a male chaffinch hopped up on to the patio where I had dropped some seeds as I was sat having a coffee in the sunshine, so I managed to get a close-up in profile of the wonderful colours he displays. Gorgeous slate-blue on his head, which narrows and winds down under his cheek. A dark peach colour on his cheek which fades to a paler peach under his beak and a dirtier peach on is back. Its beak is covered in small bits of seed.

#SmallbirdSaturday @javajanegallery.co.uk #ECK
#birds #birdphotography #naturephotography #photo #photographersofBlueSky #nature #wildlife #mygardenwatch #gardens #thelittlethings
A male chaffinch

#BlueSkyArtShow #openings #ECK
#flowers #bloomscrolling #dailyflowers
#bees #gardens #wildlife #nature #mygardenwatch
#photo #photography #macro
I have been waiting for the tulips to open in our garden + this is the 1st one. Looks like this bee has been waiting too!

a peacock butterfly sat with its wings pinged open on lime-green foliage. It is predominantly red in colour, but with purple, blue, white and red "eyes" on the top corners of its wings. The underwings reveal similar markings but which are half covered by the top wings.

a beautiful, fresh speckled wood butterfly. it looks pristine, with crisp, scalloped edges to its wings. It is predominantly dark brown in colour, with creamy coloured spots all over its wings, and 2 small, brown circular spots with a white centre at the corner of both upper wings. Its furry body is a mixture of browns and greens. It is sat in amongst green foliage

#InsectThursday #butterflies #papillon #photo #photography #nature #wildlife #wildlifephotography #photographersofBlueSky #mygardenwatch
#ECK #AlphabetChallenge #WeekMforMovies
Papillon 1973, McQueen + Hoffman

a bee in the centre of a beautiful, plump, yellow dandelion which is filling the picture with its multiple long slender yellow petals and its orange stamens in the centre. the bee's legs are covered in pollen as it squirrels its way around each of the stamens in the centre of the flower

#InsectThursday #bees
#ColorADay #YellowThur #macro #photo #photography #ECK #mygardenwatch #flowers #bloomscrolling #thelittlethings #dailyflowers #gardens #wildlife #nature

2 mallards sit side by side, a female in the foreground and the male behind. It is a head shot; the female is in sharp focus and the male is behind her, slightly out of focus, as it should be. lol. She is a beautiful, subtle combination of tans and dark browns and he is a loud, look-at-me, I'm more important, shade of iridescent green and purplish-brown with a white collar. But he is still in her shadow.

#Twosday #BirdoftheDay #BestoftheMonth #birds #mygardenwatch #photo #wildlife #nature #ECK #photography #birdphotography #PhotographersofBlueSky
The female taking centre-stage, as is right and proper. 😏😉

a siskin pointing straight at me and staring me down. Amusingly it has one foot one one tree cone and the other foot on an adjacent cone. The sky behind is bright blue

a female black bird sat on an upturned wheelbarrow in the garden. Behind her lush green grass is in soft focus with the stems of a plant we have just planted as a hedge to hide our compost. She is dark brown all over but with a pale speckled patch under her chin. Her head is pointed to the left as we look as she faces the camera

We have 2 mallards visit our pond pretty much daily now, as they did last year. I was wandering up yesterday to replace the memory card in our wildlife camera that looks over the pond when I spotted them. So I "ducked" down (see what I did there) and crept up a bit and got this lovely close-up photo of the female. It is a head shot in profile. She has layers of tan, dark brown, cream feathers with a dark brown striped running from her beak across her eyeline. Beautiful

A goldfinch sits tall and proud on the thick, silvery branch of a tree in the garden observing our bird feeders. It is in full sun, lighting up its vivid red face with white then black circles around the head. The breast is a golden brown with white down the centre and the bright yellow patch on the black wing is visible

@robcrank68.bsky.social 's #BirdoftheDay today is #BestoftheMonth #birds #ECK #photo #photography #mygardenwatch #nature
Nothing fancy here just birds I have watched in the garden this month as spring arrives

a tiny, tiny pale blue butterfly sat on a large glossy green leaf. It has a big black eye sat beneath 2 blue + black striped antennae + small black specks dotted over the pale blue underwing. In flight it looks much more blue as its upperwings have a stronger pigment.

#Mygardenwatch #firstoftheyear #butterflies
#BlueSkyMonday #ECK #photography #wildlifephotography #photographersofBlueSky #gardens #thelittlethings #onlybeautifulthings
So excited to see the 1st Holly Blue of 2026 + in my own garden too.

the red, white, black and gold of the goldfinch contrasting against the soft blue of the cornflowers it is sat upon and the pale greens of the foliage in the background. Its beak is slightly open as it nibbles on a seed pulled from the flowers

#BlueSkyMonday anything #blue #ECK
#birds #photography #mygardenwatch #flowers #bloomscrolling #dailyflowers #thelittlethings #onlybeautifulthings
a goldfinch enjoying cornflowers in the garden last summer

Plump, pear-shaped partridges standing juxtaposed, one facing to the right and one, slightly behind the other, facing left. They have predominantly brown backs/wings, but then the fun starts. On its flank it has a pattern of white and reddish-brown resembling scales. Under its chin it has a black collar which continues in black speckles down its breast. Red eyes have a black outline and a black line descends from the corner of its eye to meet the black collar. The black lining surrounds a white patch under its red beak. To finish off it has a grey head and red legs and feet.

#BirdoftheDay theme is #TriColour
#birds @alan678.bsky.social #ECK #birdphotography #photo #twosday #photographersofBluesky #nature #wildlife #gardens #mygardenwatch
2 red-legged partridges pottered around the garden this week. They survived the shooting parties this year

a bee with its legs clinging on to various parts of a hawthorn blossom with stamens laden with pollen. The bee's head is turned slightly to the side and looks like it has massive aviator goggles on. Its hairy abdomen is glistening in the sun as are the hairs all over its legs

#MacroMonday #Insects #bees #thelittlethings #onlybeautifulthings #ECK #photography #photo #nature #wildlife #gardens #mygardenwatch #bloomscrolling #spring
a bee on the hawthorn blossoms. looks a bit sad doesn't he?

a pretty blue to purple flower in the garden right now. I planted it but can't for the life of me remember what it is called. Daisy-like petals fan out from its golden yellow centre. The green stems of other flowers in the garden bed surround the flower which grows close to the ground

#BlueSkyMonday #blue #flowers #bloomscrolling #ECK #dailyflowers #spring #gardens #mygardenwatch #photo

A male blackbird sat on top of our garage roof in the back garden. I spotted him looking at me disparagingly as I looked at him. I thought he might fly off but he had things to do.

He hopped down into the long grass beside the garage with a purposeful stance. He hopped this way and that, back and forth.

Suddenly he stopped and, crouching low in the grass he tipped his head to one side - I think he's heard something

And the next thing you know he is pulling the longest fattest worm out of the ground. A successful morning for Mr B

#BirdoftheDay says @alan678.bsky.social is any #birds #grounded #ECK #photo #birdphotography #nature #wildlife #mygardenwatch #storyboard
A male blackbird see ALT for story

A bee with the pouches on its legs full to busting with honey flies over a branch covered in hawthorn blossoms

A honey bee sitting atop a cluster of 3 white hawthorn blossoms. It has already collected a good deal of honey by the looks of the laden pouch on its leg

Some kind of bee fly I think this time. Its shiny black eyes looking like dark sunglasses on its face. Beautiful fine latticework looking like etchings adorn its wings. It is sat on a branch covered in white hawthorn blossoms all bursting with pollen-laden stamens

I would be interested to know if anyone can tell me what this insect is. Some sort of parisitic fly?

#MyGardenWatch #Insects #Insectthursday #thelittlethings #onlybeautifulthings #SensoryArt #spring #flowers #bloomscrolling #hedges #gardens #wildlife #nature #photo #photography #macro
I am so glad we decided to plant hawthorn in our wild hedge 2 years ago cos we now have this!

a cluster of white hawthorn flowers play host to a ladybird. It is sat side-on to the camera as it feed from one of the flowers

#ColorADay #RedWed #mygardenwatch #photo #photography #macro #nature #wildlife #onlybeautifulthings #thelittlethings #flowers #bloomscrolling #dailyflowers
ladybird meets hawthorn

a male house sparrow in sharp focus against a bright blue sky, sat upon the branches of a tree in our garden. His chestnut brown cheek is side-on to the camera as its shiny black eye gazes into the distance. Its silvery grey chest is shining in the sun. He has a mottled black and grey bib and a short stocky beak

@alan678.bsky.social 's alt theme for #BirdoftheDay is #sparrow #birds #birdphotography #ECK #gardens #gardenbirds #ukbirds #photographersofBlueSky #nature #wildlife #mygardenwatch
so here's a sparrow

a blackbird who I enjoy watching the most in a bird bath I think because it really goes for it. This is a male blackbird, his black feathers in disarray as beads of water splash all around him. He is sat in the centre of a stone bird bath which is surrounded by soft green foliage

2 Blue Tits and 1 Great Tit this time in the same stone birdbath which is full to the top with water. 1 Blue Tit is sat on the back edge of the bath, shaking off some of the water as it has already been in the bath. The other 2 are splashing in the water

a fledgling robin this time. Its wings are a blur as it flaps in the water sending a spray of droplets into the air. its speckled ginger and brown head is in focus with its bright eye ever vigilant while it enjoys a bath

#BirdoftheDay #Splash is the theme per @alan678.bsky.social #ECK #birds #gardens #gardenbirds #photo #photography #birdphotography #mygardenwatch
me enjoying birds enjoying our bird bath

the bulbous, blue flowers of a grape hyacinth clumped together, light blue flowers at the top, getting darker at the base. Raindrops are clinging to the ends of a number of the flower heads like glass beads. Green stems surround the flower which is set against a dark background

#BlueSkyMonday #ECK #flowers #bloomscrolling #dailyflowers #gardens #mygardenwatch #photo #photography #MinimalMonday #MacroMonday
grape hyacinth with raindrops

A Great Spotted Woodpecker hanging on the side of a metal nut feeder. You can just catch a glimpse of the red on the nape of its neck. Its creamy breast meets another flash of red on the underside of its tail which is bent slightly underneath the feeder for balance. In contrast, it has a black cap, a black chevron down the side of its neck and black wings with creamy white bars. The rain is visible streaking across a soft green background

A redpoll looking a bit soggy in the rain, its feathers somewhat ruffled and wet. It is sat on the arm of a seed feeder facing the camera. It is a greyish brown bird on its face and back but its cap and breast are a rosy red colour. A rain drop is hanging from its beak

A male siskin sat on the metal arm of a seed feeder looking straight down the lens of the camera. He is a vivid yellow bird with contrasting black cap and black bars on its wings

A male mandarin duck, offering up the green part of the challenge. It certainly isn't the main colour on the extraordinary plumage of this bird but is a lovely contrast to the orange, as is the purple on its breast. A large orange sail acts as a tail and an orange breast and burnt orange frill of feathers around its chin and cheek are bordered with black and white stripes separating the orange from a purple breast. Its face is white which makes the black eye pop and running up from its beak is a purple stripe which meets more burnt orange on the nape of its neck. The green flash is part of the burnt orange frill around its neck

@robcrank68.bsky.social 's pick for pics of today's #BirdoftheDay is #birds on #Feeders + Alt theme is #Green #ECK #photo #photography #birdphotography #gardens #mygardenwatch #nature #wildlife
a lot of birds in the rain pics here as that's been the weather this year so far

the top edge of a fence with 3 blackbirds sat in a horizontal line on top of it. 2 birds sit with backs to the camera either end of the fence like bookends and the blackbird in the middle is sat side on looking towards the camera. green branches arc over the top of the fence

#BlueSkyArtShow #horizontal #birds #ECK #photo #photography #nature #mygardenwatch #birdphotography
#ImageandVerse
🎶Three Little Birds pitch by my doorstep, Singin' sweet songs of melodies pure and true sayin' this is my message to you ou ou 🎶 Happy Saturday all

the top edge of a fence with 3 blackbirds sat in a horizontal line on top of it. 2 birds sit with backs to the camera either end of the fence like bookends and the blackbird in the middle is sat side on looking towards the camera. green branches arc over the top of the fence

#BlueSkyArtShow #horizontal #birds
#photo #mygardenwatch #photography #birdphotography

A wren in the cutest pose on our mossy patio. It is stood with its tail upright and its head bent down towards the ground and tilted slightly to one side as it examines the cracks in the patio

The same wren now perched on the metal stem of a metal flower we have in the garden. The rusted metal petals of the flower are above the wren as it hops upwards along the stem, its back to the camera, its head slightly turned to the left so that the white stripe above its eye is visible

The same bird now atop the petals of the metal flower, its legs slightly apart as its feet cling on to 2 of the petals. This is the moment just before he hops down behind the petal in the pose I have used for Alan's abstract #Birdoftheday theme

#SmallbirdSaturday @javajanegallery.co.uk #birds #ECK #photo #photography #birdphotography #mygardenwatch #gardens
I watched this wee wren hop around our front patio for ages, flitting here, hopping there, busy, busy, busy. Love this bird

the picture is of a rusted metal flower. It has long rusted, layered petals in a big arc and visible behind those petals are long metal stamens with circular tips poking out over the top of the petals. Between 2 of these stamens the wren's tail is sticking upwards, almost as if it is trying to resemble one of the stamens. You can see the nut brown and dark brown stripes on the underside of its tail and its white bum

@alan678.bsky.social 's alternative pick for today's #BirdoftheDay is #Abstract
#birds #ECK #photography #photo #birdphotography #nature #gardens #mygardenwatch
A wren, or should I say a wren's tail as it popped down behind this metal flower in our garden

a very smart, handsome looking male house sparrow sitting very upright in amongst twigs and branches. He has a haughty look about him. His silvery grey breast is pushed out, his stance is very upright, his head is turned to the right showing off his chestnut stripe across his gleaming black eye.

#BirdoftheDay theme is #TwigsareUs #birds perched on twigs @robcrank68.bsky.social #ECK #photo #photography #birdphotography #wildlife #nature #mygardenwatch
a house sparrow

a head shot of a sparrowhawk. A bright orange eye sits in a perfectly coifed grey head with some white highlights, especially over the eye giving the impression of an eyebrow. Its strong hooked beak has a yellow flash at its base. A creamy white bib flows down from its beak and stretches across the top of its shoulder which is just visible

#BirdoftheDay Alt theme today is #HeadShots @robcrank68.bsky.social #EastCoastKin #birds
#photo #photography #birdphotography #mygardenwatch #photo #wildlife #photographersofBlueSky
Making coffee at the sink yesterday morning, looked up + this beauty is sat right outside the window.

I noticed this Long Tailed Tit flying repeatedly from the hedgerow to the car under our carport. So I went out to take a look. The bird has seen its reflection in the car window somehow and, I assume, thinks it's another Long Tailed Tit on his patch. Here it is checking out its "rival" by sitting on the trim around the edge of the back window

It then flies back up into the hedgerow alongside the carport. I have a feeling there is a pair currently checking this section of the hedgerow out for a nest as I have also seen them flying in and out of here repeatedly. It sits here for a matter of seconds before it returns to the car

It first of all flies to the back window, and once this has been checked out, it flies to the front window to repeat the process. Here it is mid-flight between the 2 car windows

Whilst checking out the reflection there is a lot of pecking at the window which is what it is doing in this picture. I did also take video of the whole palaver. I do not believe it is hurting itself in any way but I might consider finding something to cover the car so that it is not distressed in any way

#MyGardenWatch @bto-gbw.bsky.social #birds #gardens #photo #nature #wildlife
#Storyboard today's tale surrounds this Long Tailed Tit. see ALT for Story.

a rook peering over the top of our flowerbed its head and shoulders visible and, predominantly, that beak! The most enormous beak sits on the front of its face, its eye just squeezing onto its face alongside the chunky snozzle. The bird is jet black and large in stature, standing very upright in this picture

#BirdoftheDay per @alan678.bsky.social is #Corvidae
#classicmono #b&w #monochrome #birds #ECK #photo #photography #birdphotography #mygardenwatch
The prehistoric looking rook in our garden

A Great Spotted Woodpecker hanging on the side of the nut feeder. He has a black cap and a flash of red on the back of his neck and on his rump. His breast is a creamy white and his wing feathers are black with white bands.

@robcrank68.bsky.social has picked #birds showing #SideProfiles for today's #BirdoftheDay #EastCoastKin #photo #photography #nature #wildlife #gardens #mygardenwatch #birdfeeders
I have gone for a couple of birds visiting the feeders in my garden this month

I was enjoying sitting outside in the sunshine when I spotted this wee fella enjoying the blue flowers on the rosemary I have just outside the kitchen which I use a lot in my cooking. I decided to watch and see which flowers he most enjoyed as we have quite a few in our front bed at the moment

He then moved on to the blue grape hyacinths (which I personally think are their favourites of the choices available to them at the moment) The bee is a gorgeous fat, fluffy bee with the perfect, thick black and orange stripes and a white bum. Its furry legs are wrapped around the plump blue flowers that adorn each grape hyacinth bulb

I was pleased to see that its next port of call was the purple nettle weed which I purposefully let grow throughout the garden because it is another important source of nectar at a time when there is not a lot on offer. It has nettle-like leaves with jagged edges but not stinging, and pretty lilac flowers. The lace work on the bees wings is visible in this shot, which are tucked across its back as it buries its head in a flower

Finally, we have some white grape hyacinths which it briefly visited but soon moved on back to the blue. All of this activity was in the space of a few minutes - as the saying says, he's a busy bee

#MyGardenWatch #Storyboard #bees #flowers #bloomscrolling #InsectThursday #macro #flyday #photo #photography #EastCoastKin #insects #gardens #wildlife #nature
Today's story follows a bee in my garden

I spotted this female blackbird hopping in the grass collecting moss. At this point she has a reasonable beakful. However, she suddenly dropped the lot into the grass and started hopping to the left

ear, ear. She has clearly heard something. She is sat in the dewy grass with her head cocked to one side. I was pretty sure she had heard a worm

Next thing you know, she's pulled a juicy worm out of the ground. In this picture she has the whole worm dangling from her beak. She proceeds to pick at it, swallowing it in small mouthfuls

and back to the job in hand. This time she has a far more substantial clump of soft, green moss pulled out of our grass (which to be fair is more moss than grass). She is sat on the upright post of our hammock with conifer branches in the background

#Mygardenwatch I'm gonna do a couple of storyboards of birds I'm watching in the garden at the mo. #birds #gardens #photography #photo #nature #wildlife @bto-gbw.bsky.social
See Alt for storyline of this female blackbird

A siskin, a member of the finch family sat sideways on on the metal stalk of a metal flower in our garden. The rusted underside of the petals of the flower spread out from the top of the metal pole. The little bird has bright yellow and black bands on its wings and tails, softening to a creamy lemon on its breast with grey flecks and a pale lemon face. This is a female so the colours are slightly more muted than the male.

Alternative pick by @alan678.bsky.social for #BirdoftheDay today is #Finches #birds #EastCoastKin #photo #photography #birdphotography #gardens #gardenbirds #nature #wildlife #mygardenwatch