Quick Return

 My brother wanted to test some new optical equipment and it looked as if a late evening leading into dusk trip might be in order so we opted to take the short journey to Eyebrook Reservoir. This turned out to be a good move because tonight's visit if anything turned out to be better then our previous excursion.

Wood Sandpiper.

We began by looking for some of the reported waders and it didn't take long to find the trio of Wood Sandpipers that have been here for a while. They were joined by a single Green Sandpiper and also a Greenshank. At least two Ruffs shared the shallows while other waders included an immature Dunlin and a young Little Ringed Plover. The Cattle Egret also showed again and showed well treating us to much better views than it did on Monday. My brother picked out a hunting Barn Owl which gave us good though distant views when it perched, a Kingfisher did likewise. Several Yellow Wagtails were heard though we didn't manage to pick any out on the ground.

Cattle Egret.

All in all it was a very decent hour and a half's viewing and the new scope turned out to be a winner too, sometimes things just turn out in your favour! Unfortunately due to fading light conditions and the distances involved all pictures are of the record shot variety and won't win any prizes!

Barn Owl

Phew!

 An after work trip along to Weldon to check out any dragonfly activity at the pond in the woodland park. Temperatures remain high and may perhaps have been too hot for some of the larger species, it certainly was a bit much for me!

Small Red-eyeds and Common Blues doing what comes naturally!

Star of the show were the many Small Red-eyed Damselflies, loads were engaging in breeding behaviour over the water or on the pond weed while others hunted around the tips of overhanging branches or just perched on them. Still quite a few Red-eyed Damsels and Common Blues too with just a few Banded Demoiselles and a single Blue-tailed as well. Small numbers of dragons included a couple each of Emperor and Brown Hawker and I also saw a single male Ruddy Darter.

Ruddy Darter and Emperor.

While I wasn't really looking at the other wildlife I did hear a Kingfisher and saw a few butterflies including Brown Argus and Common Blue.

Brown Hawker and Common Blue.

That Was Better Than A Busy Barnwell!

 Something of a two parter today beginning at Harry's Park Wood though instead of moving on to Weldon things took an unexpected turn and I ended up at Eyebrook Res. It was certainly one of the hottest days of the year and with there being little breeze it was a sweaty old business trying to find some wildlife.

Purple Hairstreak and Southern Hawker.

Bears Lane was fairly active with a party of Meadow Pipits likely to have been migrants heading south. Two vocal Ravens on the other hand were probably the locally breeding pair while a fly over Crossbill was most likely part of the late Summer irruption of this species. In the wood a few insects were beginning to stir and these ncluded a couple of tatty looking Purple Hairstreaks. Other butterflies seen here were Gatekeeper, Meadow Brown and Green-veined White. A couple of hawker dragonflies were also getting started and these were a Southern and a Brown. Just as I was about to turn around and start my walk back my brother called and offered me a lift over to Eyebrook Reservoir. Given that the res was enjoying something of a wader bonanza it was an offer far too good to resist.

Dodgy record shot time! Cattle Egret and Whinchat.

Peering through the heat haze at Eyebrook produced a sighting of the Cattle Egret that has taken up residence recently, a somewhat hazy record shot was managed. Star of the wader show was at least one Wood Sandpiper, three have been noted. A small flock of eleven Black-tailed Godwits were resting before continuing their journey while two Greenshanks were actively feeding. Several Ruffs were also present as well as a decent number of Lapwings. Other observers had noted Dunlins and a Ringed Plover so all in all it was a good haul. We were also lucky to pick out at least two Whinchats perching in the waterside vegetation, Eyebrook often seems to do well for them on Autumn passage.

Male (top) and female Common Darters.

I spent a bit of time looking for the newly colonised Willow Emeralds but sadly drew a blank, it may still be a little early for them. Odes that did show included Brown Hawker and Common Darter as well as a Banded Demoiselle. Few butterflies were noted and most of those that were seen were whites.

Not One Of My Best.

 A less than spectacular day began at a grey and breezy Blatherwycke Lake where a Raven was the only thing of interest. Not a great deal to report between here and Deene either though at least by the time that I arrived there the sun had at least began to emerge. Another Raven was observed here and so too was the resident Black Swan while a Kingfisher was heard. I couldn't find any Willow Emeralds here and the ode highlight was male and female Small Red-eyed Damselflies.

Small Red-eyed Damselflies (m top)

Priors Hall provided the only dragons of the day with Common and Ruddy Darter being the commonest. A few Migrant hawkers are beginning to appear though the only Southern noted was sadly a dead female floating in one of the ponds. Several Emperors included ovipositing females as well as males and singles of Four-spotted Chaser and Black-tailed Skimmer.

Migrant and unfortunate Southern Hawker.

I bumped into Priors regular Alan Shorrock and it was perhaps just as well because Shozzer managed to pick out two male Emerald Damselflies. Few other damsels were noted with just Common Blues and Blue-taileds being added to the list. No surprises amongst the butterflies with the most numerous being Gatekeepers, Meadow Browns and Small Heaths. Plenty of whites were seen and a growing number of Common Blues. Other species on the wing were Brown Argus, Ringlet, Large Skipper, Speckled Wood, Peacock and Small Tortoiseshell.

Emerald Damselfly and Emperor.

I checked the quarry on the way past and found at least twelve adult Yellow-legged Gulls in amongst the many Lesser Black-backeds and a solitary Herring. There may well have been immatures present too but in truth it was now too hot to bother trying to find them!

Yellow-legged Gull.

Late Show Saves Day

Monday morning and I unwisely chose to return to Barnwell CP where hoards of other people had apparently made the same decision. With noise levels rising as the morning shift of joggers and dog walkers gave way to kids I beat a hasty retreat and walked across to the stretch of river next to the marina.

Comma and Gatekeeper.

Before my departure I had time to note several Mandarin Ducks and a Kingfisher and also took the time to watch a Common Tern fishing in Mill Lake. Few butterflies were found with Commas and Gatekeepers making up most of the sightings. Dragons were few and far between too so it was a far from difficult decision to throw in the towel and move on.

Rufescens-obsoleta form of Blue-tailed Damselfly and Banded Demoiselle

There were quite a few Small Red-eyed Damsels on the lilies at the Nene and a few of their larger cousins at the nearby Princess Lake. A thorough search of the trees and vegetation around the lake did not produce any Willow Emeralds and the lack of anything else interesting coupled with the onset of a shower sent me heading for home.

Mandarin Duck and Hummingbird Hawkmoth

My less than spectacular day was saved by the arrival of an uncommon visitor to my garden in Corby. Looking out of the window at my Buddleia I was delighted to see a Hummingbird Hawkmoth visiting the flowers. Happily my camera was close to hand and I was able to get a couple of shots of this southern migrant. This was only the second time that this species has paid me a visit and it was perhaps lucky to escape the attentions of a hunting Brown Hawker which was my first garden record. Next week may well see me dragging the chair out again for some good old fashioned lockdown style garden nature spotting!

Walk Around Priors

A mainly sunny if rather breezy day and after yesterday's twitchy pleasures I settled for a more sedate sort of affair at Priors Hall. No surprises today with the usual sort of suspects on show including the near resident Mr Alan Shorrock.

Emperor and Brown Hawker.

At the large and reed fringed pond a Kingfisher was a welcome sight as they're a fairly scarce visitor here. Dragons and damsels were a little hard to find today which was no doubt due to the wind though Emperors appeared to take it in their stride as quite a few were seen. Commonest species were Common and Ruddy Darters with the former now present in growing numbers. A few Four-spotted and Black-tailed Skimmers were noted while two ovipositing Brown Hawkers were also observed. Best odes were a couple of Willow Emeralds one of which posed nicely in typical Willow fashion. One male Small Red-eyed Damselfly was a site year tick while an immature male Azure Damselfly was a little unexpected as it's quite late in their season.

Common and Ruddy Darters

Best butterflies were a couple of Brown Argus and a growing number of new brood Common Blues. At the other end of their flight season were various browns and Large Skippers, Ringlets should be disappearing soon. Few other species were recorded with just a few whites and a few Peacocks on the wing. Amongst the Six-spotted Burnets noted  was one that looked like a Five-spot though I'm more than likely to be wrong!

Willow Emerald, Small Red-eyed and Azure Damselflies

Three Mandarins were flushed up from one of the ponds and there were five Yellow-legged Gulls in the quarry, Priors is a traditional spot in late summer for these gulls.  Not much in the way of other wildlife apart from a Brown Hare.

Rubbishy record shot of Y-L Gull and a Brown Argus.

Result at Pitsford.

There have been several reports and some amazingly good photos emerging of Lesser Emperors being seen at Pitsford reservoir. This news was reason enough for Alan Shorrock and I to pop over there and chance our luck. So far I've dipped on every single rare dragonfly that I've gone for in Northants so it really was a case of keeping those fingers crossed!

Holcott Bay.

Having purchased our permits from the fishing lodge we set out for the nearby Holcott Bay which has been the focus for Lesser Emperor activity over the last couple of days. Unfortunately our arrival coincided with a cloudy period and our first attempt ended in failure. Mention should be made of the vast numbers of horse flies that blighted our visit as both of us fought a running battle against them for the duration of our visit. Feeling that a lack of sun would lead to a lack of dragons we went for a bit of a wander around the reserve before returning to the LE site.

Southern Hawker and Common Blue Damselfly.

A period of sunshine was bringing out an increasing number of dragons which included Southern and Brown Hawkers as well as several Emperors though there was no sign of our hoped for quarry. Our vigil was not a total waste of time however as first a Yellow Wagtail and then a Clouded Yellow went past. Several Red-eyed Damselflies were noted at this point which made a nice change from the myriad of Common Blues swarming over the water.

Ruddy Darter and Small Red-eyed Damselfly.

Having been moved away from the water side by a warden we went for another walk looking as we went for Willow Emeralds as this part of the res looked to have clear potential for this recent county arrival. While a couple of possibles were noted we couldn't get a confirmed sighting. No doubt however about the Migrant Hawker that perched obligingly for us and which was my first of the year. From here we headed back to Holcott Bay where our patience finally paid off.

Brown and Migrant Hawkers.

Standing with another observer Shozzer picked out a Small Red-eyed Damselfly before our target arrived. A cracking male Lesser Emperor gave great flight views as it passed in front of us patrolling along the edge of the reeds. It made several passes and showed very well though sadly it did not land which means that I got no photos of this historic event. As this was both my first county sighting and also a first for the UK I'm not going to complain.

Red Admiral.

Of the other wildlife noted today included several Kingfishers which were nice and also a small selection of butterflies that included Brimstone, Ringlet and red Admiral.