Cornucopia of wildlife at Ouse Fen 02

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Part two of my little expedition to Ouse Fen Nature Reserve, which finds me on the lookout for its smaller inhabitants as they hide in undergrowth, doing their best to keep out of my way as I trample through their habitat.

Which makes it sound like I'm engaged in some sort of wanton destruction of their little homes, and in a sense I am, and I'm glad. No of course I'm not, but there is so much happening in the shrubs and the grasses, that just the act of walking among them reveals a bounty of wildlife, as they scurry or flap their way to safety.

So a keen eye allows you to follow their journey, and hopefully snap them as they temporarily rest among the brush, it's actually a very absorbing way to spend some time, as it engages you completely. No wonder grasshopper is the name of a yoga position.

Cornucopia of wildlife at Ouse Fen 01

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Another visit to Ouse Fen Nature Reserve, a place I can’t seem to keep away from at the moment, mainly thanks the plethora of insect life that throng the flower meadows this time of year.

So cue some close up images of moths, butterflies, ladybirds, wasps, crickets, grasshoppers, skippers, spiders and dragonflies.

I’ve stuck half of them in this post and the rest will be in the next one, so check back in a couple of days for more colourful insect goodness.

Let the show begin…

Here be dragon(flies) and a damselfly

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Following on from my recent, and relatively unsuccessful trip to get some images of dragonflies, I decided to give it another go, but at a different location. And thankfully it worked out a lot better. 

These little beauties were a lot more cooperative, and sat still for minutes at a time in some cases. Which meant I wasn’t left to ineptly flounder about, in a bumbling clownish manner, in an effort to track them on the wing. I could take my sweet time about it, within reason of course.

As an added bonus, there were a few different species about as well, so I could get a bit of variety in the shots. I still can’t decide if dragonflies up close are the stuff of nightmares, or incredibly beautiful, but whatever they may or may not be, they are certainly an interesting subject to photograph, and I was there for a good couple of hours or so, snapping away. 

So I give you a small selection of dragonflies, and a beautiful little damselfly to finish off with, and that is all I can give you.

Beautiful blue butterflies

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In my recent excursions to photograph the insects that are about and about in abundance this time of year, I have had an eye out for blue butterflies, but I’ve not actually come across any, and the more I didn’t see any, the more I’ve been hankering to discover some.

The common blue would be the species I’d most likely find, as it is the most widespread of the blue butterflies in Britain, and as the name suggests, it is one of the most common butterflies in Europe. 

Insects and abstracts at Ouse Fen

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In my continuing quest to photograph some of life’s smaller participants, namely the multitudinous variety of insects that are scampering and buzzing about this time of year, I took another trip to Ouse Fen Nature Reserve, predominantly in the hope of encountering some dragonflies.

If you’re a regular reader of this blog, you will no doubt recognise the name Ouse Fen, as I have been on several visits, for both the wildlife and the landscape. All of which can be found here, here, here and here. 

Birdlife at Ouse Fen

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Following on from my last blog post where I expressed my disgruntlement at not being able to photograph the myriad birdlife at Ouse Fen RSPB nature reserve. Mainly thanks to the lack of telescopic prowess of my lenses, and where, to my shame, I told the birds to go shove it, for which I wholeheartedly apologise, I decided to give it another go.

My lenses had not suddenly acquired new found abilities you understand, but I was ready to do something I have always tried to shy away from if at all possible. I was prepared to crop my pictures, and boy did I have to crop them. I've always been of the mind that if the composition cannot be found while actually taking the photo, then to leave it be.

But needs as must, and I snapped away with blithesome abandonment, ready to hack away at the images when back in front of my computer, which is exactly what I did. So below are a selection of pictures from that reckless afternoon with the birds, along with a brief description of each one appropriated from the RSPB.

Ouse Fen sunset event

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Last week I visited the RSPB Nature Reserve of Ouse Fen, in the hope that I might get a bit of sunset colour. Thankfully I wasn't disappointed, as the clouds were big and the colour was vibrant, which was just the job.

I set up my gear next to one of the lakes, which are actually reclaimed gravel pits, from the still active quarry that is situated nearby, and is the largest in Eastern England, and kept my fingers crossed for a bit of sunset action.

The RSPB, in partnership with the quarry company, are in the process of turning the disused parts of the quarry into a nature reserve, and it will, in several years, be home to 460 hectares of reed bed habitat, the largest in the country.

As you can see from the following images, thanks to the huge, ever changing clouds, the early evening light put on quite a show.

Several visits to Ouse Fens Nature Reserve

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At this time of year, sunsets are a bit more manageable thanks to the shorter days, so I have recently been visiting Ouse Fens Nature Reserve of an evening. This RSPB site it a haven for many types of bird life, some of them quite rare. Unfortunately my wildlife photography skills leave a lot to be desired, so I stuck to landscapes.

Thankfully there are several spots to be found along the River Ouse, and some of them do favour the sunset image, so I have been taking full advantage. Below are a selection of images, they're not all taken at different spots, but all are taken on different days, with accompanying weather conditions and cloud cover to add a touch of variety.

An evening at Ouse Fen nature reserve

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While not so prevalent at this time of the evening, at other times these wildflowers attract a whole host of
insects. I have walked through during the day and each step produces a kaleidoscope of colourful butterflies
and electric blue damselflies.

The other evening I took a little trip to the RSPB nature reserve at Ouse Fen in Cambridgeshire, so called because it is traversed by The Great Ouse. At 143 miles, its journey from near Bedford to the Wash makes it one of the longest rivers in the UK. Hence the ‘Great’ moniker, to distinguish it from several other waterways named the Ouse.