Better Than I Expected

Last day in April and I'm still wearing gloves but at least the forecast rain did not materialise so must not grumble. Usual Monday routine today with a trip over to Oundle and like last week I gave the river walk a miss and headed over to the A605 floods.

View of the A605 from the Nene.

Much quieter than last week with most of the wildfowl having left and no sign of any Egrets. A few Lapwings and a single Redshank were about the only things of note though a few Teal continue to linger. Walking along to the marina produced views of one of the Egyptian Geese and a courting pair of Great Crested Grebes but little else.

A bad day for worms but a good day for thrushes.

Barnwell CP had a good number of Swallows and House Martins feeding very low over the water as they often do in such cool conditions. A singing Garden Warbler actually showed rather well and I managed a photo, I also got my best ever picture of Blackcap. Both Song Thrushes and Blackbirds must be among the few birds enjoying this wet Spring, I saw several birds with beaks full of worms.

Garden Warbler and Blackcap.

The Lowlands hide had its usual selection of species with the Nuthatches once again showing well. Certainly the most colourful visitor here was a drake Mandarin that wandered up from the pond to feed on fallen seed. I didn't realise that these were rather an aggressive species but this one put three drake Mallards to flight. They may almost have become a run of the mill species around here but they are still very attractive.

Familiar faces but I liked the photos.

Several periods of pallid sunshine did nothing to stir any insects of note into action and so once I'd had my fill of Robins and tits I headed back into Oundle for the almost obligatory pint or two.

What can I say other than wow.

A Change of Scenery

Spring has hardly sprung so far, there's been the occasional skip or perhaps a stuttering run but for the most part it has all been a little on the dull and grey side. My brother and I chose to leave the leaden skies of Northants behind us and instead went to Rutland Water where the skies were also somewhat err leaden too but at least there were plenty of hides to shelter us from what was a cool breeze.

Avocet (with LBB Gull) and Redshank.

Having forked out for the permit we headed out towards lagoons two, three and four picking up a reasonable selection of warblers on the way. A Cuckoo also called several times but I think that the unseasonably cool weather kept him fairly quiet. A decent enough selection of waders were on view at Lagoon four with an Avocet perhaps the highlight. Others included a Common Sandpiper, ten plus Dunlins and half a dozen Ringed Plovers as well as some Redshanks. Egyptian Geese have quite a strong population here and we saw the first of at least ten here while a pair of Wigeon were the only ones seen today. Four species of gulls present included two immature Great Black Backs.

Oystercatcher and distant Osprey.

A good movement of Arctic Terns seemed to be in progress today and we saw at least forty over the main reservoir as well as many Commons. Ospreys featured today as well and we saw at least six of this reserve's pin up species. Amongst the other wildfowl seen on the lagoons was a fairly late drake Goldeneye and several Teal. Hirundines, Sand Martins and Swallows were feeding very low over the water and were joined by at least one Swift. Another welcome migrant was a Nightingale singing from scrub near to Shoveller Hide.

Goldeneye, Teal and Shoveller.

Once we had gotten lunch out of the way we did the other lagoons and pools though in all fairness there was not a great deal new to report. Several Shovellers made their way on to the list and a male Sparrowhawk showed briefly but  interesting stuff was in short supply. Popping into the visitor centre before we left resulted in decent views of a drake Garganey feeding in the shallows, it's always nice to see this attractive bird.

Lapwing and record shot of Garganey.

In such cool conditions insect life was minimal though mammals were represented by two each of Brown Rat and Hare.

Brown Rat and Brown Hares.

A Floody Good Show

Nowadays Monday means Oundle and I didn't feel like breaking the habit today. My first decent sighting was of a Raven from the bus just after it left Weldon, it's another tick for my growing bus list.

River views.

At Oundle a Cuckoo was heard calling from Barnwell CP, another was present further down the river. I didn't feel like doing the full walk this morning and so headed straight for the A605 floods by way of the marina. Two Common Terns were flying around the marina and the Egyptian Goose family were still in residence. Numbers of Swallows have increased and were feeding over the water.

Summer migrants.

Lots of Sedge Warblers are fresh in and singing, there were at least two in the scrubby field next to the Nene Way which also seems to double as the Oundle Doggy-doo Museum (and let me tell you they're assembling a formidable collection!) Far less unpleasant was a possible Roe Deer running across the flooded field flushing a Snipe as it ran. It was perhaps also responsible for a Great White Egret appearing with a disgruntled sounding croak. Two have been reported from around here recently and I was happy to watch this one feeding in the company of a Little Egret and a Grey Heron. A pair of Garganeys have also been settled here for at least a week and I managed to catch up with them too. Although distant the views were nice through the scope and they shared the water with four other dabbler species and a Shelduck.  Mammals seemed to like this area too, a Muntjac was munching on the new Hawthorn leaves while a Fox caused some consternation amongst the birds as it skirted the field. Aside from that Snipe the only other waders were a few Lapwings which took off several times to harass passing crows and kites.

Rather distant shots of today's star turns.

Barnwell was very busy this morning with several school parties walking around. The Cuckoo was still calling and quite a few House Martins were feeding overhead but there was not much else to watch. No butterflies were seen today and no dragons either (no surprise perhaps given the date) and I gave up at about eleven for an appointment with several beers.

Carrion Crow, Rook and the usual Monday Mandarins.

Sunrise at the Leys then Dipping on a Bunt, After that a Damselfly Hunt

It feels as if the day was as long as the title of this post but I have to say that it was certainly a good use of one of my precious days off. My brother gave me a lift over to Summer Leys where we were treated to rather a nice sunrise. After that I got dropped off at Upper Benefield where I took the walk along to Deenethorpe before ending my explorations at Priors Hall.

Summer Leys sights.

Summer Leys was fairly quiet in the sense that there were not many interesting birds, the many Black-headed Gulls ensured that it was very noisy in every other aspect! Two Cuckoos struggled to make themselves heard over the larid louts but were my first of the year. Wildfowl numbers were low though most of the commoner dabblers were present. Lapwings and a Redshank were the only waders on show, water levels remain high here as they do at so many other sites. A good collection of Common Terns were also year firsts as indeed were the several Sedge Warblers heard singing. In truth there was not much else to report though a female Brimstone was seen egg laying near the car park.

Some bird highlights from later in the day.

My brother had other plans for his day but was good enough to drop me at Upper Benefield from where I set off hoping to catch up with the Corn Bunting that has been frequenting the area. I couldn't find the bird unfortunately but then again I did arrive rather late in the morning. An OK selection of birds where on view and they included the usual Tree Sparrows as well as a very vocal Lapwing. Migrants included at least one Lesser and three Common Whitethroats while Swallows are beginning to become established I the local villages. Not many butterflies here but at least two Small Torts were present in the area.

A good day for butterflies.

Deene lake inflow held a Green Sandpiper and many Greylags but the goosey highlight here were a pair of Egyptians which were most probably the birds seen nearby last week A Small White was the first for the year and I also found two egg laying Brimstones. On the main lake most of the wildfowl have migrated though at least three Shelducks were present. Between here and Priors Hall birds were few and far between while butterflies were represented by several more Small Torties and a Green-veined White which was another first for the year.

Some of the other wildlife on view.

Priors Hall had an attractive little patch of Bluebells in flower, I'm going to have to check Ironpits Wood out as this site has the best display locally. More butterflies in the form of three Peacocks, a male Brimstone and at least four Orange-tips as well as two further Small Whites were observed as I walked towards the ponds. At the first of the ponds I found my first Large Red Damsel of the Spring, the first of seven seen during the day, I so enjoy it when the dragonfly season kicks off! A Common Lizard was also seen around here while a group of three Brown Hares were seen nearby.

The season has started, get ready for loads of pictures!

Moving on to the larger ponds closer to the A43 produced my first Reed Warblers of the year, two in total while Tufted Ducks were present on three of the ponds. A Speckled Wood was my first of the year and I also managed a half decent shot of another Green-veined White. I always enjoy seeing amphibians so a sighting of a Common Frog was appreciated. With the clouds now starting to thicken I took a look at the quarry where the usual Sand Martins and Little Ringed Plover were on view, all in all not a bad end to the day.

Swearing at Orange-tips

Things kicked off very early this morning when I heard a Grasshopper Warbler while walking along Cockerell Road on the town's Willowbrook Estate. After a day's work I then set out for Weldon to see what insects were enjoying the very warm afternoon sun.

The pond at Weldon...

A male Orange-tip was my first confirmed one of the year as we passed each other on my walk past the steelworks, I saw a female on the Weldon Industrial Estate where there were also two Peacocks. Further male Orange-tips, three to be precise were seen around Weldon village but the little devils seem supercharged in the sunshine and seemed reluctant to settle. They settled a total of three times but only brief enough to give a hope that I might get a piccy. Sadly on every occasion they flitted off and away just as my autofocus was zeroing in. Hopefully that explains the title of this post!

...and the stream.

Other butterflies about included a further Peacock, a Small Torty and four male Brimstones but only the tort was inclined to settle. A search for Large Red Damsels along the stream and around the pond did not produce any sightings, it can't be too long now and I'm hoping the coming weekend produces the goods.

Yes, you're right it is another Small Tortoiseshell.

Little of interest birdwise although a pair of Buzzards showed very well and the pair of Canada Geese remain on the A43 pond.

Looking at Butt's

Warm sunshine had me setting out again as soon as I got home after work with a view to seeing what was about. A short work had me once again looking around the patch for whatever was around.

Ah Spring when a young butterfly's thoughts turn to love...

Not much in the way of birds to report on, Willow Warblers, Chiffchaffs and Blackcaps are all singing well but unfortunately that was it. A bit of news when I returned to the village though in that the first House Martin had returned, I suspect that more will arrive in the coming days.

Sallow flowers are an essential source of nectar for early butterflies.

On the butterfly front I caught a glimpse of what was likely to have been an Orange-tip but just couldn't get confirmation. Happily other species were a little more cooperative and showed well though the Brimstone(s?) did not want to stop for photos. Peacocks and Small Tortoiseshells were a little more inclined to stop and both species were taking nectar on Sallow flowers. One problem at the moment is that they all seem programmed to chase anything that flies by and not only does that include others of their own type but other butterfly species too and even bees.  One Peacock which seemed to have chosen a prime piece of good basking territory was almost constantly in action as it flew up to intercept incoming interlopers, it was still undisputed champion when I left.

The cryptically coloured underside of a Peacock.

If tomorrow remains sunny I will no doubt head out again but with some grass in dire need of cutting I had to bring today's explorations to a halt and go home to keep my appointment with that mower.