Early morning visitor

The greater spotted woodpecker parents are frequent visitors to our bird feeders. They now prefer the ones near the front door (literally 5 feet away from the door). The alternative feeders in the back garden are in trees but dominated by the jackdaws. So to our delight the birds come and feed at the front; at the moment it is many times a day.

I set up the camera on a tripod and operated it using a wireless remote. Unfortunately it was very dark and grey this morning, so I had to use a high ISO to get any result. I'll be trying again another day, but in the meantime I'm pleased to have caught this image of the female.

I've been on a wildlife walk all day on the stretch of the Tyne from Riding Mill to Hexham. We saw a wide variety of plants and heard and saw a lot of birds. The best moment was when a mother goosander and her ducklings swam down the river. They were almost like a cartoon: when the mother increased her speed the little ones were left behind and then seemed to run on the water to catch up. Then one climbed on her back for a ride. Magic.