Glorious Glossop

 The combination of good weather and the Easter break were enough to dissuade my brother David and I from making the trip to the east coast, neither of us could face the prospect of sitting in the all too likely traffic jams! Instead we headed north to Glossop in the Peak District where we were able to draw on the local knowledge of former Corby resident Mr John Barn. Our targets before we set off were Dipper and Red Grouse and I'm glad to say that we were not to be disappointed!

Dipper and Song Thrush

Our first stop was within easy walking distance of John's home, apparently a pair of Dippers were favouring this stretch of stream and had been showing well. Luckily for us one of the birds was performing and we were even treated to the odd burst of song. I always enjoy seeing this charismatic species so it was a more than satisfying way of kicking things off. From here it was a short car journey to some local moorland where there was a possibility of encountering grouse.

Wheatear and Ring Ouzel

Our walk took us through sheep farming country where the closely cropped sward and stone walls looked ideal for Wheatears. Appearances in this instance were not deceptive and we saw about half a dozen males in the general area. To a soundtrack of bubbling Curlew calls we pressed on stopping to enjoy two Ring Ouzels that John picked out. While the birds were rather distant and feeding in the shadow of one of the dry stone walls we had good views through the scope. Just a little further on our guide found the first of several Red Grouse on the surrounding moorland and we could hear the occasional call too. One bird was found perching on a nearby wall and treated us to some good views. Although there were no other birds to report I did see a Green-veined White which paused long enough to let me get some shots.

Red Grouse and Grey Wagtail

Our final stop of the birding day was at Crowden where a full car park suggested that things would be busy. At least half a dozen Willow Warblers were heard or seen while a pair of Grey Wagtails brightened up a stretch of stream. By now John had family commitments to take care of and so David and I content with our day's lot bid him adieu and headed for home.

Green-veined White.

Whitethroats Arrive

 Yet another warm and sunny day which saw me taking the X4 bus to Upper Benefield from where I walked back via Deene, Deenethorpe and Weldon. In all honesty it was not one of my finest excursions though I saw just about  enough to justify my efforts.

Tree Sparrow and Chaffinch

I was pleased to find Tree Sparrows still present in the vicinity of Upper Benefield as several of their nesting trees had become victims of winter storms. More were seen near the buildings at Burnt Coppice suggesting that the population remains healthy. At least six Whitethroats were singing along the Deenethorpe road suggesting a mass arrival over the last few days, I was later to see a further two near Deene Lake. I think this must be one of the earliest dates for Whitethroat that I can recall, I'd guess their arrival has no doubt been helped by the favourable winds. Another interesting bird in this area was a Raven which attracted the attention of a pair of crows which escorted it away from their territory. After this promising start things went downhill somewhat, Deene Lake was quiet other than three pairs of Shelduck while Deenethorpe hosted several singing Swallows. The airfield was hosting an event for people flying radio controlled jets which meant that few birds were seen.

Peacock and Small Tortoiseshell.

Butterflies were seen in reasonable numbers though for the first couple of hours it was Peacocks that stole the show as they accounted for all the sightings. Gradually a few other species began to appear with Orange-tips in particular featuring strongly. Many similarly sized whites are on the wing at the moment and they're hard to identify as they zip past though I saw a Green-veined and two Small Whites which paused just long enough to I.D. Rather more straight forward where the Brimstones and Small Tortoiseshells that were also noted. Not too much else to report other than a total of five Brown Hares seen at several points on my walk.

Brown Hare

Red For Go!

 A beautiful warm and sunny day today which was made even better by the fact that I was off work! I chose to set off early and headed towards Priors Hall by way of Willowbrook Industrial Estate and Weldon. Although things were a little on the slow side to begin with it turned out to be a decent day with some interesting birds and insects noted.

Skylark and wary Wheatear

Walking along past the steelworks towards Weldon revealed that Willow Warblers have arrived in numbers and I saw or heard many today. There was nothing else to report from my travels for a while, I drew a blank at Willowbrook Industrial estate and it only got better when I reached Priors Hall. My first Sedge Warbler of the year was singing in the north gullet, I saw another around the ponds a little later in the day. Next up was a female Wheatear which gave frustratingly brief views before a dog walker flushed it. The dog walker in question chose to bellow at her hapless hound with a volume akin to a foghorn and I'm sure that the harridan's haranguing must of had mutts in Weldon whimpering in fear. Sadly for me the Wheatear did not like what it heard one bit and promptly disappeared before I could get a decent picture. A third new species for the year was added soon after this when I reached the Sand Martin nest site where a good number were present.

Sand Martins and Willow Warbler.

My walk then took me along the A43 for a bit until I reached the entrance to the ponds. Butterflies were beginning to appear now as the day warmed and I saw my first Green-veined White soon after I arrived. This and a second seen later turned out to be rather camera shy and I couldn't get a picture. Brimstones were out in force and I saw my first females of the year while Orange-tips were about in good numbers too. While checking around the ponds for any early Large Red Damselflies I heard and then saw a Grasshopper Warbler which was my first of the year. My search for those damselflies took me around most of the ponds but turned out to be worth the effort. After several false alarms I saw a shiny winged teneral weakly fluttering towards some vegetation where it settled and took a rest. Two further damsels were seen during the next hour and all looked newly emerged. These were my joint earliest records and helped to erase the memories of last year's tardy start to the season. Another new insect for the year was Speckled Wood as half a dozen were flitting around the site.

Large Red Damselflies

On my way home I passed again through Weldon where I was pleased to see only my second Holly Blue of the year. After their dreadful showing last year it's good to know they're doing better now. Eight species of butterfly made this my best day so far and the other species making it on to the day list were Small Tortoiseshell, Peacock and Comma. A brief stop near the town's STW did not add anything new to report and the rest of my walk passed by uneventfully.

Speckled Wood and Brimstone

Putting A Gloss On It

 Alan Shorrock and I headed out again to the Nene Valley where we began our session at Stanwick Lakes. Some fine spring weather drew the masses out and we spent much time dodging the hordes as we searched for interesting birds. Our efforts did not go unrewarded though and we enjoyed some decent birding that included a county tick for me.

Reed Bunting and Orange-tip

For the second week in a row we were treated to views of Ring-necked Duck as the female from Ringstead has moved to the main lake here. She was always distant but we had OK views through the scopes as she fed near the far shore of the lake. Though I was happy with repeat views of the duck my main target was the long staying Glossy Ibis that had already evaded me on a previous visit. Having also missed the Thrapston bird last year this species looked to be in danger of becoming a county bogey bird.  Happily that ghost was laid to rest as I found the bird on the far shore of the main lake. Although often out of view as it moved amongst the sedges we had fairly sustained if distant views of the bird,  several dire record shots were taken. Content with our good start we moved on to see what else the site had to offer.

Record shot dross Glossy Ibis and Ring-necked Duck

On the way to the A45 pit we heard a Willow Warbler singing but didn't manage to see it which was a pity as this was Alan's first of the year. On the pit I found an adult Mediterranean Gull which then proceeded to do a disappearing act before Shozzer got to see it, he did hear a Med a little later on but we failed in our attempt to find it. By now the sun was getting pleasantly warm and a couple of male Orange-tips and several Small Whites were noted.

Cattle Egrets

We decided to leave Stanwick and its many admirers behind and headed off to Woodford for another go at seeing the reported Cattle Egrets. Fortune favoured us today as five birds were present and though they were often hidden by the slope of their favoured field we got some decent views. There were not many other birds about apart from some Red Kites and a Sparrowhawk but a few Small Tortoiseshells added to our butterfly day list before we left.

Red Kite and Sparrowhawk

Diversion

 This morning I was torn between heading over to Oundle or going to Upper Benefield and walking back from there. My decision was made for me when I boarded the X4 as the route had been changed due to a diversion and the new one did not include Benefield. So it was that I found myself in Oundle where a bright and sunny morning greeted me and while it was cold to begin with it got progressively warmer as the day wore on.

Mandarin and Song Thrush

The bus journey took me out past Brigstock and on to Thrapston before moving on to Oundle and once there I made my usual stop at Barnwell CP. There was plenty of Mandarin activity to enjoy with at least five birds being present. New in for today was a Willow Warbler singing appropriately enough from willows near the Kingfisher hide. I got some views of it but the bird was always obscured by branches so I didn't attempt a picture. The regular Cetti's Warbler was still on site and there were several Blackcaps singing. Another year first came in the shape of two Swallows which seemed to be fighting a bit of a running battle before they parted and went their separate ways. After about an hour of wandering around the park I decided to head off along the river.

Wren and Small Tortoiseshell.

My first butterfly of the day was seen near Lower Barnwell Lock when a Small Tortoiseshell was noted nectaring on blossom, another was seen a little later on. Their is still plenty of water on the flooded field near the lock though bird numbers are down since my last visit. All of the Wigeons have departed leaving half a dozen Shovellers and about forty Teal to linger. A pair of Shelduck were my first here this year but there was little else of note, at least two Redshank remain and there are still quite a few Lapwings but all in all it was a little disappointing. My route now took me back to town where I enjoyed an excellent breakfast in the Coffee Tavern before catching my bus home. 

Orange-tip and Small White.

With the sun still shining I decided to get off at Weldon where my aim was to walk home while searching for butterflies. After a couple of pints in the George I began my stroll by way of the A43 pond. Not much on view here though the reappearance of a pair of Mute Swans may well mean bad news for the pair of Canada Geese that have taken up residence here. Wandering along towards the steelworks I found my first Orange-tip of the year and unusually for this often hyper active species I got a picture of him nectaring on a Dandelion, another was seen a little later on. A white butterfly passed but did not linger and I couldn't get an I.D. Luckily for me a second did land and I was able to confirm my first Small White of the year. Plans to pop into the area near the sewerage treatment works were shelved due to the arrival of some threatening looking clouds and I managed to make it home before a nasty little hail shower started.

Chiffchaff.

Slow Going

 Today was far from being one of my most interesting forays out into the countryside though in truth I guess it could have been worse. This morning dawned bright and sunny before turning grey for a spell, the afternoon settled down into a mixture of both. My route took me to Deene taking in rather a lot of other sites on both the way out and on the way back.

Greenfinch and fleeing Fallow Deer

I tried to plan my route to include as many potential sites for Wheatear as I could but my plan came to nothing and my day remained Wheatear free. Another species I was hoping to encounter was Willow Warbler but again I drew a blank, I'm not sure that the weather has been right for migration though both Chiffchaffs and Blackcaps seem fairly well established. The early part of my walk was rather quiet, I saw displaying Ringed Plover and Fieldfares at one site and a herd of Fallow Deer at another but things were slow to kick off.

Shelduck and Starling

A pleasant surprise was waiting for me at the Deene farm ponds where a Cetti's Warbler was my first at this site. Cetti's are still uncommon away from their Nene Valley strongholds. The main lake had at least four Shelduck and a decreasing number of other wildfowl. Round at the inflow a Green Sandpiper was the pick of the bunch though it flew off before I could get a picture. Moving on to Deenethorpe Airfield where the pair of Lapwing were still in residence, today they were paying host to some cousins as a flock of about sixty Golden Plover were present too. I'm reasonably certain that I would have missed them if an autogyro hadn't flushed them when it too off. A Snipe rounded of the wader list as it flew up from one of the boggier spots.

Ringed and Golden Plovers

A walk across the fields towards Harry's Park Wood was initially a bit dull but things picked up a little with the sighting of a Raven while the airstrip at Bears Lane hosted a pair of Mistle Thrushes. Birding was brought to a close by a Grey Wagtail at Weldon where several butterflies were glimpsed but not identified. 

Goldie flushing autogyro and Wren.

Ring-necked At Ringstead

 Temperatures today were definitely cooler than they were on my last outing  but that did not stop Alan Shorrock and I braving the weather and venturing out. Our first port of call was at Woodford where we hoped to catch up with the Cattle Egrets which had been seen yesterday before heading off down the valley to Ringstead. While there was the occasional flurry of snow during the day it was for the most part rather dry and sunny.

Stock Dove and great White Egret

Sadly there were no Cattle Egrets at Woodford during our visit though pictures on Twitter suggest that they did pay a call at some point during the day, we may just have been too early. One egret was present and that was a Great White feeding in the shallows before it flew off down river. Plenty of other  birds were on view and these included some Stock Doves, several Kites and a Kestrel. We gave the site at least half an hour before we moved on to Kinewell Lake at Ringstead.

Mediterranean Gull

At Kinewell Lake, Ringstead we hoped to catch up with the reported Ring-necked Duck and managed to find the bird without too much effort. Often distant the bird gave half decent scope views though trying to get pics proved to be a massive challenge. Our circuit of the lake failed to add any Cattle Egrets though Alan found a fine looking adult Mediterranean Gull on our travels. With little else available to see we completed our stroll around the lake before moving on.

Small Tortoiseshell and Boeing Osprey

In the cool conditions I didn't expect to see many insects but a walk  around the more sheltered parts of the reserve added Small Tortoiseshell to the list and also a white butterfly that was almost certainly a Small White. Several bees were seen as well as a few Bee-flies but apart from these there was little else  to report.