Female Mandarin Duck

The beautiful mandarin duck was introduced from the Far East, where it can still be found in China, Japan, Korea and parts of Russia. It escaped, or was deliberately released, from captivity in the UK. They are actually quite shy birds, often hiding beneath overhanging willows and usually only forming small flocks. How to identify A beautiful, unmistakable duck: male mandarins have...

The Western Osprey

Images by CRUSH Photography The Western Osprey is 0.9–2.1 kg (2.0–4.6 lb) in weight and 50–66 cm (20–26 in) in length with a 127–180 cm (50–71 in) wingspan. The upperparts are a deep, glossy brown, while the breast is white and sometimes streaked with brown, and the underparts are pure white. 'Osprey' By CRUSH Photography© Description The sexes appear...

Blue Tit

Smaller than the great tit, the blue tit is also a bird of woodland, parks and gardens. It nests in holes in trees, but is just as happy to use nestboxes. Blue tits are active feeders, hunting out insects and spiders among the smaller branches and leaves of trees in woodlands. But they are also well-adapted to gardens and towns and will visit birdtables and peanut feeders; they are even famed...

Common Kingfisher

The Common Kingfisher is a small unmistakable bright blue and orange bird of slow moving or still water. The Common Kingfisher flies rapidly, low over water, and hunt fish from riverside perches, occasionally hovering above the water’s surface. They are vulnerable to hard winters and habitat degradation through pollution or unsympathetic management of watercourses. Kingfishers...