No Sleeping In Beds

 I joined Alan Shorrock and Phil Rogers for an out of county sortie to Bedfordshire in search of some of the scarcer butterflies. Unlike those uncooperative Chequered Skippers from Fineshade today's targets for the most part decided to play ball. Although the breeze was pretty strong and there was also an unwelcome but mercifully short cloudy spell for the most part the weather was warm and sunny making me wish that I'd put some sun cream on!

Corn Bunting and Dingy Skipper

We began at Totternhoe which is a chalky grass and scrubby area on the site of an old quarry. It's known for its populations of Duke of Burgundy Fritillaries and Small Blues and it was the hope of seeing these that drew us there. Both were formerly residents of Northamptonshire but our Dukes disappeared in the last millennium while the blues' demise was more recent. Our first interesting sighting was not a butterfly but a bird, a Corn Bunting was heard and then seen, there were at least two on site. A Dingy Skipper on the path to the quarry was my first of the year, I saw about half a dozen in total during my visit. Alan then found a Small Blue which posed for some pictures, we saw at least two more along the same stretch of path.

Duke of Burgundy

We reached the quarry just as the cloud cover increased and things started to look a little challenging. A few Brimstones were noted and Phil found a Small Heath hunkering down in the grass but butterflies were few in number. Two other lepers that we met shared the news that they had just seen at least four Dukes at the bottom of the quarry. Armed with this encouraging information we headed off in that direction. Soon we found ourselves in the august company of several Dukes which obliged us by posing for plenty of pictures. Leaving them behind we scaled the steep slopes as we headed back towards the car park. Arriving at the top of the quarry we were met by another Duke and also my first Common Blue of the year. There was not much else to report from here and we headed off for a pint and a spot of lunch at the White Horse near Woburn.

Small Blue

On the way home we made a brief stop at Salcey Forest hoping that we might find a Wood White or two. Sadly the Wood Whites mirrored the elusive behaviour of yesterday's skippers and we didn't see any. With little else on offer we upped sticks and headed back to Corby.

Common Blue and Small Heath

Chequered Dippers

 Regular accomplice Alan Shorrock and I ventured out to Fineshade Wood today with a view to seeing some of their Chequered Skippers. As the title might have hinted we did not meet with any success in that regard but we did catch up with a few decent insects and also a couple of birds too. The weather was mostly warm and sunny though a keen north easterly breeze featured throughout our visit.

Scarce and Broad-bodied Chasers

We parked in King's Cliffe and took the bridleway into the wood seeing a Scarce Chaser on the way. In the wood itself a Cuckoo was calling but butterflies were very few in number. Continuing along the path we eventually began to connect with a few species as the day gradually warmed up. A surprisingly large number of Holly Blues were flitting about the rides and joined Orange-tips, Speckled Woods and Green-veined White on the list. I spotted my first Broad-bodied Chaser of the year which posed for a few pics while Shozzer found a couple of Green Hairstreaks. A family party of Ravens were calling from nearby trees and showed occasionally, the young looked as if they still had a bit of time to go before they mastered flight! We eventually had to concede defeat in our skipper quest and headed back towards the village. Two pairs of ovipositing Large Red Damselflies were seen on the edge of the wood as we left.

Green Hairstreak, Small Heath and Large White

More butterflies began to appear as we strolled with four or five Brimstones, a Red Admiral and Large White being noted. King's Ciffe Meadow had several Small Heaths while there were a few Banded Demoiselles near the brook. A break for a pint or two in the rather good Cross Keys was followed by a stop at the stream at Blatherwycke on the way home. Nothing too exciting here though we added Blue-tailed Damselfly to our day list.

Raven, Large Red Damselflies and Banded Demoiselle

Diverting

 A trip on the X4 to Oundle this morning turned out to be anything but routine. It all started normally enough but a road closure at Lower Benefield created something of a problem. Our driver did a nifty three point turn into a field opening and we took the back road through Glapthorn. That should have been it but another road closure in Oundle caused the bus to take a rather circuitous route through residential streets before we ended up near the north bridge. I took the opportunity to get off at this point and headed towards the floods near the A605.

Scarce Chaser and Hairy Dragonfly

Having recovered from the travel trials and tribulations I began to scan the floods noting a pair of Shelduck and a trio of Little Egrets. There was not much in the way of birds to report and only a Lesser Whitethroat near the six form college and a Cuckoo at Barnwell CP were noteworthy. Happily for me the morning grey gave way to sunny spells and some insects appeared to add some much needed entertainment.

Variable and Red-eyed Damselflies

The riverside nettle beds are now full of Banded Demoiselles while the area near the Princess Lake still holds many Red-eyed Damselflies and a few Blue-taileds. Best here was a male Hairy Dragonfly taking a breather on some Hawthorn. At Barnwell CP a brief view of a chaser flying up into a riverside tree raised hopes that I'd found my first Four-spotted of the season. I eventually found it with the bins and was surprised to see that it was a female Scarce Chaser. This seems quite early for this species but I'm sure that my identification was correct. Other species of odes on the wing included a few Azures and a female Variable at the country park.

Holly Blue and Orange-tip

No new butterflies were seen today though a reasonable selection was on view. Orange-tips were the commonest but Small White, Small Tortoiseshell, Red Admiral, Speckled Wood and Holly Blue were also recorded. Not much other wildlife was about today other than a brace of Muntjacs near the floods.

Shelduck

First Dragon

 I'm working this Saturday and the compensation for that unpleasantness was a day off today. Alan Shorrock and I paid a visit to Stanwick Lakes in the hope that it might be quieter without the weekend hordes. It certainly was with far fewer people walking around though that quietness sadly seemed to extend to the birding too!

Muntjacs and Cuckoo

We began at the lay-by pit where evidence of the current bird flu outbreak was all too apparent with a large number of Black-headed Gull corpses on view. With nothing living to attract our interest we moved on quickly along the causeway. With a bit of sunshine on offer I harboured some hopes of seeing some insects and those hopes were fulfilled. A couple of Munjacs distracted us momentarily near the bronze age house reconstruction but it was signs of an emergence of Red-eyed Damselflies that caught my attention. Over ten were seen in this area, there were plenty more in other parts of the site as well as the first of at least ten Common Blue Damselflies.

Hairy Dragonfly, Blue-tailed and Common Blue Damselflies

In trees around the reedbed there were at least two Cuckoos and one even showed on several occasions. Over the main lake two Hobbies were hawking insects and there were several Swifts too but we missed the Ruff that was seen here this morning. Lots of Banded Demoiselles were active around the many nettle beds and we also managed to see three Blue-tailed Damselflies. Ode of the day title went to a female Hairy Dragonfly which posed for some pictures before zooming away.

Red Admiral and Orange-tip

There were a few butterflies on the wing and these included a Red Admiral which adds further proof that there has been a small arrival of this species. A few careworn Peacocks were noted around the lakes but they were outnumbered by Orange-tips, other species seen were Brimstone, Holly Blue and Speckled Wood. Luckily for us we managed to dodge the rain until the journey home but by that stage we were in the car.

Flying Visit.

 I spent a pleasant hour before work this morning sitting in my garden and was delighted to receive a visit from a female Holly Blue. There have been several brief fluttering visits so far this Spring but this was the first one to settle. While enjoying the pleasantly warm sunshine I also noted a Raven, Red Kite and Buzzards while the local Swifts and House Martins made several flypasts.

Holly Blue

Damselflies

 Today's weather was much better than yesterday's dross with plenty of sunshine to warm things up. For the second Sunday running I hopped aboard the X4 and headed over to Oundle for a stroll along the Nene. While the birding was somewhat dull ( no stilts here I'm afraid!) there was plenty of other wildlife to keep things interesting.

Banded Demoiselle, Blue-tailed and Red-eyed Damselflies.

The floods near Lower Barnwell Lock did not produce any passage waders with just Redshank and Lapwing present. Good numbers of Black-headed Gulls were feeding while duck numbers have dropped further with just Mallards and Gadwalls remaining. Plenty of Banded Demoiselles were flitting amongst the riverside nettles, I estimate well over a hundred must have been seen during my walk along the Nene and at Barnwell CP. With the prospect of seeing interesting birds seeming to be remote I turned my attentions to insects hoping to add more damsels or dragons to my year list.

Variable, Azure and Large Red Damselflies.

Near the Princess Lake opposite the marina a good emergence of Red-eyed Damselflies was evident with at least thirty shiny winged tenerals on view. Close by a Blue-tailed Damselfly was noted taking my growing year list up to five. I didn't ignore butterflies as I walked, several Red Admirals suggest there may have been an influx recently. Other species included Orange-tip, Small and Green-veined White as well as Speckled Wood.

Red Admiral, Brimstone and Speckled Wood

Barnwell CP was once again pretty busy but that didn't stop me seeing more damsels. Azure Damselflies seemed to have emerged in good numbers and I also managed to find a Variable too near Mill Lake. A single Large Red Damselfly took my day list up to six suggesting that the season is well and truly underway. Butterflies here included Holly Blue while the best bird was a very obliging drake Mandarin. On my return to the village I was happy to see two Holly Blues in my garden.

Mandarin and Cormorant.

Long To Rain Over Us

 Myself and fellow coronation dodger Alan Shorrock spent the day at a rainy Summer Leys where a small selection of interesting wildlife rewarded our efforts. We didn't walk around the entire reserve as the weather was far from hike friendly but we did manage to squeeze in a circuit of Mary's Lake.

Female and male Banded Demoiselle.

A look around Hardwater Lake did not produce any bird sightings, an anglers dog may have helped to keep birds away, but we did see two Banded Demoiselles near the mill. These were Alan's first of the year so we spent a little time taking some pictures before the rain kicked in. From Rotary Hide on the reserve a Grey Plover showed on the opposite bank in an area that I think is called Wader Bay, we saw it from most of the hides on the reserve though it was always distant. Not much else was showing from here so we moved on to Pioneer Hide were very little was on view. Paul Britten Hide was a bit more interesting, we managed to catch up with one of the Ruffs that had been reported on site. Other waders noted today included several Little Ringed Plovers as well as the regular Redshanks and Oystercatchers. A few Swifts were hawking insects over the lakes and it may have been these that drew in my first Hobby of the year though it seem to be more interested in trying to catch insects rather than birds.

Record shot Grey Plover and Lapwing.

News filtered through that a Nightingale had been heard singing around Mary's Lake so we set out for a lakeside stroll though not before seeing the drake Scaup hybrid from the feeding station hide. We had no luck with the Nightingale but managed to see a couple of interesting insects despite the drizzly dross that was passing for the weather. First up was only my second Red Admiral of the year while the second was my first Common Blue Damselfly of the Spring, a fresh looking male perched briefly on a bramble leaf. Having completed the lakeside circuit without seeing the Nightingale we decided to throw in the towel and back towards Corby.

Bunnies