So what does the wildlife photographer with a smallholding in Cornwall like to do in September? Well one subject that always strikes me on the cooler mornings of September is dew. The lightly browned tones of grass dried by the heat of August are further warmed by the early morning sun. Bowing under the weight of a heavy dew the grass stems also support vast numbers of orbital webs. The webs, which have been present in good numbers throughout August, only become obvious when draped by the water droplets. These silken traps, stronger by volume than steel, make excellent photographic subjects but only on still mornings!
Adding to the height and texture of the scene at Bosence Meadow are several areas of teasels. These statuesque plants have huge leaves that form reservoirs of water where they meet the stem. Their tremendously productive pink flowers of July and August now give way to large prickly seed heads bulging with seeds. These seeds are full of natural goodness but are out of the reach of most birds; only the goldfinch has mastered the art of extracting them from the teasel’s prickly heads.
The Goldfinch is one of our most attractive birds and its bright colours have made it a focus of human attention for many centuries. In the 19th century it was widely kept as a cage bird with literally hundreds of thousands of birds being taken from the wild in Britain to satisfy this inhumane trade. One of the first battles for the RSPB was to fight against this business but it wasn’t until 1933 that government passed an act to make the sale of wild birds illegal. From the brink of extinction Goldfinches have now increased to become a familiar sight once again.
There is no better time to observe them than in early autumn when their feeding habits are very predictable. Their beaks have evolved to make the Goldfinch a specialist thistle feeder. One of its earliest recorded local names is ‘Thisteltuige’, this Anglo-Saxon name of the eighth century literally means thistle-tweaker. Even the scientific name Carduelis Carduelis is derived from the Latin, Carduus meaning thistle. The male goldfinch has a slightly longer beak and specializes in the extraction of seed from the teasel. They need to be deft with their feet and wings to hold tight as the wind blows the teasels around.
Teasels are easy enough to grow if you have some space in your garden but they can become invasive once they take hold. They flower every two years, so if you want a steady supply each year you will need to plant seed in two successive years. As well as being great for goldfinches in September you will also be rewarded with butterflies drinking nectar from their flowers in July and August. If you don’t have room to grow them then it should be a relatively simple task to find some teasels in the wild but photographing goldfinches on teasels is not as easy as it looks and my best pictures have been taken in conditions where I have been able to take control.
Firstly you would be advised to attract goldfinches to an area suitable for you, either by growing teasels or by providing an artificial food supply. The most attractive type of ‘artificial’ seed for the goldfinch is niger seed, available from specialist bird food retailers, to use this you will also need a niger seed feeder. Once you have them feeding (and there is no doubt that this is the hard bit!) simply provide them with a regular supply of food and they should keep coming back throughout the year.
The next trick is to get out and collect some teasel seed heads, whether you grow them yourself or not. Cut them about fifteen inches from the top of the stem. Finally make a prop-holder to clamp a row of teasels at a convenient height from the ground and you will have created a goldfinch feeding station with sturdy teasels that will neither move in the wind nor under the weight of the bird. It is silly to try to photograph the birds on top of teasels at their full height, it is more difficult to set up a hide and the slightest wind creates a huge sway amongst the seed heads. By choosing where the birds feed you are also at liberty to choose the background which suits you most. Until you need them, the teasels can be used as part of your dried flower display which you started to make for ‘her’ or ‘him’ -indoors by collecting pampas grass for the house sparrows (see July issue). Once the seed from the teasels has been eaten just sprinkle some niger seed into the holes and you have a situation from which you can take control and develop plenty of ideas for photographing them.
There are many advantages of photographing birds in situations where you can take your time to learn and develop your strategy. One obvious example that I have been experimenting with is in the use of reflectors. Since I have trained a flock of goldfinches to feed in a particular area I have been able to introduce reflectors in the form of white card, painted wood or mirrors to fill in shadows created by the sun. Generally I have found that a piece of white card placed underneath the teasels will fill in the shadows underneath the birds so enabling me to take attractively lit photographs even in the middle of the day. Another situation in which I have used reflectors with bird photography is in backlit situations. Being fairly solid objects, birds don’t let a lot of light through and, although they do look good when rim-lit, the effect of back-lighting often creates too much contrast. One way around this is to use fill-in flash but I find it more flattering and less disturbing for the birds to use a reflector. As well as giving a more even lighting the reflectors also add light, thus allowing a faster shutter speed or smaller aperture, depending upon your preference.
So where do you go from here? Basically the world is your oyster and your imagination is the only limiting factor (that sounds a little daunting). I have trained some of my goldfinches to fly through a narrow entrance to get to the niger seed feeder, allowing me the chance to attempt flight shots. I combined this with a mirror to bounce light back from underneath, so maximizing the light. I have had limited success, the one shot included with this article is the best but the bird was too close to the edge of the frame. The shot you see here has had some more background added on the computer.
I have also been developing a series of shots taken on turf. You will notice that I don’t claim the shots to have been taken on the ground because I actually cut the turf and raised it to a more convenient height. Goldfinches will readily feed on this raised ground using niger seed as an incentive. Taking this one step further I have also used garden wire to ‘plant’ dandelion seed heads into this turf and have captured the goldfinch feeding on these too.
What next? Well that would be telling. (Truth is I am not sure at the moment!) Whatever happens I am happy to have attracted so many goldfinches to our plot of land, they are fascinating birds to watch and have the most attractive song. They are ever alert to danger and often take flight en masse and it is then that their delightful flight calls can be heard. Sounding something like a tinkling of bells this song has earned the Goldfinch the rather lovely collective noun, ‘Charm’. The word charm may be related to the Latin word ‘Carmen’ meaning ‘magic song or spell’ but the dictionary definition ‘quality or feature that excites love or admiration’ is equally appropriate. Either way if you can attract these delightful birds to your garden you will enjoy the charm of goldfinches.
Good quality bird food, including niger seed, and feeders can be ordered from Ernest Charles by telephoning 0800 7316770 or visit their web site at www.ernest-charles.com
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