Dipping at Paxton

I made my way down to Weldon again today with a view to catching up with those elusive Varied Damselflies. First notable sighting of the day was Alan Shorrock who was intently staring at the vegetation next to the stream and clearly had a similar target in mind to me. Having exchanged pleasantries we combined our efforts and continued with the search.

Weldon Variable and Azure Damselflies.

Luck was with us on this occasion as a single male was finally found after numerous Azures had been eliminated from our enquiries. He stayed still long enough for some pictures and happy with the results we moved on from the stream to the pond. Species seen during our walk as well as the Variable were Banded Demoiselle, Azure, Blue-tailed, Large Red and Red-eyed. By this point we had pretty much exhausted the possibilities here and so decided to move on. Knowing that Norfolk Hawkers were beginning to emerge at Paxton Pits in Cambridgeshire had us heading off in that direction.

Paxton Variables

Sadly the Norfolks did not show for us though they did for others, our failure was probably down to the fact that their season has just begun and also the showery and changeable weather. Some dragons did show with a few Hairy Dragonflies, some Scarce Chasers and about half a dozen Four-spotteds. Variable Damsels might be rare in Northants but they're common at Paxton and we saw many. Azures were common too and other species recorded were Banded Demoiselle, Blue-tailed and Common Blue Damselfly.

Four-spotted Chasers.

A few butterflies were seen on our walk around and between us we observed Holly Blue, Orange-tip, Brimstone, Small White and Small Copper. Pick of the birds on site were Cetti's Warbler and Hobby.

Orange-tip and Small Copper.

Frampton

My brother and I travelled over to Frampton Marsh today where we met up with John Barn, one of his old birding buddies from school days. We had a good if unspectacular session walking around this excellent reserve.

Curlew Sandpiper and Dunlins.

First highlight was a Curlew Sandpiper feeding fairly close to the path a short walk from the visitor centre. Other waders in this area included several Dunlin and Ringed Plover as well as at least one Turnstone. Avocets are common here and their calls were a feature of the day mixing with the song of Skylarks and the calling of Redshanks. Also very vocal were both Reed and Sedge Warblers, we had good views of both species.

Sedge Warbler and Avocet.

Walking along the bank on the edge of the salt marsh produced several distant Marsh Harriers and also at least four Golden Plovers. A drake Garganey was seen on one of the pools and was the first of two while John picked out a male Ruff. A little further on we were treated to brief though good views of a Corn Bunting. Wandering back towards the centre we managed to pick out a Whooper Swan and a pair of Red Crested Pochard.

Garganey and Black-tailed Godwit.

After a lunch stop we headed over to the reservoir where we had good views of a Turtle Dove and heard several calling. The hedges around here proved to be good for warblers and in addition to the Cetti's that we had heard singing earlier we added Lesser Whitethroat and Garden Warbler amongst others.

Turtle Dove and Four-spotted Chaser.

We returned to the reserve to complete our circuit but did not manage to add much to our list although we did see a few more Black-tailed Godwits and a further Little Ringed Plover to add to ones we had found earlier in the day. Other wildlife seen during the day included numerous Brown Hares, butterflies including both Common  and Holly Blue and there were also several Four-spotted Chasers and one Azure Damselfly.

Common and Holly Blue and Orange-tip.

Another Trip To Oundle

As work were once again kind enough to give me the day off I found myself with some time on my hands. Given that Barnwell CP has been kind to  me recently I thought that it might be a good idea to head over to those parts once again.

Banded Demoiselle and Red-eyed Damselfly.

Not for the first time the patch of reeds on Town Lake played host to an emerging Scarce Chaser, this is proving to be something of a nursery for them. Alongside the river the nettle beds were alive with both Banded Demoiselles and Red-eyeds. Despite having had an interest in dragons for some time I learnt for the first time today that Red-eyeds emerge directly on to lilies rather than crawling up emergent vegetation, you learn something every day! These nettles held one more surprise in store for me, checking the Azure Damselflies produced a sighting of a male Variable Damselfly, not sure what's going on with this species but they seem to be getting commoner  at the moment.

Variable Damselfly and Hairy Dragonfly.

Hairy Damselflies always seem to do well at this site and today was no exception with perhaps as many as ten showing. While most were males there was at least one female ovipositing. Several Four-spotted Chasers were also seen with at least a couple taking up territories next to the lakes.

Chaser trio.

Good numbers of damselflies were found around the park and these included a couple of Common Blues. Other species included Large Red and Blue-tailed while butterflies were represented by at least three Holly Blues, a Common Blue, several Orange-tips and at least two Brimstones.

Holly Blue and Orange-tip.

I decided to take a walk along the river past the marina and managed to find a first for the year female Broad-bodied Chaser. While I had to wade through almost shoulder high nettles to get a pic it was at least just about good enough to justify the pain.. Highlight amongst the birds noted today were male and female Cuckoo in the park and the regular Cetti's Warbler.

Emerging Red-eyed Damselfly.

Still Hunting Those Weldon Variables.

Our county dragonfly recorder has managed to catch up with some Variables at Weldon this week and it was this news that persuaded me to have another try for them today after work. Sadly I met with the now familiar lack of success though I do at least feel as if I now know every single Azure Damselfly on site

Azure Damselfly and Banded Demoiselle

Apart from the numerous Azures there were greater numbers of Banded Demoiselles with perhaps as many as twenty being seen. A small number of Blue-tailed Damsels and Large Reds were sharing the nettles while the lilies on the pond now have a healthy population of Red-eyeds. Star performer here though was once again White-legged Damselfly with three sightings along the stream though these could possibly refer to one individual. No sign of any dragons yet but I'm sure they will turn up soon.

Large Red and Blue-tailed Damselflies.

I was concentrating mainly on the damselflies today but I did look up long enough to see a few Orange-tips and at least one Holly Blue. On a different note, if I'm going to wander through waist high nettles on a regular basis I'm going to have to get some thicker trousers or get used to some fairly painful stings.

MVP White-legged Damselfly.

Late Rally Saves Day.

I had another day off today and spent the early part of it at the Maxey reserve near Peterborough with my brother looking for the reported Purple Heron. Unfortunately the bird did not show (for us anyway) during our stay though we did see a couple of Marsh Harriers as some form of scant compensation. As this area has had Variable Damselflies I had a brief look but without a permit I could only look at a channel on the edge of the reserve and couldn't find any. What I did see were a few Azures and a Hairy Dragonfly while a tatty looking Small Tortoiseshell was probably a survivor from last year.

Veteran Small Tortoiseshell and Azure Damselflies.

A lunch stop in the picturesque village of Wansford followed after which my brother dropped me off at Barnwell CP. There were examples of both Four-spotted (6) and Scarce Chasers (3) in the reeds on the fringe of the Town Lake, other chasers were seen but not identified as they flew off. One of the three Hairy Dragonflies that showed today was quite obliging as it landed for just long enough for me to take a picture.

Hairy dragonfly, Scarce and Four-spotted Chasers.

On the basis of what I saw on Monday at Wicksteed I checked each and every Azure Damselfly just in case but I could not turn any of them into a Variable. Numbers of both Banded Demoiselle and Red-eyed Damselfly continue to build with examples of each returning to their watery habitats for breeding. A single Common Blue joined two Large Reds and about ten Blue-tailed on the list.

Banded Demoiselle, Large Red and Red-eyed Damselflies.

Pick of a small butterfly list was a first for the year Red Admiral while the best birds were a Cuckoo, the regular Cetti's Warbler and two drake Mandarins.

Variables at Wicksteed.

I wanted to give somewhere else a go today and so headed over to Wicksteed Park in Kettering. Although I visit fairly frequently in winter or when I'm looking for Willow Emeralds (not found any yet!) Spring visits are rare.

Goose families

My main target was to see what sort of dragons or damsels were around and so I headed directly to the lake. Both of the common geese appear to be having a good breeding season so far and I was hissed at by several Greylag parents. Ignoring their angry protests I wandered around the edge of the main lake and soon saw Common Blues and a few Red-eyeds. The Commons were welcome as I'd only seen one up until now this year. While no further dragons were seen the lake still held a few Tufties and a Pochard while a Common Tern patrolled overhead.

Common Blue and Red-eyed Damselflies.

Moving on to the fishing lake I combed the nettles and long grass finding a few Azure and Blue-tailed Damselflies as well as a female Banded Demoiselle. Taking a detour down to look at the River Ise revealed more of the latter with most looking as if they were newly emerged. Returning to the lake I stood on one of the fishing platforms to get a better view of a family of swans. My dudery turned out to be a good idea as I noticed rather a lot of Azure Damselflies flitting around the reeds. A pair in cop looked like candidates for a photo but when I checked the results I realised that some of the "Azures" were in fact Variables. Closer inspection revealed at least three pairs in cop and also single males while a review of an earlier photograph showed another pair taken a few minutes before. As this species is rare in the county I took rather a lot of photographs before texting the news out to a few friends.

Variable Damselflies.

It was of course something of an anti climax after this chance discovery but I did add a sixth species to my day list when I found a Large Red Damselfly near to the water slide. While there appeared to be few butterflies today I did see Orange-tips, a Holly Blue and two Speckled Woods.

Large Red Damselfly and female Orange-tip.