Slow-worms

It's been a while since my last post, to be honest I've been pretty busy trying to fit in jobs around the small holding and keeping up with photography.
This time of year is great for reptile watching and the warm spring we're having is really helping.
I'm very lucky to have a population of Slow-worms living on the property, this year there seems to be a lot more around than in previous years. Despite their appearance they are not snakes but in fact legless lizards and to have them in the garden is a real help to the keen gardener, their favourite food being slugs, in particular the small white ones.
As a toddler it was Slow-worms that really got me interested in wildlife, before I could talk properly I caught my first one, panicking my mum when she saw the worm that I had in my bucket had a flicking tongue.
I've always struggled to get a decent picture of a Slow-worm but this year I think I've made a bit of progress.

Frog's and toads

Over the last couple of weeks most of my photography has revolved around frog's and toad's. It's a busy time of year for them, coming out of hibernation and spawning. Also the Berwyn's seems to be a good location for them, virtually every pool I look in has spawn. Even my reflection pool that has only been created a year has two clumps of spawn in it and I managed to photograph one of the frogs responsible for it this week.
 The toad pictures came about by accident really, I'd travelled to the coast to photograph waders during a spring tide, while waiting for the birds to arrive I watched what I thought was a crab being washed around in the surf. It wasn't until I looked at it through my long lens that I realised it was a toad that had been caught out by the speed of the incoming tide. We washed the toad down with a bottle of mineral water before finding somewhere safe for her, she hung around in the water long enough for me to get some pictures of her that I was quite pleased with.