At the riverside, Dippers are one of the most exciting little creatures to see. Not as bold and colourful as Kingfishers, their habits also differ. Rather than dropping on large prey from above, these birds will dive and swim under the water collecting a number of invertebrates, holding several in their beak at once.

Unmistakable with their habit of bobbing up and down, dippers can be quite tame allowing the photographer to get relatively close without disturbing their routine. I watched this pair taking nesting material, in this case leaves, into their nest on the river side. The male was caught in two minds between keeping an eye on his mate and lining the nest to her satisfaction.

It is not uncommon for dippers to nest behind waterfalls so you can imagine what fantastic subjects they make for photographs during their exit from their secretive home.

Fellow photographer Craig Jones had captured some excellent local dipper shots - check them out amongst others here

Next opportunity I get I'll be straight back to the river for more beautiful shots.