September Swansong.

Recent reports of a Pallid Harrier at Welney in Norfolk were enough to prompt a visit today and while the main attraction failed to put in an appearance it was still a good day. A first highlight was the sighting of two Willow Emeralds even before Alan Shorrock and I had to shell out for the somewhat pricey permit. While the weather was a bit on the duff side it would appear that these relative newcomers are made from hardy stuff. Some evidence of breeding activity was noted with the scars left over by breeding activity showing on several trees. The only other species seen on this distinctly dragonfly unfriendly day were a single Common Darter and Migrant Hawker.

Would be harrier fan club were probably hoping for more exotic fare.

Plenty of Tree Sparrows were on the feeders at the visitor centre which they shared with their House cousins and Goldfinches. Star billing from the centre must however go to the seventeen Cranes seen feeding in a nearby field, they were part of a group of thirty six present on the reserve. I saw my first ever Crane at this reserve about thirty years ago, would never have believed that numbers like this would occur in the future.

Family meal and distant Cranes.

Whooper Swans are beginning to arrive now and a small number were seen today, numbers should begin to build as the autumn progresses. Wildfowl numbers are still quite low but they were bolstered by an escaped Ringed Teal which apparently hails from South America, the female Pintail probably stemmed from less debateable origins.

Whooper Swans, godwits and Ringed Teal.

With no Pallid to watch it was left to two or three Marshes to provide harrier related thrills and we enjoyed some good views. Other raptors seen today were Kestrel, Sparrowhawk and Buzzard. Not too much else of interest was seen today though there was a flock of thirteen Black-tailed Godwits and a couple of Snipe.

Male Willow Emerald and breeding scars on Willow.

No Joy at Priors.

Well no joy with Willow Emeralds at least but there were at least a few highlights to make the trip worthwhile. I spent most of the day in the company of Alan Shorrock looking for any sign of the Willow Emerald that he found a fortnight ago. A search of the original location and other suitable looking ponds failed to produce any sign whatsoever which hints that the female we saw may have been a wandering individual rather than part of a new population. I'll try and look in again before too long but the season is rapidly coming to a close and it may well be next year before there's any further news.

Common Darters.

Happily there were lots of dragonflies about though in fairness most were Common Darters with much mating and ovipositing noted. At leas one Ruddy Darter and a Brown Hawker were seen too while there were at least half a dozen Migrant Hawkers too.  Speckled Woods were by far the commonest butterfly and in fact apart from a female Common Blue and a possible Comma were the only species too.

Speckled Wood and Common Blue.

Birdwise a Barn Owl was an excellent find and was my first in the county for quite a while. Some passage migration was in progress with sightings of both Meadow Pipits and Siskins though westerly winds continue to affect bird numbers.

Linnet.

Norfolk Nature Notes, 24 - 28/9/18

As the less than imaginative title may have hinted I've just got back from a four night stay in Wells-next the sea in Norfolk where I spent a largely non nature spotting break with my wife. Despite this I did manage a few hours of spotting and was able to find a few interesting things to look at.

Purple Sandpiper with Turnstone.

This autumn's weather has not been kind to Norfolk or indeed the east coast in general and the westerly winds that have kept this area largely free of interesting birds continued for most of my stay. A series of early morning walks failed to find anything of note though good numbers of Pink-footed Geese appear to have arrived and their calls were a feature of my strolls. The 25th saw us take a trip to Sheringham where I found an early Purple Sandpiper resting on rocks with a small group of Turnstones, this is a regular spot for them but I didn't expect to see one this early in the autumn.

Small Copper, Wall Brown, Common Blue and Comma.

Only one other bird of note was seen but at least it too was a goody. A walk through the pines at Holkham NNR produced a sighting of a Rough-legged Buzzard hunting over the fields and the woodland. Initially I assumed that it was a Common Buzzard when I first picked it up but the very pale underside with contrasting carpal patches made me look a little closer. A white tale with a dark sub-terminal band gave me pause for thought while its habit of hovering constantly while hunting clinched the I.D for me. Although I've seen a fair few Rough-legs this was a fair bit earlier than most. Speaking to another birder that had glimpsed the bird through the trees he said that this was around about the time when a few passage birds appeared in Norfolk.

Willow Emeralds.

Butterflies seemed to enjoy the warm weather and there were a fair few Small Coppers around Holkham NNR though the twenty plus seen were overshadowed by a half dozen or so Wall Browns. Two Common Blues appeared to be in very good condition and were a bit of a surprise as I thought that their season was over. Nothing else of interest apart from a Comma at Sheringham.

Black-headed Gull and Little Egret.

A stop at Roydon Common on the way out failed to produce any sightings of Black Darter dragonflies but dipping on this species in Norfolk is becoming something of a habit for me. I had far more success with Willow Emeralds seeing them at two sites. The first location was near the Pinewoods caravan park at Wells where at least ten individuals and a mating pair were seen. The other site was at Sculthorpe Moor which seems to have a very healthy population and many were noted here. The opportunity to study good numbers of them may help me in my search for them in Northamptonshire.

Wells sunrise.

Little else of note was recorded though a Muntjac showed well at Holkham.

Weldon Willow Search

Having just returned from a few days in Norfolk I took advantage of the sunny weather to pop down to Weldon for yet another check for Willow Emeralds. As has become the norm I failed in my quest but I did at least find a few things to look at.

Red Kite.

Not much in the way of birds to report though a Heron was seen briefly and the Red Kites showed really well today. No butterflies were on the wing though there were a few dragons. A male Banded Demoiselle was late in the season and so too was a Common Blue Damselfly. More to be expected but still to be appreciated were the Common Darters and Migrant Hawkers that were active around the ponds and stream.

Migrant Hawker, Common Darter and Banded Demoiselle.

Darting Around Weldon

I spent a bit of time around Weldon this afternoon continuing my search for Willow Emeralds. Not for the first time my efforts were not rewarded with views of the target species but I did see a few other dragons.

Banded Demoiselle and Migrant Hawker.

A quick visit to the A43 pond produced a single Mallard but little else though a Grey Wagtail flew over and I heard both Blackcaps and a Chiffchaff. From here it was on to the stream where at least two Banded Demoiselles were showing, a couple of Common Darters were seen too.

Darter views.

Around the main pond Common Darters lived up to their name with many mostly male individuals seen. Several male Migrant Hawkers were present and there were also a couple of Brown Hawkers too. Few butterflies were noted with just a couple of Small Whites seen. Unfortunately I had to leave just as the clouds gave way to sunshine and blue skies but I'm fairly certain that I'll be back soon.

Hoverfly.

Double Vision

I only saw two damselflies today but happily both were Willow Emeralds. A third attempt to see them at Finedon finally proved to be successful though it was far from easy. My brother and I had travelled over this morning and while the weather was not ideal it was most importantly good enough.

Finedon Pocket Park.

Standing on the bank overlooking the waterlogged willows eventually paid dividends after about an hour when my brother picked one out on a bare twig on the other side of the ponds. I've noticed that rather a lot of dragonfly spotters don't carry bins but they were instrumental in getting this sighting. After taking a distant record shot I moved around the pond and managed several much better shots of this male. As this was only my second sighting of this species in the county and third overall I was very happy  indeed. Other species about included the two darters and Migrant and Southern Hawker. Only a few butterflies were showing today but they included a Red Admiral  which have been pretty scarce this year. The only birds of note were several Marsh Tits.

First distant shot of Willow Emerald and closer view.

On the way home I received a phone call from a local naturalist, Alan, who was reasonably certain that he had just seen a Willow Emerald at Priors Hall. Happily I had been headed over in that direction so I arranged to meet up and have a look for it. A brief peek at the quarry lake provided views of an adult Yellow-legged gull as well as the usual selection  of species. Walking towards the ponds where the emerald had been seen revealed a few Small Heaths and a Common Blue while several Speckled Woods also showed.

Well camouflaged Common Darter and Small Heath.

I managed to find Alan who had in the meantime got another view of the now confirmed Willow Emerald and he showed me a photograph that he'd just taken. A nervous wait followed until Alan found it once again on some sedge and I managed a rather poor photo. I'd almost given up on Willow Emeralds in the county for this year so a double dose  was better than good. By now a large group of motorcyclists were racing around the area so we headed off to the George in Weldon where we had a celebratory pint.

Priors Hall Willow Emerald and Yellow-legged Gull.

Hawking.

A spell of sunshine persuaded me to head over to the pond at Eurohub where I had a look for Willow Emeralds. My foray met with the customary lack of success in that my walk was entirely emerald free but thankfully it was not a total waste of time.

Fairly ropey shot of Brown Hawker.

As well as loads of floating rubbish there were three species of hawker on the wing. A Brown Hawker was ovipositing on the other side of the pool from me so my photographic efforts were mediocre at best. Another Brown Hawker made a brief visit before heading off over the trees. Several male Migrant Hawkers were patrolling the muddy and reedy margins presumably in search of females. A whirring of wings alerted me to the presence of a female furtively ovipositing around the bases of some reeds and her caution was entirely justified. A second female going about her business was spotted by one of the males who proceeded to swoop down and basically abduct her, I stumbled across what was presumably this same pair a little later but they made good their escape before I could get a decent view.

Two views of ovipositing Migrant Hawker.

Southern Hawkers seem to have had a rather poor year and I seldom see more than one or two per day. No change today either but at least I did manage to photograph one albeit after a male had given me a bit of a run-around. Having failed to get any usable flight shots (I managed many blue and green blurs) I was lucky in that a male decided to land. Although he didn't stay still for long it was long enough for me to get a shot or two.

Southern Hawker.

Not much other wildlife on view today apart from a Grey Heron that disappeared as soon as I appeared on site, clearly a good judge of character!

Return to Barnwell.

Today I spent a few rather unproductive hours ambling around Barnwell CP where the weather owed more to autumn than summer. In fact growing signs of the coming season are everywhere, from the gradual changing colour of the leaves to the fruits, nuts and berries weighing down many a branch. Migrant birds are fattening up before undertaking their migrations and both Blackcaps and Chiffchaffs were moving furtively through the foliage while flocks of hirundines hawked for insects overhead.

Chiffchaff.

Only a small number of insects were active in distinctly cooler conditions with that typically late season duo of Common Darter and Migrant Hawker being commonest. A single Southern Hawker was also noted while a few  damsels were found. Two each of Common Blue and Blue-tailed were slightly overshadowed by three Red-eyeds as this is now getting rather late in the year for this species. Only a few butterflies were seen and these included three species of white and a few Speckled Woods.

Green-veined White and Common Darter.

Not too many birds were seen though an impressive total of sixteen Mandarins were observed but they were keeping themselves out of the way amongst bankside vegetation. A Kingfisher was heard calling though sadly I didn't manage to catch a glimpse. Sadly many of the Chaffinches have fallen victim to the condition Papillomatosis which affects their feet and one male had lost a foot. It didn't make for comfortable viewing but the bird at least seemed to be coping.

Red-eyed Damselfly and Chaffinch with missing foot.

With so little on view I called it quits and headed off for the town where I enjoyed a couple of pints before heading home on the bus.

Robin and Great Tit.