Eyebrook

 Alan Shorrock and I took a trip to Eyebrook this morning where we enjoyed a steady if not quite spectacular wildlife watching session. Things remain quiet on the birding front but there were a few insects on view particularly when the sun was shining.

Osprey and Ruff

Two Ospreys were seen on several occasions though they didn't hang around for any length of time. A Yellow-legged Gull is still present while presumably the three Ruffs from our previous visit are still hanging around. One or two Green Sandpipers were also noted but there was little else to report. At the bridge an immature White-legged Damselfly was seen, Eyebrook used to have a colony but I'm not sure if it's still viable as we didn't see anymore. Commonest damsel was Azure and there were smaller numbers of Common Blue, Red-eyed and Banded Demoiselle while a Brown hawker and an Emperor represented the dragons. Best butterfly was a Small Copper though it was good to see half a dozen fresh looking Commas nectaring on bramble blossom near the bridge.

White-legged Damselfly and Small Copper.

On the way home we took a detour to the Welland at Harringworth where a break in the clouds tempted some White-legged Damselflies out. Plenty of Banded Demoiselles were also seen as well as a single Blue-tailed while a Brown Hawker also put in an appearance. The only butterfly of interest was a Holly Blue that did a brief flyby while several Grey Wagtails put in similarly brief cameos.

Banded Demoiselle