells were all that remained of the feast. I suspect the crows and pigeons had cleaned up.

Back to the start of the day and the nuthatches and squirrels were first to have their pics taken. My main target species for today had been nuthatches and jays although the jays are not always as reliable as the nuthatches and some visits just never show, as if they have another spot they visit on the other side of the woods. Happy to say that after a short interlude when I thought they were no shows, two of them (or more) appeared and took quite an interest in the food stashes.

most annoying twig of the day

first sight of a jay checking out the snacks

The jays are usually reluctant to swoop into the area until they have sat and watched other birds safely come and go. (Magpies, nuthatches, robins, squirrels and pigeons are happier to be the test pilots.) They, the jays, hang back and wait until it seems to be safe. I'd see them fly between trees 30 yards away before eventually coming in for a closer look. Meatime I was shooting the nuthatches who are almost insulting by disregarding my presence just 2m away: flying in under my nose and taking a few seeds before I can pull the focus back sufficiently close. I try to place seeds and nuts on the horizontal feeding station where the sunlight catches it but this creeps along the branch quicker than a minute hand.

Mr Peanutbutter being really helpful

My in-the-zone-ness was only disturbed by the occasional hound charging through the area. The nearest path is 40yards away but the dogs seem to be able to smell bread and nuts from a great distance and regularly stop by to help curate my food exhibition. 

I mostly place nuts etc on the horizontal branches which makes a better photo. A certain amount falls on the ground and I also put more there even though the birds make less of a good photo mooching about below.

never mind the magpie,
look at that background of dappled light and colour!

stock dove

Then there'd be another 25mins of no jays. (During which I'd pay more attention to the nuthatches and tits (great, blue and coal) as they scoffed the nuts and seeds on the two horizontal branches near my head. The jays would fly off with a mouthful of food and half an hour would pass before they/it returned. I did see two at the same time on a couple of occasions but most of the time I was visited by solitary jays, so I have little idea if it was the same one returning or several taking turns. I suspect there are 2 local to the area, possibly nesting or centred around the tall coniferous trees at the South East corner of the pond.

a few blackbirds around,
they tend to mooch around the leaf litter rather than pose up high

mr angry

This squirrel was aggressively seeing off another squirrel intruder, crouched and angrily barking at it having chased it round the place twice before seeing it off. It noticed me pointing the camera at it and sat up and smiled for a more friendly portrait. Uncannily human behaviour.

I put this blue tit here, not because it is a great photo,
but because I didn't take many other better ones

great tit

It was an odd sort of a day. Although there was loads of nuthatch action early on, along with robins and great tits, things quietened down later until I realised I hadn't seen any nuthatches for an hour. (Depsite charging branches with nuts etc.) Unusual here. The jays kept returning regularly but the smaller birds seemed to disappear from maybe 1.30pm. I was reduced to taking photos of the squirrels who were more than happy to hang around as long as I was replacing the hazelnuts and monkeynuts around the woods.

My friend and fellow wildlife photographer Sachi was there the following day and reported no jays but loads of nuthatches. I have found there seems to be no particular reason for who turns up when. I just got lucky, although I think it helps to reinforce behaviour by repeating the same successful foodstuffs left at the same places. The jays are easily spooked and I think it helps to give them a routine they recognise. Although if they are entirely absent (as sometimes happens) nothing is going to make them appear.

another unusual sight: 2 robins, clearly pals
I would bet they are either related or a mating pair

this jay was tempted back by monkey nuts
they would take one and fly up to a tree to eat it

a proper beakful

squirrels also gave the thumbs up for monkey nuts

eating a monkey nut at a safe distance

a will o the wisp? or a puff of wood-rot dust expressed by the
robin landing on this stump and caught in the backlit sunlight

(Owner calling him from the far distance, ineffectually.)
me; c'mon Chester, off you fuck!

blackbird finally works up courage to move in on stash

Probably the closest a jay came today, but frustratingly it sat in silhouette against the sky and I had to crank the shadows in post to get any detail. It then flew to a tall pine tree and looked down from above as I strained my neck to take photos. I think by now it had realised I was old and slow and posed zero predatory risk.

There was some delightful scenery going on. Perhaps I was noticing it more because there were fewer birds around to photo. I was crouching and kneeling taking pics through the branches, of steam and fog and sunlight and I'd turn around to see a great tit or robin at my shoulder as if asking what the hell was I doing? Also a troop of long-tailed tits flew through and I hurried to get the camera back into super-fast shutter mode to catch them as they hopped around branches, oblivious of my presence just a metre or 2 away. I felt I botched more than I caught but that is always the way of it and one or 2 came out okay.

one of the Crepidotus fungi, variabilis (or cesatii?)
no stem and attaches at cap

Around the 2hr mark I went for a walk round the walled garden. The snowdrops were just pushing through and in about a week the place will be totally decked out with them and well worth a trip if the weather is decent. However not much to photo there currently. No activity around the beehives which looked closed and dead for the Winter. So I wandered back to the pond area really just to monitor how much of the foodstuffs remained. Crumbs or less! So the crows and pigeons (who had waited patiently for me to leave) had probably moved in swiftly and demolished the remaining stuff. I was glad it was appreciated and hoped I'd helped those eeking out an existance in harsh conditions.

Around this time the sun was catching the ground fog and making pretty pictures. I couldn't be bothered to change lenses so it made things harder getting only close-ups of small areas rather than the bigger picture. A friendly robin came over to help and sat very calmly while I zoomed in and out taking its photo. I threw down some bread as a reward.

Then the LTTs flew through. A couple of great tits in tow with them; a noisy little band of brothers. I shot a lot more than appears here. Not many made the grade as most were just silhouettes or half-out the frame.

1/6400 of a second but the light is deteriorating

and high ISO makes for a grainy pic

a rare portrait format
because otherwise I'd have to step back into the water

Okay time to go. I hadn't brought sandwiches on this occasion and the thought of home made soup was enough to inspire a quick march to the bus stop. However I went via the big field as the sun on the bare branches of the large dead tree in the middle is often worth a photo. While the holiday jets fly overhead and land every 10 mins.

tiny crab apples?

large dead tree

superb design, construction and lighting!
better than nearly everything you'd find in an art gallery

2.8miles in 3hrs

a very enjoyable jaunt!

video clips from the day
soundtrack: Aqualung by A Winged Victory for the Sullen

PS I see this blog has just gone past 1million pageviews. Now while that is small fry if you are an influencer putting on make-up, costumes on small dogs or making cakes that don't look like cakes, it was quite a surprise to get there already. It took me ten years to get to 500,000 pageviews and I assumed it would take another 10 to get to a million. However 13 years and here we are.

However I don't really do this blog for views or popularity, but as an archive and reference diary of what I was doing and where I did it. However I'm guessing the bots have been busy. Or maybe having more pages and more views itself generates more pageviews. I am not sure, and have never done a deep dive on what exactly it means. Or what the appropriate celebration would be?

Or how I monetise it. That's the formula isn't it? Make a popular website for free, then it picks up interest, people warm to it, then in a capitalist move the owners try to turn it into a cash cow and it is dead in a year. Hold my beer! 😋

Oh and thanks for popping in for a read and look at the photos. Let me know if there's anything you'd like more of, or less of. (Dad jokes in both categories?) I probably won't do anything about that, but I'm always interested to know who is a part of the readership but maybe never comments or makes themselves known. Please do take a step forward and say hello and maybe let me know how many years you've been following things here. Especially if we haven't met. Thanks. 
petersbuchanan@gmail.com    January 2026

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