Pec Delivers - Eventually!

 I must admit to feeling a little disappointed that Al and I missed out on the Pectoral Sandpiper at Summer Leys and so was pretty glad that it decided to hang around for a while. My last county sighting was of a bird at Pitsford in September 1987 so another one was perhaps a little overdue! The weather was warm though not as warm as last week and there was quite a stiff breeze, the days of birding in shirt sleeves may well be coming to an end.

Egrets and Red Admiral

Shozzer parked the car along Mary's Lane from where we wandered along to the Paul Britten Hide. On our way several Red Admirals and a Comma were noted while at least six Great White Egrets included the Somerset ringed individual. Common Snipe and Common Sandpiper were noted close to the hide while four Ringed Plovers were seen from the hide itself. With no sign of the Pec we moved on to the screen hide where plenty of egrets but no waders were noted. At the Toad Pond a toad and the terrapin were seen and a pair of Willow Emeralds were observed. Other odes on the wing today included Brown and several Migrant Hawkers as well as the two common species of darter.

Tiger Moth and Migrant Hawker

A walk along the old mineral line failed to produce much other than great views of a De Haviland Tiger Moth and so we made our way back towards the car. On the way we popped into Mary's Lake where a Willow Emerald was the highlight. Butterflies in the area included Small and Green-veined White and a little further on we saw the only Speckled Wood of the day. Up until now we had received no reliable updates regarding the Pec though a couple in the main car park seemed to have more positive news relating to the bird. Armed with this fresh intel I headed off to Rotary Hide from where the Pec Sand had last been reported. Alan picked out the Pectoral Sandpiper on the opposite bank and we were treated to good though distant views through the scope. Eventually we packed our stuff into the car and headed off to the Saxon Tavern in Earls Barton.

Pec Sand and Willow Emerald.