Grey Skies, No Plover

 Although there were a few brief sunny spells this morning it was for the most part a much greyer state of affairs than it was yesterday. I only had a couple of hours to spare this morning and kept things as local as possible restricting myself to a stroll around Brookfield Plantation. My watching began with a successful check on the local Peregrines, both birds were present and the male was being fairly vocal. The plantation was fairly quiet, Chiffchaffs were amongst the noisiest of songsters. There were still several large flocks of Siskins here as well as a few Redpolls mixed in with them. A Sparrowhawk near the power station was my last sighting of note before I had to head home for a prearranged dinner date.

Peregrines

Blue Skies, Grey Plover

 A true taste of spring today with plenty of sunshine and some pleasantly warm conditions to enjoy as Alan Shorrock and I took a stroll around the reserve at Summer Leys. While the focus was mainly on birds a decent selection of butterflies were also on view. My main target was the Grey Plover which has been here for a couple of days and I'm happy to say that we managed to see it without too much effort.

Grey Plover and Redshank

We began by taking a look from Rotary Hide where there was not that much to see. It was a similar situation from Pioneer where water levels on the scrape are once again a little on the high side. On my walk towards Paul Britten Hide I heard my first Blackcaps of the day, there were at least five and probably more on the reserve today. The Grey Plover showed distantly from next to the double decker hide from where a Little Ringed was also noted. From the hide itself a trio of Snipe were seen as well as a good number of Redshanks.

Little Ringed Plover and Snipe

Next to Mary's Lake we found our first butterflies of the day with two Peacocks and a Comma nectaring on Blackthorn blossom. A male Brimstone, the first of at least half a dozen today, made a brief flypast. None of the Brimstones seemed inclined to settle as they sped around in search of females. We walked from here to near the Sand Martin bank where we were treated to some better views of the Grey Plover. On the way back towards Mary's Lane a male Orange-tip was my first of the year and it obligingly settled to give us a chance to take some pics.

Peacock and Comma

We spent some time looking for a reported Black-tailed Godwit without any success but I was able to see my first Small and Green-veined Whites of the year as well as another Orange-tip. With six species of butterflies on the wing it was far and away my best day of the year so far and I'm looking forward to many more like it. With the wildlife watching coming to an end we paid a repeat visit to the Coach and Horses in Wellingborough - a couple of pints and a bowl of scratchings is a very good way to finish a day!

Orange-tip and Green-veined White

Mandarins

 A changeable day of showers and sunshine that saw me heading along to Oundle. My walk took me from the north bridge to the south bridge and then into Barnwell CP. Whether the results justified the effort is open to debate but it was certainly nice to have an extra day off work.

Wren

The river walk was somewhat dull until I reached the footbridge at Ashton where a pair of Mandarins were present on the river. Around the mill a Cetti's Warbler and a Blackcap were singing while a Kingfisher paid a brief visit. Nothing else of note was seen until I reached the A605 bridge where another Mandarin was noted. At the floods near Barnwell Lock duck numbers had dropped a bit since my last visit and the best birds here were a couple of Redshanks. Perhaps the highlight of the day was a Peacock butterfly near the Princess fishing lake which was my first of the year.

Peacock and Mandarin

Barnwell was a little on the quiet side and a look from either of the hides failed to provide much of interest. Four pairs of Mandarin were the only highlight and I didn't hang around for too long before making the decision to stroll back into town.

Great Crested Grebe

Shame On You!

 I'd like you to take a minute and look at the logo for North Northamptonshire Council. It's a lovely design, there's a Red Kite flying over a river and Rockingham Castle's in there too. What it doesn't show are the looming warehouses in the many logistical hubs that the council have given planning permission for in recent years. Nor are there any of the thousands of houses that the people who work in these warehouses can't afford to buy featured either. Whether it's green or brown belt land our beloved council seem to love development whatever the cost to local communities might be. Even if we were to ignore the damage to wildlife habitat and to wildlife itself there's no doubt that unchecked development causes problems. Crumbling infrastructure, ineffectual policing, overstretched and overwhelmed health services and increased traffic levels are just a few of the costs involved.

Little Ringed Plover

Now this is a wildlife blog and I would normally reserve such discussions for the pub but it appears that plans are in progress to destroy the only breeding site for Ringed Plovers in Northamptonshire. Someone wants to create another vehicle storage facility despite the fact that Corby already has an embarrassment of riches in this regard. I raised my objections to the scheme (application ref number is NC/24/00076/REM if you fancy having a look) but if they want to build then our council is usually very accommodating. With numerous industrial and housing developments waiting in the wings I wonder what hope there is for wildlife in the Northamptonshire of the future?

Fallow Deer

Rant over and I'll now turn to the business of this afternoon's post work wander around a few sites in Corby. Two Little Ringed Plovers were at the now threatened site and one showed fairly well. At Willowbrook Industrial Estate there were guys doing groundwork near the favourite Wheatear site and consequently I didn't see much. The North Gullet at Priors Hall hosted a herd of Fallow Deer while an overflying Raven croaked as it flew off in the direction of Kirby Hall. There were the now regular Sand Martins in the South Gullet but the big news here was that the Great Crested Grebe on the quarry lake now has a companion, I'm looking forward to the pitter patter of little feet lobed in the future!

More Signs Of Spring

 Another sunny morning though the temperature was once again kept down by a cold north westerly wind. My walk today mirrored the local stroll that I took on Wednesday though I'm happy to say that the results were slightly better.  I began by checking the plover site and was happy to note a pair of Ringed Plovers and also a pair of Little Ringed though these appeared to be driven off by their larger cousins. It's nice to know that the Ringeds have returned to what is their only breeding site in the county.

Ringed and Little Ringed Plovers

Next up was Willowbrook where I checked the area for Wheatears but didn't see any. It was a little on the quiet side again here apart from the many singing Skylarks. There was nothing of note at the North Gullet at Priors Hall while the highlights in the Southern Gullet were once again Sand Martins and the still single Great Crested Grebe. One welcome change from Wednesday evening was the appearance of my first Small Tortoiseshell of the year nectaring on blossom near the quarry lake. Also making their debut for the year were several Bee-flies in the same area. On my way to the bus stop I made a slight detour to a spot in Weldon which often hosts early butterflies. My reward was a fine looking Comma which took my year list up to a less than impressive three.

Small Tortoiseshell and Comma

I'd thought my nature spotting day was over but after I'd done the shopping and started the preparations for dinner I received news that Alan Shorrock had found a couple of Wheatears at Willowbrook! Once I'd scrounged a lift I set off on a mini twitch hoping to catch up with them. Luck was with me as I found both and was able to watch them for several minutes before speeding home to continue with my chores. Where were they when I checked the same area this morning?

Wheatear

A Twitch In The Tail

 Today's travels took Alan Shorrock and I as far as Summer Leys where we enjoyed a bright start, a rainy period either side of midday and then a dry spell until evening. A brisk westerly kept the temperature down meaning that it was not quite time to discard the thermals just yet! From a birding point of view there were some signs of spring but it was a taste of winter that eventually provided the highlight.

Shoveller and Wigeon

There was not much on offer from Rotary Hide but Pioneer provided my first sighting of Little Ringed Plover this year with three present on the scrape. We had better quality views from Paul Britten Hide though they were still fairly distant. Alan Picked out a Sand Martin over the main lake and there was an immature Yellow-legged Gull too. The hide provided much needed shelter when the first of several heavy and squally showers blew in heralding a spell of unsettled weather for the next hour or two.

Little Ringed Plovers and Redshank

The yucky weather meant that we spent quite a lot of time in the hide overlooking the feeders and luckily there was a decent selection of visitors to keep us entertained. Best was a Redpoll which payed several visits and there were good numbers of Siskins popping in too. Just over the road at Mary's Lake a large flock of about forty Sand Martins were noted while Alan found a male Blackcap. We left and headed to the Coach and Horses in Wellingborough for a welcome pint.

Siskin and Redpoll

While heading for home news emerged that the four White-fronted Geese had returned to Titchmarsh after spending some time at Waddenhoe water meadows. A quick diversion was called for and we arrived at the reserve with some time to spare before sunset. The geese did not disappoint, all four were showing in the meadow at the northern end. We watched them for some time before deciding to head back towards Corby, there was no need for any further detours this time around!

White-fronted Geese.

Oh, Deer

 An after work trawl around some local sites turned out to be something of a disappointment. I'd hoped to catch up with a few early migrants but for the most part failed to do so. My local Ringed Plovers do not appear to have returned to their breeding site yet, I'm hoping they're just late and will turn up in the near future. Likewise a search for Wheatears at Willowbrook Industrial Estate drew a blank and the only thing of note here was a sizeable herd of Fallow Deer.

Fallow Deer

After Willowbrook my travels took me to Priors Hall but my fortunes did not improve in the North Gullet which was distinctly lacking in wildlife. Its southern neighbour was a smidgeon more interesting with a Redpoll providing a welcome break from the humdrum fare elsewhere. At the quarry lake the Great Crested Grebe was still present and I'm hoping that it manages to attract a mate. A Little Egret was fishing in the shallows and there was a selection of commoner wildfowl. My migrant hunt finally delivered the goods when I found four Sand Martins hawking insects in the gathering gloom. They were my first for the year though were not new for the site as Shozzer saw a couple here on Monday. With the looming rain clouds looking increasingly threatening and the light quality fading I called it quits and began my stroll home.

Redpoll and Great Crested Grebe

Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head

 Today was almost the complete opposite to yesterday with regards to the weather, grey and rainy conditions kicked things off before the clouds drifted away to leave some warm and pleasant sunny conditions in their wake. I opted to head over to Oundle where I began at Barnwell CP, the hides providing some much needed shelter from the rain. Not surprisingly the park was fairly quiet though a lack of people did not mean an increase in wildlife sightings!

Mandarins

Best birds were the Mandarin Ducks of which at least two pairs were present on site, the drakes provided a welcome splash of colour on an other wise dull morning. Chiffchaffs were in good voice with at least half a dozen around the park, I saw none during the winter so these birds are probably newly arrived migrants. i couldn't find anything else of note and decided to take advantage of a dry spell to take a walk along the Nene.

Great Tit and Blackbird

There is still quite a lot of floodwater along this stretch of the Nene but my wellies allowed me to get through to the floods near the A605. Wigeons were the commonest species here with over a hundred noted and there were at least thirty Shovellers too. A pair of Oystercatchers were the only waders other than a few Lapwings, there doesn't seem to be anywhere along the valley that doesn't have at least one pair of Oycs at the moment. A sharp and heavy shower sent me heading towards the town though the rain didn't last long and some welcome sunshine soon followed. My first Blackcap of the year showed briefly next to the school at Herne Road before it flew into a neighbouring garden. With the sun now feeling rather warm I headed to the churchyard in search of butterflies. My plan bore fruit as I caught a glimpse of a probable Red Admiral which disappeared before I could confirm it. A male Brimstone was easier to call as it did several circuits of the churchyard before flying into the grounds of the school. I had to leave soon after this as my return bus was due to arrive within minutes of this sighting.

Oystercatcher and Rook

Wellingborough Wander

 Today started nice and bright with plenty of sunshine though as the morning progressed more and more clouds rolled in leading to spells of the now all too familiar rain. My travels took me to Wellingborough where I had a stroll along the embankment and carried on as far as Ditchford Lane before returning to the town.

Oystercatcher and Reed Bunting

A Cetti's Warbler was singing from near the Whitworth's building and there was an Oystercatcher feeding in a flooded field near the footbridge. Several Chiffchaffs were singing and there seemed to be a lot of Reed Buntings around the site too. Chester House Lake hosted a Cattle and also a Great White Egret, both were on the opposite shore to me and rather distant though they showed well enough through the bins. Beyond the viaduct there was little to report and I did not manage to find any further Cattle Egrets at Ditchford Lane. Returning towards the town itself I enjoyed further views of the egrets before some moron with their dogs off the lead flushed all the birds from the opposite shore. The egrets headed off along the river while I headed off to the Coach and Horses for a pint and a spot of lunch.

Egret trio.

No White-fronted Silver Lining To This Cloud

 Shozzer and I took an after work trip over to Titchmarsh nature reserve on something of a wild goose chase. Our targets were the four White-fronted Geese which made a surprise return to the site yesterday, they had originally been present for a few hours on the fourth but were then thought to have moved on. There was no news coming through of either a positive or negative nature earlier in the day but we put that down to the poor weather conditions.

Great White  Egret

A break in the latest instalment of this winter's monsoon meant we enjoyed a dry though sadly unproductive walk around part of the site. There was plenty of evidence of the recent rainfall and the path along the river was flooded which meant that we couldn't take a look at the fields around Elinor trout lake. We did not connect with the White-fronts and it looks as if they've repeated their disappearing act, whether it's temporary or not remains to be seen. Very little else to report, a pair of Oystercatchers and a Great White Egret were the pick of the bunch.

Return To IL & M

 Regular birding buddy Alan Shorrock and I made a quick return to the Irthlingborough Lakes and Meadows reserve this morning. I wanted to see the reported drake Scaup on Higham Lake and Shozzer didn't mind having a look either. In bright sunshine we set out on our stroll, I'd hoped to see some early butterflies but will have to wait for another day.

Black-tailed Godwits

A scan of the area in and around Otter Lake produced views of three Black-tailed Godwits, there seems to be quite a movement of these leggy waders going through the county at the moment. While they were fairly distant we did get decent enough views through the scope and I grabbed a few record shots. Our ignorance of the site meant that we followed the Nene footpath in our attempt to see the Scaup. Somewhat frustratingly Higham Lake was obscured by vegetation and it was only when we found a small gap in the trees that we were able to view the water. Happily or perhaps I should say luckily the Scaup did show briefly from here and was my first county one of the year making up for that dip at Grendon Lakes a few weeks ago. Once the duck had drifted out of view we continued our hike around the area without adding much to our list.

Rubbishy record shots of Ring-necked Duck.

Having left the Nene behind we returned to the reserve and started wandering back towards the car. I left the path and found a spot from where I could view Higham Lake without too much vegetation obscuring the view. A scan of the water produced distant views of a female Ring-necked Duck which has been reported on and off during the past week. Regular readers of the blog will know that I only ever take rubbishy shots of Ring-neckeds and today's efforts did not buck that trend! Not that far from this spot we found a path that led us to the lakeside from where we had a clear view of the lake. The Scaup showed pretty well from here and even the Ring-necked put in an appearance though it was very distant. Now that I know the best spot from which to view the area I won't be taking arduous riverside treks next time something good shows up here!

Scaup

We had another opportunity to watch the godwits on the East Pit where three Pintails were also showing. Two Great White Egrets included one adult bird coming into its breeding plumage, I wonder if it heads towards Ham Wall in Somerset or will this be the year when GWEs breed in Northants? With the birding wrapped up we headed into Wellingborough for a well earned pint.

Bad news for fishes!