The Bairds Sandpiper was too tempting so I headed the Paxton Pits and after a bit of a walk the Baird's sandpiper was easily located on a small island. A water pipit and yellow wagtail were also present on one of the other islands. The walk back with a couple of spotted flycatchers, willow warbler and a chiffchaff.
Wednesday 27th August
With a morning commitment, the afternoon was free amd my last birding before a couple of trips, so I headed to Minsmere which was rammed with tourists, forgot it was still holiday season, and they outnumbered the birds significantly highlights chiffchaff and sand martin. There were a couple of painted lady butterflies on the budliea, my first of the year and a brief view of a water vole salvaged it. I needed something else so headed to Heybridge basin, timed perfectly with the tide being out almost to Holland. My target the marsh sandpiper was present but quite a way out on the estuary but managed some top photos!! not. A good selection of waders was also present including some rather nice summer plumaged grey plovers and a whimbrel. A constant barrage of cormorant ID's for joe public was too much to take so I retreated home and put the final touches to my upcoming trips.
Tuesday 26th August
An after work jaunt to Kings Mead to see the ruddy duck family. The female and 6 ducklings were present, a small red damselfly was also of note. The journey home was via Therfield heath for another shot at chalkhill blues, defeated by the weather on a previous attempt. The weather was not much better but a few seconds of sun brought out a few meadow browns, gatekeeper and a lone Chalkhill blue.
Sunday 24th August
I took an evening jaunt to Wendover woods for a bit more mammaling. A couple of grey squirrels were around while I was setting up. As dusk approached a tawny owl flew round several times. As dark fell, the edible dormice became vocal and started to show themselves, night vision equipment was a big help. Some noise up the track was a badger running towards me he suddenly crashed off into the undergrowth when he saw me. He was running from some very late dog walkers. The only other mammals were a few rabbits.
Saturday 23rd August
Early evening I met up with Farnborough John at Fowlmere for a bit of mammaling, it was very quiet and during the light fallow deer was the only mammal seen. A bit of night scoping produced a rabbit and possibly a weasel or stoat but views were not sufficient for a positive ID. We scored a little better with bats soprano pipistrelle, common pipistrelle, daubentons and brown long eared. The rain eventually made us quit. The best bird was a sparrowhawk and a great diving beetle walking down the track was noteworthy.
Monday 18th August
Following up on David A's (Stortford crew) sightings of medium sized bats near his house, so armed with bat detector we investigated in far from ideal weather conditions. We did see and hear them brown long eared bats a nice find.
Sunday 17th August
Just got in from some shopping 'n' stuff, when I got the text from Stephen from the Stortford Crew, and we were off arriving at 6:45 on the Lincolshire coast. It took just over an hour of watching common scoter, ringed plover and a selection of the usual gulls before it was found on the sea. It took a while to get on to the adult
Audouin's gull before it took flight and headed south and out to see. A hedgehog was spotted in Boston on the way home.
Saturday 16th August
I have been very unlucky with the weather every time I have tried to find silver spotted skippers and had not seen one. Today the weather was against me again and despite the sunny weather when I left home Aston Rowant NNR was covered in dark cloud and it was quite breezy, even the red kites were not flying. I was the only person on the hill not a good sign and after about 3 hours I had given up. I had seen lots of meadow browns, gatekeepers and small skippers and a couple of marbled whites and then it flitted in front of me a silver spotted skipper it allowed a few photos before disappearing but still I had found it. Next stop was Whitecross green wood, where I did manage to find a brown hairstreak briefly and finally Therfield heath on my way home but not a butterfly to be seen in the strong wind. I did see some red kites over the M40 but apart from bullfinches at Whitecross green wood not much else. Still September is on its way soon.
Wednesday 13th August
Just leaving the village I did an emergency stop, a mole was crawling along the field edge on the road, but it dissapeared before I could get the camera out.
Tuesday 12th August
I had an appointment in Leicestershire in the morning but the afternoon was mine, I spent sometime at some woods where I was searching for Orchids, thanks to some recent information I located broad leaved and violet helleborines and a real good selection of butterflies some 10 species, white letter hairstreak the highlight. The only bird of note was a red kite on the way up. After some time at relatives in Leicester I headed east to Bourne Wood for some batting. I spent loads of time walking the paths I easily found common pipestrelles and a couple of whiskered bats but no Leislers which was the main target.
Sunday 10th August
Up and down to Penzance for the trip on the Sickillonian, where a few hundred hardy sould were going to brave it in the North Atlantic to see some birds! Penzance was like a millpond but as we passed Land's end the sea became rougher, some driving rain dampened spirits somewhat. The first few became sick and one collapsed hurting himself quite badly and we detoured to St Mary's to drop him off and for some respite from the sea for the rest of us. Only a few stormies and a cory's shearwater of note so far but the weather had inproved nicely. We headed off to aposition SW but within sight of the Bishop Rock about an hour from St Mary's where the chum started and so did the birds good numbers of stormies and fulmar's and then the shout went up Wilson's - I was standing in a poor spot for most things but not for the wilsons petrel and had a brief view near the buoy before someone stepped infront of me (a theme that would run throught the day) a sooty shearwater was also seen. After about an hour with nothing else we moved on SW where the water was really rough and at about 12ish I had had enough and emptied my stomach into a paper bag along with a large proportion of the passengers. Not too bad - 7 hours it took much less last time! We stopped and started a long session of chumming which I joined in twice! This brought in the birds, hundreds of stormies everywhere showing very nicely. Three great shearwaters were eventually seen and a bonxie and artic skua put in an appearance and a grey phalarope whizzed by. It was a quiet trip back with some common dolphins finally starting the mammal tally and the ever present stormies escorting us back to Penzance. Once on dry land I was instantly cured and we headed straight for some food before driving to Buckfast, where the pub was closing but 15 mins or so poking round with the bat detector we had lots of greater horseshoe bats but only saw two, helped by the lights. We headed back home.
Saturday 9th August
Cornwall seemed birdless all week so when a White winged black tern was reported in Devon on Friday night it was the obvious starting point for the trip.
Arriving at Slapton Ley in dismal weather, the White winged black tern had done a bunk, not surprised really, but we had a good breakfast in the local tea shop in the dry. Still raining we headed to Prawle where during break in the rain we headed out, it took a while to locate a couple of cirl buntings a peregrine put in an appearance scattering the linnets before retreating to the car to avoid the rain. I had a few other stops planned but the continual rain cut these short and we headed to Hayle for a look round but not much doing, so we had some some scram and an early night.
Friday 8th August
I was awoken in the early hours with a commotion in the hallway, a mouse had been brought in by the cat. It was caught and examined a feisty yellow necked mouse I was taken a short distance to a field and released unharmed.
A bit of good weather so the final bird atlas square was completed. Pretty much the same as all my other squares, although this square has a bit of woodland and marsh titand chiff chaff fledglings were the highlight here. Good numbers of skylarks and yellowhammers, confirmed breeding of quite a few species but not much of note apart from turtle dove and sparrowhawk. Otherwise the usual hares and rabbits, the first gatekeeper of the year amongst the commoner butterflies.
Sunday 12th July
A day finally for butterflies, the weather forecast wad good so I headed to Fermyn Woods along with loads of other people, I arrived early and got a parking space and headed into the woods. ringlets started to appear and as it warmed so did white admirals and white letter hairstreak and eventually a silver washed fritillary gave a flyby. It took a while but we found a purple emperor in the canopy. Then one flying along the ride and then they started landing on the track showing well, in all at least 5 on the track.
We also had a couple of southern and brown hawkers.
I had to go somewhere else unrelated but there was a pond that had good numbers of banded demosille and comon blue damselflys.
Saturday 11th July
The monthly Stortford crew trip and Norfolk tempted us again, an early rendezvous to balance the cars followed by drive by fulmar before hitting Tichwell. The mega must have been elsewhere as the car park was empty bar the car park attendant in the sentry box, and a muntjac. Assured that there was no blue cheeked bee eater down the road we headed into the reserve. And within minutes were totally soaked, we hit the hide greeted by both godwits, ruff, spotshank, greenshank and common sandpiper. The highligh was the little gulls at least 6 of last years birds on the freshmarsh. We had a few short views of the elusive bearded tits in the improving weather before heading for the sea. A spot of seawatching produced red necked grebe mega distant as were the artic skua's. eider and summer plumaged sanderling on the beach which were stunning. Excellent bearded tits on the return walk and some fledged reed warblers showed well in the now warm and sunny weather. Ideal conditions for monty's and two females oblidged as did a buzzard. We got into the east bank car park at Cley, (that bee eater must have been showing elsewhere) we had some baby avocets and an excellent marsh harrier lots of terns giving a show just off shore and a very stringy roseate from the north hide. Passing on the bee eater, we headed to Sea Palling for the long staying Red backed shrike. We found the site, but were not expecting the rave party in the next field, we were not hopefull and after a while we met the horse owned who knew nothing about the bird-strange, hare, rabbit and chinese water deer were more showy. The car drivers had to move the cars before the car park closed and as we did the phone went with the news that the bird was back. Complete with cars we returned. The red backed shrike was on show. While the car drivers were away the rest of the group
met the 'famous' local birdwatching resident and were suitably unimpressed. His report of a Roseate tern was suitable treated. But we did investigate the beach for kittiwakes. A rather relaxed day but not too bad at all.
Thursday 10th July
The fine weather was not to be wasted so another Bird Atlas tetrad was completed. Not much out of the ordinary, confirmed skylark and whitethroat breeding and kestrel was of note. Othewise a fox, southern hawker and several small tortoiseshell butterflies were the highlights. Strange that I could not find either House sparow or starling in this square!
Sunday 6th July
I had to go to Hampshire for the morning in the torrential rain as it happens. But the afternoon brightened up so I tried Wildmoor heath as suggested in the Steven Dudleys dragonfly book for scarce blue tailed damselfly, despite the good conditions no damselflys were seen at all. The dragons were performing with emperor, brown hawker and a keeled skimmer. The place was alive with green woodpeckers and meadow pipits a rather good roe deer gave some excellent views and I indulged in some photography for a while. There were good numbers of butterflies but not much else. I headed to my rendezvous with Farnborough John for a bit of mammaling. The first stop we saw nothing but damselflies although a turtle dove was present. The later stops produced some otter signs but the weather conditions were not helpful. We eventually tracked down a mammal - a rabbit with the weather deteriorating we headed for cover and a cup of tea - better luck next time.
Saturday 5th July
A day to catch up on things and sort those videos out take a look - links to the right.
