Melissa's Snapshots

02/01/2024

May 2024 be full of happiness, love, and new opportunities for everyone 🎊

Wishing this year to be a great one for each one of us🙂

Here, we have a fluffy mute swan cygnet tucked safely in the love of it's parent.

#2024

30/12/2023

As 2023 draws to a close, am greatful for the lessons and memories learned from this year and look forward to a promising and amazing 2024 🎊

In this photograph, we have a herd of fallow deer 😊

#2023

29/12/2023

Family Time 😊

Wishing all of you this holiday season filled love, laughter and joy! May your holidays be merry and bright and surrounded by the warmth of your family.

Happy Holidays everyone 🎊

Here, we have a young coot family having a beautiful family moment.

Did you know the saying 'bald as a coot' actually refers to the white batch just above the coot's bill, rather than a lack of feathers. Coots are at times also referred as 'bald coots' and 'white-faced divers'.

07/12/2023

A bond for life - The Ruddy-headed Goose

These ruddy headed geese are endemic to South America.

The adult geese as seen here have a reddish-brown head and neck. Their eyes are dark brown with a white crescent above and below the eye. They have a grey plumage with a finely barred buff and have a black tail.

The females are similar to the males but slightly smaller in size than the male geese. A pair mates for life.

Sadly their numbers have drastically plummeted over the past few decades and on the brink of extinction. Presently, there are only 700 of them left in Southern Argentina and Chile. There is a sizeable Falkland population of these geese. Recent studies have shown that the South American and Falkland populations are genetically distinct.

Happy to come across this pair enjoying the sun.

19/08/2023

A rising star 🌟

On the occasion of World Photography Day 2023, we bring you an exclusive interview with the young talent where Vidyun takes us on an incredible exploration of his photography journey and his future plans to pursue photography and explore Antarctica someday. - Articles from The Weather Channel | weat...

21/05/2023

The White Knight

The smew is a shy diving duck. It has earned this title as the drake displays a bold courtship performance raising its crown feathers and moving its bill side to side.

It is the smallest duck to have a bill with serrated edges and a hooked tip that helps catch fish.

It is an uncommon winter visitor to the UK from Russia and Scandinavia. In the UK, these birds are mostly found in South East England.

Did you know the male smew is sometimes referred to as the white nun because of its plumage and crest that gives an impression of this feathered friend adorning a white hood.

Delighted to catch a glimpse of this rare visitor

14/05/2023

My mom is the best mom in the whole wide-world 🙂

Wishing all the amazing moms out there a very Happy Mother's Day🥳

In the avian world, one amongst the many dedicated mother's is the female mute swan also known as a Pen 🦢

Mute swans breed in the Spring. They are called mute as they are less noisy than the other swan species but no way are the mute swans silent.

The Pen plucks feathers from an area on her underside called the brood patch. This area turns completely bare allowing the eggs to sit closer to her body and warm during incubation.She incubates her eggs for about 5 to 6 weeks.

The male swan called a cob occasionally keeps the eggs warm and protects the nest while the Pen is away feeding. When the clutch of eggs hatch the cygnets remain in the nest for about two days before entering the water. Both parents share the responsibility of feeding the little ones.

It was a priceless moment for me witnessing a day old cygnets all playful around their mother.

13/05/2023

World Migratory Bird Day - This day aims to raise awareness about the threats faced by the migratory birds and to amplify the efforts put in towards their conservation.

Here, we have a graceful barnacle goose. Barnacle geese are winter visitors to the UK undertaking an epic journey from Greenland and Svalbard.

Overjoyed to come across this perseverant traveller

06/05/2023

Nothing to fear when mommy is watching over us

A female canada goose with her adorable goslings. These little ones are enjoying their afternoon nap.

The mother goose picks the spot where she would like her nest to be built. She prefers a place that is always near water bodies that is secluded. Her nest is made of dry grasses, twigs, and other plant material. She shapes her nest into a bowl using her body.

The fluffy goslings take about a month to hatch. These little ones hatch with their eyes open.

Heartwarming to see these adorable goslings taking a peaceful nap.

30/04/2023

Eye of Gold

This bird is known for it's striking golden eye from where it derives it's name.

The scientific name of this beautiful feathered friend is known as Bucephala which means 'bull-headed'. This refers to it's strange head shape.

This duck is known for it's loud, double whistle sound heard from up to a kilometre away as a part of its courtship display.

These beautiful golden eyes are sadly classified in the UK on the red list.

Happy to come across this female golden eye enjoying her lesiure swim

22/04/2023

Farmers of the Forest

The Great Indian Hornbill plays a crucial role in dispersing seeds in the forest while enjoying a fruit snack😋 This helps the forest grow and earns this avian friend this title.

These birds are also known as Banrao in Mussoorie and Homrai in Nepal that means 'King of the Jungle'.

Hornbills get their name from the horn-like structure called casque on their beaks.

These birds are mostly sighted in pairs as they mate for life.

This magnificent bird is the official state bird of Arunachal Pradesh and Kerala.

Due to habitat loss and hunting for feathers sadly this beautiful bird is on the vulnerable category in the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

Thrilled to catch sight of this beautiful bird🙂

03/03/2023

An elusive wild cat: The Eurasian Lynx

On happy to share this photograph of a keystone predator the Eurasian Lynx.

Lynxes, also known as Britain's little lions, where the third largest predator in Europe after bears and wolves.

These animals are solitary and shy creatures that ambush their prey.

These exotic looking cats have tuft of black hair on the tips of their ears and a bobbed tail. Scientists are of the opinion that these hair work like whiskers detecting things above its head. Others believe these cluster of hairs enhances their hearing.

So happy to see the lynx silently spreading again across Europe after going extinct due to habitat loss and persecution by humans.