Rose Tinted Binoculars

 I had a fairly enjoyable if uneventful walk around Priors Hall this morning where in the bright sunshine a selection of insects were on offer. The need to go shopping and the prospect of a pub lunch meant that my time was limited and I got back feeling reasonably satisfied with my bread and butter saunter around the area. Little did I know at the time that events at Eyebrook Reservoir would lead to a post prandial twitch for a bird that I really was not expecting to see here!

Common Blue and Peacock

Back to the humdrum first though, the quarry lake is looking promising for waders but today there were just a few Sand martins hawking insects over the water. Very few birds were seen at Priors today though a female Tufted Duck with a youngster on the biggest pond was a welcome sight. On the butterfly front a Small Copper was my first of the year though I didn't manage to get a picture before it flew off. Common Blues are now emerging again while numbers of Peacocks are beginning to increase. Commas are still doing well though numbers of both browns and skippers are on the wane. There were no surprises amongst the odes with just the usual array of species on offer. I was however pleased to find a new pond near the houses on the east side of the quarry where a number of Small Red-eyed Damselflies were in situ. Plenty of teneral Common Darters were emerging from this pond which suggests it's been here since at least last summer. With time ticking on I made tracks for home and headed off to Weldon for my bus home.

Emperor and Small Red-eyed Damselfly

I'd finished lunch and enjoyed a pint or three when I checked my phone messages on the way home in the car. A message on the Eyebrook WhatsApp said that "the Roseate is back on the mud". Cue copious amounts of swearing as I went on to the group's site and found that a Roseate Tern had been present at the res for over an hour! Now I have seen very few of these in nearly fifty years of birding and they've become so rare that I did not expect to see one locally. Needless to say a few phone calls and texts ensued and I was soon on my way to Eyebrook in the company of my brother David. Happily the tern was still sitting on the mud at the sharp end and was being admired by a growing band of tern twitchers. Although it did move off at one point it returned soon after and had a little snooze. The requisite rubbishy record shots were duly taken before I gave up my spot in the viewing bunker to allow new arrivals to see the bird. What an excellent way to round off the weekend!

Roseate Tern

Morning Stroll At Wickies

 This morning I took a walk around the fishing lake at Wicksteed Park where I'd hoped to see some interesting insects. With some long periods of sunshine on offer I managed to see a few bits and bobs but did not manage to connect with any of the newly arrived Norfolk Hawkers that I saw on an earlier visit.

Only their mother could love them! - Cootlings

Butterflies were in short supply with Gatekeepers being the most numerous. Commas continue to do well and at least five were noted today, other species on view included Speckled Wood and Green-veined White. Male Emperor dragonflies were patrolling several stretches of the lake where a few Common Darters were also present. At least two Brown Hawkers were hunting in the general area while Black-tailed Skimmers were seen over the main lake. Best damsel on view was a male Variable Damselfly, the commonest was Small Red-eyed. Not many birds to report, a Common Sandpiper was the only one worth mentioning.

Comma, Emperor, Variable and Small Red-eyed Damselflies.

Dawn Till Dusk

 I had quite an early start on Saturday morning as my lift dropped me off at Deenethorpe Airfield before eight. Pallid sunshine soon gave way to cloud cover and that affected the number of insects on view but birds helped to take up some of the lack. Later in the day I spent some time in west Norfolk in the company of my brother and half a dozen Nightjars.

Essex Skipper and Marbled White

At the airfield a Barn Owl provided some early interest as if flew from a hedge near the entrance into a large tree. In the weak sunshine I encountered rather a lot of butterflies, most were still roosting but a few were up and about and doing their business. Browns always feature large in July and today was no exception with six species on the wing. Gatekeepers in particular were common and so too were Ringlets and Meadow Brown.. Lesser numbers of Small Heath and Marbled White were seen while there was just a single Speckled Wood to report. Odes were in short supply though Banded Demoiselle and Common Darter were both recorded. A Grasshopper Warbler was heard reeling near the hangar buildings and was my first at this site for several years.

Green Sandpipers and Mandarin

Just across the road from Deenethorpe village there were three Green Sandpipers feeding in the shallows at the Deene Lake inflow where my first site record of Mandarin was also found. On the main lake an Osprey was seen carrying a large fish in its talons and a Grey Wagtail was present near the dam, two Black Swans were interesting even if they're not tickable! Natural history event of the day was the mass emergence of Willow Emeralds, over twenty were eventually counted near the dam on the main lake. I was only too aware that I had a busy day ahead of me and so headed off back towards Weldon soon after.

Willow Emeralds

My brother David and I made our annual pilgrimage to Norfolk in order to see Nightjars later in the day. We endured the usual assault from the local bugs but our efforts did pay off. Up to five males were churring and we had several brief views of females as they hunted over the heath. Tawny Owls called as we made our way back to the car, a nice way to end a long but enjoyable day.

Small Heath

Phew, That Was Hot!

 Another hot day as our mini heatwave continues, it's due to end soon but that's a problem for another day. Today I journeyed over to Barnwell CP where I enjoyed a very pleasant stroll around before it got too hot. There was nothing out of the ordinary to report but enough of interest to keep me going.

Scarce Chaser, Ruddy Darter and Emperor

Dragonflies featured strongly and it was good to catch up with three Scarce Chasers, their season is coming to an end and it's going to be a while before I see any more. Both species of darter were seen and other species included Brown Hawker, Emperor, Four-spotted Chaser and Black-tailed Skimmer.  Best of the damsels were Small Red-eyed damselflies though it was good to see plenty of teneral Banded Demoiselles too.

Brimstone and Gatekeeper

Butterflies were present in good numbers but most of those were Meadow Browns and Gatekeepers! The highlights were two Brimstones while other species included Comma, Red Admiral, Small and Green-veined White. Several Kingfishers were heard around the park but the best birds that were actually seen were the many Mandarins which suggests that they had a good breeding season.

Mandarin

Hooray For Harry's!

 This morning I took advantage of the current spell of good weather and headed to Harry's Park Wood. I didn't expect to see anything new but hoped that plenty of insects would be active in the sunshine. As it was a week day the wood was pretty quiet and I had most of the place to myself for long periods - bliss!

Purple Emperor

Bad news first, no sign of Purple Hairstreaks and I didn't see any White Admirals though a couple that I met from Hardingstone did manage to see one. Just like yesterday there were Silver-Washed Fritillaries at various points but none wanted to land and I didn't get any pictures. Despite these minor setbacks there was plenty to enjoy beginning along Bears Lane where eight species of butterfly were noted. In the wood itself there were others on the wing with species such as Red Admiral and Small Tortoiseshell showing. At the other end of the wood at the Old Dry Bushes car park two raggedy Purple Emperors had come down to the ground and treated me to some great views. One of them did even better as it flew up on to my leg before settling on my shoe for a bit. In the same area my first of several Commas were seen, while on my return amble through the wood I saw my first new brood Brimstones and Holly Blue.

Small Tortoiseshell, Green-veined White and Meadow Brown

Several Brown Hawkers and Emperors were hunting along the rides while a Southern Hawker favoured Bears Lane. Some large puddles had attracted Four-spotted Chasers and Common Darters as well as a few Azure Damselflies. It's still quiet for birds at the moment and only Marsh Tit and Raven provided any interest.

Four-spotted Chaser and Common Darter

Fermyn Feels Flat

 I was out again with Alan Shorrock today though this time we visited Fermyn Wood where we hoped the good weather might bring out the butterflies. Clearly we were not the only ones to have this idea as plenty of cars were parked by the entrance. I suspect that many left disappointed as Purple Emperors seemed to be few and far between, we only met one person that had found any.

Meadow Brown

Silver-washed Fritillaries showed well but were reluctant to settle while all the Purple Hairstreaks stayed high up and didn't offer any photographic opportunities. A single White Admiral similarly didn't settle and as a result I didn't  get to photograph that either. Of the other species a newly emerged Peacock was the highlight, plenty of browns and whites, Small and Large Skipper, Comma and Peacock were also seen.

Ruddy Darter and Banded Demoiselle

Brown and Southern Hawkers were joined by several Emperors and there were a few Ruddy Darters around the larger puddles, a Banded Demoiselle rounded off the odes. Best birds were two Ravens and a few Marsh Tits.

Raven

This Is Becoming A Habit!

 I'm in between jobs at the moment which means I have a bit more time for wildlife watching than I would have usually. Today I had a interview which was successful enough to land me a new job so I'll have to make the most of my remaining free time before my nose goes back to the grindstone!. Some good reports came in from Eyebrook this morning which were enough to persuade me to contact regular birding pal Alan Shorrock and arrange a visit.

Black Tern

Our first target was a brace of Black Terns which had been reported from the island bunker. Happily for us they did not take too long to find as they ranged across most of the reservoir south of the island. I managed a few dodgy record shots but if the pics were poor the viewing experience was not. By way of a bonus a Hobby chasing a Sand Martin was noted and a Green Sandpiper was present near Sam's Dyke. From here we moved to the viewing area near the sharp end from where a couple of decent waders had been seen earlier in the day.

Dunlin and Barn Owl

On arrival a Greenshank was seen, this is probably the same bird that has been observed on my previous two visits. Next the Wood Sandpiper which was first seen yesterday showed giving good if distant views. If my record shots of the Black Terns were bad then my attempts to get a pic of this almost bordered on the criminal! It showed intermittently as it moved in and out of the waterside vegetation, a summer plumaged Dunlin was a little less elusive. Another birder put me on to the reported Turnstone which was very difficult to get to grips with as it was too close to the bank. Eventually many of the birds were flushed and the Turnstone moved on to a more exposed spot where I was able to get a few record shots. A nice little cameo here was put in by a hunting Barn Owl which was presumably taking advantage of the drier conditions once the overnight and morning rain had moved on. 

Turnstone and Wood Sandpiper.

A brief pause at the bridge added Kingfisher to the list as one was heard calling. Final stop was on the Rutland side of the res where both the Turnstone and the Wood Sandpiper showed again. Satisfied that we had seen all that we were likely to we decided to move on, I celebrated the news of my new job with a pint in the 'spoons.

White-letter Day

 I got up this morning feeling almost bright-eyed and possibly even bushy tailed which was a pleasant surprise given how much beer I swigged while at the Highland Gathering and whilst watching the football. As it was quite sunny I decided to do a spot of butterfly hunting along the Old Kettering Road near Great Oakley. After a relatively short trip on the X4 and a longish walk I found myself wandering along the road hoping to catch up with some White-lettered Hairstreaks.

Essex and Small Skipper

The sunshine was fairly hazy and butterflies were in short supply, at first I only saw a Gatekeeper and several Commas. As the sun got a little warmer there was a bit more activity and this included at least two White-lettered Hairstreaks flying around the top of a large Elm tree. I couldn't get a picture but it was nice to catch up with them for the first time this year. Crossing the Headway I visited the nearby Great Oakley Meadow nature reserve where I found my first Essex Skipper of the year. Other species noted were Small Skipper, Meadow Brown, Ringlet and Green-veined White. By now the clouds were moving in and I left before the threatened rain arrived.

Busy Day

 With Corby's Highland Gathering to visit and a certain football match to watch this evening I had to squeeze my walk into this morning, happily for me the weather was pretty decent. I chose to take a walk around Harry's Park Wood where I hoped to see a good selection of butterflies. Although I didn't see any Purple Emperors I did see a decent variety of other species.

Silver-washed Fritillary and Small Tortoiseshell

Bears Lane yielded Gatekeeper, Ringlet and Comma and several singing Yellowhammers as well as a few Azure Damselflies. In Harry's Park I saw my first Silver-washed Fritillaries of the year and also got further views but no pics of both White Admiral and Purple Hairstreak. Plenty of browns and whites were flitting along the rides while numbers of both Commas and Large Skippers were fairly high. My first new brood Small Tortoiseshell was a welcome find and I also enjoyed looking at several Red Admirals. Three or four Emperor dragonflies were hawking the wood with at least one Southern Hawker sharing their airspace. Other odes noted included Ruddy Darter as well as several other darters not identified down to species. Best birds today were Marsh Tit and a Tawny Owl which was hooting close to the Bears Lane entrance. With some bagpipes to hear and a bus to catch I started my walk back into Weldon around noon. 

Large White and Speckled Wood