A Modest Return

 After last night's boozing and then the football I got up somewhat later than I normally do on a Sunday morning which meant that I missed my usual bus. Thinking of an alternative took a little while but eventually I settled on taking a stroll to the pond at Little Stanion. I usually manage at least one visit during the year and today was the day. It was mainly sunny with a bit of a breeze which may have had an adverse effect on the number of insects that I saw.

Black-tailed Skimmer and Moorhen

My walk took me through Eurohub and along Longcroft Road before reaching one of Corby's new suburbs.  The grassland around the lake is parched and yellow with just a few Gatekeepers to look at, they appear to be the commonest species at the moment. Odes were scarce too though I may well have been too early for them. Black-tailed Skimmers were the only dragon while Blue-tailed and Common Blue represented the damsels. After one and a half fairly unproductive circuits of the pond I opted to leave, the only birds that I can recall were some half grown Moorhen chicks which looked like miniature Emus!

Silver-washed Fritillaries

My walk home was a little more interesting, three female Silver-washed Fritillaries were seen nectaring and although they're starting to look a little raggedy they are still stunning butterflies. Other species seen included Ringlet and Common Blue. The Eurohub pond is looking pretty dry but I found a few odes in the general area. Both species of darter were found and I also saw a Brown Hawker and Black-tailed Skimmer. Best damsel was a male Willow Emerald, this is one of the sites where I first found them back in those all too recent days when they were colonising the county.

Ruddy and Common Darters and Willow Emerald

My garden received a visit from a Hummingbird Hawk-moth which was the third this week though today's shunned the Buddleia and opted to visit the Honeysuckle instead. Up to three Gatekeepers were also present and I saw the day's only Comma and Red Admiral, several Small Whites also paid a call. Not the most exciting morning perhaps but it sets me up for watching a certain football match which I shall watch with more than a hint of regret  for what could have been.

Female Gatekeeper and Comma

Birding Again

 At this time of the year my attentions often focus on insects rather than birds but as the first signs of autumn begin to show my thoughts often start to turn to the southward migration and I find myself drawn to anywhere where waders might be on the move. Today Alan and I paid a call on Eyebrook Reservoir hoping to catch some signs of this seasonal movement and we were not disappointed. Weatherwise it was cloudy and quite cool to begin with though as the morning progressed the sun began to shine through and it became quite warm.

Black-tailed Godwits

At he sharp end a brace of Dunlins shared the mud with plenty of Lapwings and a couple of Redshanks, a little later on we found two juvenile Little Ringed Plovers too. As we watched over the area a flock of at least thirty Black-tailed Godwits circled the inflow before heading southeast. Minutes later a message on the Whatsapp informed us that 35 Blackwits were at the island and we headed there ASAP.  The Godwits showed well from the bunker though further counting suggested a total of 39 which is by far and away the most that I've seen here. The godwits were joined by a further two Redshanks while close by at Sam's Dyke a Common Sandpiper and a juv Little Ringed Plover were noted. Reports that a Marsh Harrier was quartering the fields below Great Easton hill sent me wandering off in that direction and I saw the bird gaining height on a thermal before departing in a south easterly direction. Another bird of note was the long staying Whooper Swan close to the dam, it's so nice to see them without running the risk of frostbite!

Spotted Flycatchers

A return to the sharp end added half a dozen Green Sandpipers, a Common Sand and another Blackwit to the day list while some up to date info from another birder put us on to some Spotted Flycatchers. From the bridleway to the east of the plantation we found a family party in a hedge just one field in from the Stoke Dry road. We watched them for some time and enjoyed some great views before moving on to the 'spoons, a prior evening appointment with workmates limited my time. An entertaining little coda to my day was provided by a Peregrine over the Saxon Crown as I drank with workmates, I bet the town centre's population of pigeons didn't enjoy the sighting as much as I did!

Flying Visit

 My garden Buddleia is in full bloom at the moment and is attracting its share of pollinators. This evening it played host to one of my favourite insects, a Hummingbird Hawk-moth. These remarkable little characters are migrants from southern Europe and arrive in the UK in varying numbers each year. This year seems to have been a good one for them so it wasn't a surprise that one popped in for a brief pitstop but it was a pleasure. Hopefully it or another will make further visits over the next week or two, I'll be watching intently for them.

Hummingbird Hawk-moth

Bagpipe Dodging

 It's Highland Gathering time again when Corby Old Village comes alive to the sound of bagpipes and drums. Most, but not all, years I try and get as far away as possible because although I'm half Scottish I have no great love for the music. (Oh and I won't be buying an Argentina football shirt either!) Today I headed back to Priors Hall where my plan was to check the ponds close to the golf course. In warm though breezy conditions I walked from Weldon making my first stop at the Quarry Lake.

Marbled White and Ringlet

No birds of note there today though there was a song flighting Meadow Pipit close by. Around the ponds themselves it looks as if Marbled Whites are at the end of their season as I only found one. Ringlets too seem diminished in numbers but Gatekeepers are at their peak. Another species now on the wing again is Common Blue as the new brood emerges in ever greater numbers. Other species seen included Speckled Woods, Red Admiral, an immaculate looking Painted Lady, Large Skipper and the usual whites.

Gatekeeper and Speckled Wood

Good numbers of teneral Common Darters were seen making their first flights and small numbers of Ruddies were noted too. Emperors were the most obvious of the larger species though many were hanging up in shady spots even relatively early in the morning. Brown Hawker and Black-tailed Skimmers made up the other species of dragon, very few damsels were found.

Painted Lady and Common Darter

On my way back to Weldon I paid a brief visit to the Southern Gullet but failed to see any sign of the Southern Migrant Hawkers, a Southern Hawker being scant consolation. Frustratingly a newly arrived Shozzer saw one minutes after my departure, clearly I suffered from premature evacuation. Alan also found another SMH at the same pond where we saw one last year, clearly the man has some kind of connection with this species. As usual other things demanded my time and I left at around noon, sadly there was still plenty of time left to listen to those wailing pipes!

Emperor and Black-tailed Skimmer

Alan's Stones Wobble Again

 Shozzer and I kept things local and during the course of our wanderings today we ventured no further than Deene. The weather was for the most part sunny and warm, any cloud cover was burnt off before noon. After a stop at the farm ponds where a Small Red-eyed Damsel had been the highlight we turned our attention to the main lake.

Small Red-eyed Damsel, Willow Emerald and Black Swans

There are still Willow Emeralds maturing between the church and the dam at Deene and we also saw a further Small Red-eyed. Bird wise here a pair of Black Swans with two cygnets were my personal highlight, I've never seen young here before.  Elsewhere there were Grey Wagtails at the weir but not much else of note and we soon moved on. After a long and enduring drive of at least two minutes we found a parking spot near the inflow. Here a Mandarin Duck and a snoozing Green Sandpiper were the best birds while there was only my second Brown Argus of the year too.

Mandarin, Green Sand and White-legged Damselflies in cop.

Deenethorpe village close to the brook delivered some good stuff too and White-legged Damselflies in particular showed well. A Spotted Flycatcher was heard in the poplars though sadly not seen, it spent its time hidden in the canopy. At the brook more White-legged Damsels were seen and for only the second time in my life I saw a pair of Banded Demoiselles in cop. Once Alan had eaten his lunch we set off for Priors Hall.

Banded Demoiselles, Common Sand and Emerald

The Quarry Lake had quite a few birds but the only one that really stood out was a Common Sandpiper. In the southern gullet I was watching my first Emeralds of the year when a call from Alan announced the discovery of a Southern Migrant Hawker. A male was giving very good flight views as it patrolled its territory. News was put out and we were eventually joined by our county recorder, Mark Tyrrell. Happily for him the dragon showed well but more importantly we found a second individual close by. More than content with our sightings we moved on to the Samuel Lloyd where I enjoyed several pints of good beer.

                                              

Southern Migrant Hawker.

A Right Royal Disappointment

 I spent a great deal of my formative nature spotting years roaming around Kingswood nature reserve in the company of the now sadly departed Greig Martin. As I had some business up that end of the town and  it was the last day of my holiday I decided to wallow in nostalgia a bit and pay a call to my old stomping ground.  The X4 was fashionably late and I arrived somewhat later than I anticipated but get there I did in hot and sunny conditions.

Gatekeeper and Silver-washed Fritillary

Ash Dieback has had a noticeable effect on the wood and I'd never realised quite how many were there. Most Ashes now appear to be dead or dying and there were several fallen trees lying on the woodland floor. In truth it looked to me as if little active management is occurring now and the gaps provided by these fallen trees provided some of the only ones in the canopy. With the rides mostly in shade and a lot of the understorey covered in brambles my hopes of finding interesting butterflies proved to be optimistic. Best of a small selection was a male Silver-washed Fritillary though the most surprising was a Marbled White, neither species would have been present in those good old days. Only one dragonfly was seen and that was a Common Darter, the large pond known to masses of school kids as the swamp had completely dried up. The only birds of note were several begging juvenile Buzzards which were another species absent in my youth.

Common Darter and Common Blue

Having finished my woodland wander I paid a quick call on the lake at Oakley Vale which has a generous fringe of reeds around it. Things were quiet here too, there were about half a dozen singing Reed Warblers and quite a few Swifts hawking over the water. Two or three Black-tailed Skimmers, two Banded Demoiselles and several Common Blues made up the ode quota while a Common Blue butterfly was my first of the new brood.

Lesser Emperor

 On the second of my days off I teamed up with Alan again for a trip to Ravensthorpe reservoir to search for some of the reported Lesser Emperors. In warm though breezy conditions we initially struggled to find our target species and had to settle for views of commoner types.

Black-tailed Skimmer, Emperor and Ruddy Darter

What took me by surprise was the sheer numbers of Common Blue Damselflies, there must have been many thousands swarming around the res. Other damsels seemed few in number with just a few Red-eyed and a solitary male Banded Demoiselle to report. Black-tailed Skimmers were the commonest dragons though as things warmed up Ruddy Darters began to appear. Of the larger species it was Emperors and Brown Hawkers that showed best. We'd walked along the dam and were on the return leg when I caught a glimpse of a Lesser Emperor whilst Shozzer munched on his lunch. A little later on I saw it again and both Alan and I got some great flight views with both the bins and the naked eye. Unfortunately I couldn't get a picture, one day I may get a shot of one in the county but for the time being I'm still waiting!

Common Blue and Red-eyed Damsels, Four-spotted Chaser

There were plenty of butterflies to enjoy and once again there were good numbers of new brood Peacocks and Red Admirals on the wing. Painted Ladies are still featuring and many appear to be in good condition suggesting a local origin. On the grassland behind the dam at least half a dozen Small Coppers were noted while species other than the numerous browns and whites included Comma and Small Skipper. A Common Sandpiper was the best bird, initially it was seen on the pontoon near the fishing lodge before moving on to the dam. A family party of Garden Warblers were noted about half way between the dam and the causeway and with a Four-spotted Chaser were the last things of note. As is traditional we ended our day in the pub where a pint of JHB brought things to a close.

Common Sandpiper, Small Copper and Small Skipper