Sparrow - House (Passer domesticus)

A familiar bird in towns and the countryside, there is some evidence that they have declined in recent years. The adults eat seeds and some shoots buds and berries, the young birds are fed on insects. Their nests are large oval balls of grass lined with feathers. The 3 - 5 eggs hatch after 11 - 14 days.

We looked to try and create photographs that used good light and fine feather detail. We were sat in Stromness harbour in Orkney when a few came very close enabling these images. The camera was hand held using a Nikon 500mm prime with a 1.7x tele converter. The aperture was set to F16 to allow for a good depth of field.

Sparrow - Tree (Passer montanus)

This once common bird is now a rare sight in many parts of the United Kingdom. The photographs here were taken at Wicken Fen national Trust nature reserve in Cambridgeshire and an RSPB reserve in Lincolnshire. They feed on plant and animal foods depending on their availability, they also eat berries and and insects including grasshoppers and beetles. They nest in holes in trees or walls laying 2 - 7 eggs which hatch in 11 - 14 days.