A patch tick today - not a bird but a new dragonfly for the patch. Broad-bodied Chaser. The species had been reported a couple of times earlier in the week so I was pleased to catch up with them today.
I saw the female first, sat motionless on a dead stick.
Female Broad-bodied Chaser
A few minutes later a male flew in from somewhere, perched briefly and was off.
Male Broad-bodied Chaser
A nice addition to the patch odonata list.
There were lots of damselflies on the wing today, all Blue-tailed and Common Blue that I could see.
Two different forms of female Blue-tailed Damselfly
A few hovers were out on the Hemlock Water Dropwort and along the path.
Helophilus pendulus (m)
Syritta pipiens - Thick-legged hoverfly
Syritta pipiens - Thick-legged hoverfly
- female
Eristalis pertinax (m)
On the Budge fields, a single summer-plumaged Spotted Redshank, Little Ringed Plover and Dunlin were noteworthy. No sign of the two Spoonbill reported earlier. Offshore the scoter flock is starting to build with c120 in the Bay.
No updates from the patch over the weekend - I actually headed inland, which is a rare thing. Janet and I visited Kimmer Lough on Saturday - no photos from that day as I forgot to put a card in the camera and had to lug it all the way round our walk and take no photos. That'll teach me!
I din't make the same mistake on Sunday when we headed to Kielder via Harbottle Woods, upper Coquetdale, the Otterburn Ranges and the forest Drive. We spent an hour or so at Harbottle, along the forest track, looking for hovers and other insects.
I popped down to the patch in my lunch-break yesterday for an hour, to have a look at 'The Post' and for hovers. I bumped into a local bee expert and we saw the flower bees coming and going and a very brief glimpse of one of the Megachille leafcutters carrying a large piece of leaf into the post. I got one chance of a photo just when the wind blew a stem of grass into the way.
Megachille sp obsured by grass
There were a few interesting hovers along the track
Eristalis tenax (f)
Eupeodes corrolae (m)
Syritta pipiens
I also found this Colletes bee - likely to be Davie's Collete (Colletes daviesanus) but not sure... and some other bits and bobs
Colletes bee - Colletes daviesanus?
Blue-tailed Damsels in 'mating wheel'
Arty shot of 7-spot ladybird
Potato Mirid again - Closterotomus norwegicus
Noon Fly - Mesembrina meridiana - my first of the year
A look offshore for an hour last night produced nine manx shearwaters north and a single arctic skua, on the beach roost there was single Mediterranean Gull, but it was early and the roost was only starting to build. Tonight, a bit later, I counted at least 12 Med gulls! But nothing else of note.
This weekend has been dominated by fog. Saturday started wet but the fog never really lifted all day, Sunday was brighter, it was grey and wet at first but it brightened up at times. The wind was light from the North East.
Why don't we get weekends like this in September?
It took us until after 3pm to get down to Druridge on Saturday, the wet start delaying our departure. Janet joined me and we had a wander around the patch looking for migrants - we didn't see many migrant birds but we did see lots of migrant hoverflies. All of a sudden, the cow parsley and buttercups were lifting with hovers - a huge arrival. Spurn reported thousands and an observer on a North Sea oil rig had hundreds on his rig.
I'll do a separate hover blog later in the week when they've been identified.
It was a damp fog on Saturday and the light was awful so I left the SLR behind, which I regret as the there were so many hovers as well as this nice fresh ringlet butterfly which sat out well.
Ringlet
On the Budge fields, an little-ringed plover and a ringed-plover were on the mud and a whimbrel flew over with curlew - that was the highlights.
The avocet pair on the Budge fields still have their three chicks - a new breeding record for the reserves. It's been a funny year for breeding birds on the patch and I'm not sure why:
Avocet - new breeding record for the reserves
Bullfinch - female with a brood patch caught last week and a pair present today - my first records outside of the October-February period other than a single August record
Coal Tit - normally a autumn and winter species only. I watched a pair taking food into the plantation today - my first breeding record on the reserves
Lesser whitethroat - used to breed on the wider patch around High Chibburn but never in the bushes on the reserve - female caught with brood patch
and today a spotted flycatcher fly-catching by the entrance - either a very late migrant or maybe a breeding bird?
This morning I spent five and a half hours on the patch form 7am. I was birding first thing then looking at insects and bugs. I've already mentioned the spotted flycatcher, coal tits and bullfinches. One, maybe two barn owls were hunting and lots of warblers had fledged youths with them including family parties of blackcap, whitethroat (x2) and sedge warbler.
Offshore a flock of 400-500 common scoter was out in the bay, I grilled them for surf scoter without any joy but did turn up at least two drake velvet scoters. Roseate terns were feeding amongst them.
I took the macro lens for a walk along the track to the hides - I only got about half-way, there was so much to see.
Tree Bumble Bee - Bombus hypnorum
Odynerus spinipes - Shiny Mason Wasp
Not sure what this nest-like construction is
Early Bumble Bee - Bombus pratorum
Common Blue butterfly from above
and the underside
Blue-tailed damselfly - Ischnura elegans
This is Picromerus bidens Spiked Shieldbug (final instar nymph) with a caterpillar for consumption later. I think the caterpillar is that of Autumnal rustic Eugnorisma glareosa
Common Scorpion Fly - Panorpa communis
An unidentified spider dismantles an unidentified prey item
Not sure about this wasp yet.
Stay tuned for some hover action later in the week!
I've splashed out on a new macro lens - the Sigma 105mm f/2.8 EX DG to be precise. So after a quick play around in the garden yesterday I thought I test it for real at Druridge this morning. As a result very little birding was done in the limited time I had!
It's taking a bit a of getting used to, the depth of field is tiny, even at higher F stops. You only have to move a tiny bit and the subject is out of focus... I do like it though and I'm impressed by the results so far... The only problem now is identifying some of these critters!
Here are today's efforts - click to enlarge.
Not from Druridge but in my garden - Common green bottle fly Lucilia sericata
Marbled Bell moth Eucosma campoliliana - I think it should be called bird shit moth as that what it looks like at first glance - great camouflage
Bloody cranesbill Geranium sanguineum
Common blue butterfly Polyommatus icarus
Seed head of one of the hawkbit/hawkweed type things - I though it looked nice!
Blue-tailed damselfly Iscnura elegans
Common blue damselfly Enallagma cyathigerum - male
Narrow-bordered five spot burnet moths Zygaena lonicerae emerging from their chrysalis
Narrow-bordered five spot burnet moth Zygaena lonicerae
Common Restharrow Ononis repens
Cinnabar moth caterpillars
Marmalade HoverflyEpisyrphus balteatus
Black and red froghopper Cercopis vulnerata - this species seems to be colonising the north-east of England
Small Heath Coenonympha pamphilus
Dark green fritillary Argynnis aglaja - there were at least two on the wing today at Druridge
It's been a while since my last blog post. My excuse for this tardiness was a two-week trip to Finland and Norway and an ailing computer that now struggles with big RAW files.
I'll hopefully have some Finland and Norway photos processed soon and up on Flickr. But here is a video of me enjoying my 'summer holiday'.
Summer in Varanger
I've managed a few visits to the patch since I got back, but have been busy catching up with work, the garden and chores. A combination of the above and changeable weather has meant no ringing yet.
On 18th June There were 18 black-tailed godwit on the Budge fields - having been away, I was trying to work out whether these were late birds headed north, early returning birds or loafing non-breeders - I suspect the latter.
Barn owls from nearby farms are being seen regularly, hunting in the dunes and grass fields and attracting their share of photographers. A cuckoo in the dunes has also attracted attention.
Offshore, there have been some good rafts of scoter, but these have often been distant. A few manx shearwaters have been noted passing-by.
NWT have been busy getting their new Hauxley Discovery centre ready to open (well worth a visit just for the building) so I helped them out by strimming in front of the hides. It was a very warm evening and I sweated buckets! Hopefully the photographers will appreciate it, I know that the resident swallows will.
Strimming
On 20th June there were two avocets on the Budge fields - still an uncommon visitor to Druridge Pools despite their increasingly colonisation of South East Northumberland.
On 22nd whilst checking the heronry, a male marsh harrier passed through - my first on the patch this year. A pair of curlews had a chick or chicks in the silage field. I knew it was going to be cut, so alerted the farm who looked out for them.
This weekend, I saw my first patch roseate terns of the year, with at least two feeding offshore on Saturday, a few manx went through too.
An early morning visit on Sunday was nice, through cold and blustery - we've had our summer I think. I was kitted out in a jumper and fleece jacket (and was still cold). I wandered up onto the dunes for a look on the sea and there, strolling, nay marching, along the beach, was a bloke who was completely starkers. A braver man than me.
There were at least 200 swift feeding behind the bushes, taking advantage of the shelter they afforded from the strong wind.
On the Budge fields, it felt autumnal with little-ringed plover and wood sandpiper. Three spoonbills were also on the fields - doing what spoonbills do best, sleeping.
Sleeping Spoonbills
The warmer weather of last week had obviously brought a few butterflies out - there were lots of ringlets, red admirals, speckled woods, large skippers and meadow browns in the shelter of the bushes. There were also common blue and blue-tailed damselflies on the wing.
Speckled Wood
Ringlet
Large skipper
Red Admiral
Common blue damselfly
Blue-tailed damselfly
Two collared doves headed north were a year tick.
In the evening, the LRP and wood sand were still on the Budge along with 18 black-tailed godwits and there were now at least 300 swifts feeding in the lea of the bushes.
