No Fooling

Another Monday and another trip over to Barnwell where I managed to beat the sunrise. It was a beautiful morning and I thoroughly enjoyed my walk even if I didn't find anything too out of the ordinary.

Oundle sunrise and Mandarins.

Beginning at Barnwell I spent a short while in the Kingfisher Hide where I watched the male swan amusing himself by chasing Canada Geese around. With little else on view I took a walk around the park where I was treated to some excellent views of Mandarin Ducks. Three species of warblers were in song with several newly arrived Blackcaps joining the Chiffchaffs and a Cetti's Warbler. Red Kites were much in evidence today with a pair causing much anguish amongst the local Carrion Crows, it seems as if they might be breeding close by. From Lowlands Hide I had good views of the usual passerines while a pair of Mandarins chased off a drake Mallard from beneath the feeders.

Nuthatch, Wren, Chiffchaff and Starling.

The A605 floods were graced by a fine drake Pintail, I've been expecting one to show up for a couple of years now so it was nice to finally find one here. Plenty of Wigeons and Teals are still around too and for the moment at least show little sign of wanting to leave. Redshanks had increased to at least four birds while Lapwing numbers remain quite high.

Rubbish record shot time; Pintail and Redshank.

With the sunshine feeling rather warm in sheltered spots it was no surprise that a few butterflies were on the wing and I saw three Peacocks and a Small Tortoiseshell.

Peacock and Small Tortoiseshell.