One of my favourite summer visitors to our shores is the Redstart. The word “Redstart” means “red tail” from Old English “steort.”
They are immediately identifiable by their bright orange-red tails which they constantly flick when they land. The female is more brown in colour but still has that distinctive red tail.
Several weeks ago I found a pair that had returned from Africa where they spend the winter months. Not long after they started to build a nest inside an old tree, in this wood.
I positioned my hide away from the tree and shared some wonderful encounters with the male and female. I wanted to show you some of my favourite images from this project within this blog.
All composed wherever the birds landed naturally. With food they’d caught coming backwards and forwards to their nest, feeding their young. Also showing this dense, woodland habitat in which they have chosen to nest in.
This pair successfully reared their young who all fledged the nest safely, which was fantastic.
For this project I used a camouflaged dome hide from Wildlife Watching Supplies, who make the best. You will also see below the view from inside my dome hide just to give you a sense of what you see from inside.
I also wanted to be more mobile and less restricted, so I used scrim and camouflage netting, also from WWS to break up my appearance, shape and presence.
Fieldcraft is something I talk and write about a lot, it’s so important when dealing with wildlife. To read more about this chick here. Always respect wildlife and remember it’s their space, you are a guest so act accordingly.
Redstarts are on the “Amber” list of species by the RSPB meaning there numbers are decreasing all over Europe. They are protected by The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981.You should never disturb them at or around the nest. many thanks.
#wildlifephotography #nikonz9 #peakdistrict #redstart #ethics
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