Distinctly Autumnal

 After last week's spirited rearguard by the Summer that barely was it was time once more for the cold grey fingers of Autumn to take the county in its wet and windy grasp. A pretty awful spell of weather did give way to the weatherman's favourite forecast of sunny with showers but a strong wind dominated proceedings and made for some challenging conditions. Hoping to avoid getting a good old fashioned drenching I sought shelter in the hides of Barnwell CP.

Pintail and Mandarin Duck

My vigil from the Kingfisher Hide produced only one brief flight view of its namesake bird and while I heard others around the park I couldn't get any further sightings. Star performer here was a female Pintail which was my first at the site, it had joined a large flock of Mallards gathered on the lake.. These Mallards were far from friendly towards each other though as they bickered and fought amongst themselves, it had the atmosphere of an aquatic lek about it. Also present was a pair of Mandarin Ducks, it's good to see that the drake was in full plumage rather than the dowdy eclipse version. Not too many other birds were seen. a few Chiffchaffs were singing and a Grey wagtail was heard too.

Goldfinch and Brown Rat

Sunny spells brought out a few dragonflies with Migrant Hawkers being the commonest. Only one other species was braving the blustery conditions and that was Common Darter, a few were found in the more sheltered spots. Very little other wildlife was on view other than a Brown Rat seen near Mill Lake.

Migrant Hawker and Common Darter.

Something To Grouse About

My brother and I ventured about as far as we could go from Northamptonshire without leaving England. Our travels took us to the wilds of Cumbria and the border city of Carlisle from where you can apparently smell the scent of deep frying confectionery when the winds are favourable! We didn't encounter any southward migrating Haggis but that did not diminish our enjoyment as there were several other distractions to keep us happy!

Geltsdale

Yesterday on our trip northwards we stopped at the Yorkshire reserve of Fairburn Ings where we were lucky enough to get some good though brief views of a Willow Tit. Unfortunately given  that we had quite a distance left to travel our stop had to be brief and our northward journey  continued soon after.

Meadow Pipit and Stonechat

This morning saw us making our way to the RSPB reserve of Geltsdale in the north Pennines where we hoped to encounter some of the Black Grouse that are known to reside in the area. Occasional rain showers and a strong breeze did not deflect us from our task as we searched the surrounding countryside for our stunning looking quarry. Redpolls and Meadow Pipits were the most obvious species on site though a late Wheatear was perhaps the most interesting of today's passerines. A family party of Stonechats came close to matching the Wheatear and a decent number of Siskins were also noteworthy. I was beginning to think that our visit was going to remain grouse free other than a few distant calls from invisible Red Grouse as we walked around the reserve without seeing any gamebirds other than a few Pheasants. My brother David's eagle eyes however saved the day as he picked out a trio of Black Grouse making a brief flypast. As these were only my second UK sightings of this declining species I was more than happy to catch a glimpse of them. With our main target aquired and an increase in the severity of the showers dampening our enthusiasm we waved goodbye to Geltsdale and made our escape.

Not wildlife but they did fly once! - Avro Vulcan and Hawker Hunter.

Normally our subsequent visit to the Solway Air Museum would not get a mention on this blog but at least one skein of newly arrived Pink-footed Geese flew over during our visit which were my first of the coming Autumn.

What The Heck? No Pec!

 Eyebrook's long staying Pectoral Sandpiper appears to have departed and on the day when Alan Shorrock and I popped over after work today, talk about bad timing! Although Shozzer had had further views of the bird in the company of Mick Ketley last week I was making my first attempt since that first sighting when it originally showed up. Despite the dip it was still an OK sort of visit with some very nice evening sunshine giving the light a golden quality.

Ringed Plover (with Wigeon) GWE and Pintail.

Waders are still moving through with a total of fourteen Ringed Plovers making them the commonest migrants, they were only outnumbered by the resident Lapwings. A good total of about nine Snipe were feeding in the shallows near the Cormorant posts while a couple of juvenile Ruffs and a juvenile Dunlin were also seen. Most obvious bird today was a single Great White Egret preening at the sharp end while best ducks were the ten plus Pintails present. While many ducks are still in their drab eclipse plumage a few are showing signs of colour once more. At least one Raven was heard but sadly we didn't manage to see it.

Kestrel and Willow Emerald

From the bridge we managed to see Willow Emeralds on both sides of the county border meaning that I saw my first ever individuals of these attractive damsels in both Leics and Rutland. This is the place from where Alan obtained the first records of this species in either county, not a bad claim to have on your record! The only other thing of note was a brief flypast by a Spitfire, I couldn't get a decent pic but this does allow me a chance to sneak in another picture from my recent visit to Duxford.

Spitfire

Evening Stonechats.

 A call from Alan Shorrock and the kind offer of a lift had me heading over to Willowbrook Industrial Estate to look for a pair of Stonechats that he had discovered there today. Beautiful evening sunshine made for a very pleasant if rather brief stroll as we ambled around in search of the chats.

Willowbrook Industrial Estate.

Turns out that the pair were not going to play hard to get as first the male and then the female appeared. While the male always stayed rather distant the female was a little more accommodating and I managed a few shots of her. It's tempting to think that these may be the same pair that have wintered here in recent years returning to their favoured spot but of course I can't prove that. Meadow Pipits continue to move through in small numbers but we were not there long enough to find much else.

Female Stonechat.

Deene's Delights

 A cool start to the day this morning with a northerly breeze bringing down the temperature. Fancying a bit of a change I took the bus over to Upper Benefield from where I walked home via Deenethorpe and Deene. Not the most exciting day perhaps but there was still enough to keep me interested. 

Yellowhammer and potential murder victim.

My walk along the minor road towards Deenethorpe did not produce much other than a few Yellowhammers and Linnets. The number of newly released Pheasants wandering around suggests that the start of the shooting season cannot be too far away. Quite how the killing of these remarkably tame creatures can be called a sport though is beyond me, I think I could have taken a couple out with a stick! I'm not one for dabbling in politics but calling the massacre of these gormless birds a sport is ridiculous - it's a slaughter of the innocents.

Green Sandpipers and Egyptian Geese.

Deene Lake provided all of the birding highlights today beginning at the inflow where a Snipe and two Green Sandpipers were noted. A pair of Egyptian Geese were taking a bath and there were also a small number of Lapwings. From the dam on the main lake a pair of Black Swans were keeping company with a group of Mutes, one of the birds risked upsetting its neighbours by being very vocal. The weir hosted a Common Sandpiper and a Grey Wagtail briefly before they both shot off on seeing me while two Kingfishers did a flypast. Only one insect was seen here and that was a male Willow Emerald.

Black Swans and Willow Emerald.

Deenethorpe airfield had attracted small numbers of what I presume were migrant Meadow Pipits but there were no other birds to report. A Migrant Hawker was the only ode of note responding to the increasingly sunny conditions. Butterflies fared a little better with Red Admiral, several Small Heaths and Small and Green-veined Whites. Realising that I was unlikely to find much else I took the quicker option of walking back along the A427 rather than across the fields to Bears Lane.

Red Admiral and Small Heath.

ZZZZZZZ

Something of a snore fest today with my local walk producing next to nothing of note. Grey skies and the occasional shower  marked my stroll around the area near the STW and Willowbrook Industrial Estate, Corby but I really don't think that better weather would have improved things too much.

Grey Wagtail.

Near the town's STW a Grey Wagtail was once agin the highlight as I struggled to find much to look at. Several Chiffchaffs were singing and Blackcaps were chacking from deep within the many bushes but there was not much else to report.

Buzzard.

Great views of a Buzzard were obtained as I passed the steelworks before it was flushed by a jogger. At Willowbrook there seemed to be a movement of Meadow Pipits passing through but pickings for the most part were decidedly slim. One Common Darter was braving the grotty conditions here but apart from this and a single Small White seen near the Old Village that was it as far as insects other than crane-flies were concerned.

Dragon Rapide flight pictures.

Straying off piste for a moment here I know but I had the chance to take a flight in a Dragon Rapide biplane yesterday at the Duxford Battle of Britain airshow and it proved an offer that was just too good to resist. Of course my dragon could not match the aerial dexterity of those insects that I enjoy watching so much but it was still a great experience. I've never flown in an aircraft that was older than me before but it was certainly a trip that I'd repeat again if I get the chance.

Wheatear, Willows and Weldon

 It's been an interesting few days of wildlife watching and I knew it would be a bit of a struggle trying to match them on today's stroll. My walk took me to the area near Corby STW and then on to Willowbrook Industrial Estate before I ended up at Weldon. Some nice late Summer sunshine made for a pleasant experience and helped to bring out a reasonable selection of insects.

Grey Wagtail and Buzzard

There were no obvious migrants near the STW today, a couple of Grey Wagtails were probably resident birds while an increase in Blackbird numbers was probably down to local birds moving into a food rich and relatively undisturbed area. Both Chiffchaffs and a Blackcap were singing adding their voices to those of the local Robins.

Wheatear and Great Spotted Woodpecker

Willowbrook delivered a hoped for migrant with a single Wheatear showing distantly though well enough. A small number of Meadow Pipits may have been on the move too while the large charm of Goldfinches continues to feed on the abundant thistledown. Plenty of Common Darters were seen while butterflies included Common Blues, Small Heath, Comma, Speckled Wood and Small White.

Coppery Willow Emerald and Southern Hawker

My walk then took me past the A43 pond at Weldon where there was little to report other than a few more Common Darters and a Common Blue Damselfly. I left the swan family to continue on with their business and made my way along to the Woodland Park. Here I bumped into Alan Shorrock who had been looking at the Willowbrook Wheatear. We were treated to a good late season ode watching session dominated by plenty of Willow Emerald activity. A stunning looking coppery coloured male was the highlight, I think they may develop this colour as they mature. Other damsels still on the active list included a few Small Red-eyed Damselflies and another Common Blue Damselfly. Three species of hawker, Brown, Southern and Migrant were on the wing as well as plenty of darters. We finished our wander with a stroll along the stream where at least half a dozen Banded Demoiselles were noted and there was also a Red Admiral.

Banded Demoiselles and Roach?

Heron Hunting

 After a couple of out of county experiences it was time to knuckle down and get back to the nitty gritty of Northants birding. My brother David wanted to see the local Cattle Egrets and so we made an early morning visit to Stanwick Lakes in the hope of catching up with them. Happily for us it was a pleasantly warm sunny morning though clouds began to move in soon after noon.

Record shot dross - Cattle Egret and Garganey

Our Cattle Egret search yielded a couple of rather distant individuals with one near the main lake and another near the roadside pit. Neither was in view for too long but we were able to get reasonable views through the scope. Second highlight of our visit was a Garganey seen on the A45 lay-by pit which was again rather distant and often sleeping too. Rubbishy record shots of both were taken and I present them here for your enjoyment. Not much else to report birdwise though a Common Sandpiper was present and three Snipe were noted. Interesting insects included Commas and Speckled Woods while the odes were represented by Migrant and Southern Hawker as well as Common Blue Damsel.

Great White and Little Egrets

From Stanwick we moved on to Summer Leys where a Bittern was the main attraction. Two juvenile Ruffs were seen from the Rotary Hide as they fed on the opposite shore while David had nice views of a Kingfisher hovering. A short walk took us to Pioneer Hide where a small group of expectant Bittern fans had gathered and were waiting for a glimpse. Far more obliging than its elusive cousin was a Great White Egret feeding in the middle of the scrape. After a shortish period of time the Bittern did indeed show though it was always obscured by reeds and did not give any opportunities for photography. I didn't mind too much as it was my first sighting in the county ( though I have heard booming before) and took my day total of herons up to a healthy five. I'm not sure that I've seen five herons in any one day in the UK before never mind in Northamptonshire, oh how the times are a changing! We did stick around for a little bit hoping for some better views but in the end rumbling bellies led to a pre lunch departure.

Rough Ruff record shot and Comma.