Friday - Saturday

I took a walk down the Scaldwell bay on Friday morning in warm sunshine. A Marbled White was on the wing near to the Maytree's Hide. A little further on, a pair of well grown leverets were playing on the path, but loped off through the meadow as soon as they spotted me.
Lots of Ringlets, Meadow Browns and Skippers were also on the wing as well as a number of Black-tailed Skimmer Dragonflies.
After watching the tern rafts for a while from the Bird Club Hide a Green Sandpiper flew in and landed on the exposed mud to the left of the hide. It fed for a while on the mud before an opportunistic young Fox thought it would make a tasty lunch, incorrectly as it turned out.

On Saturday afternoon I walked around the reserve side of the reservoir with my partner Sarah, her first view of the whole reserve. Again Marbled White's were in evidence, at least 3 between the causeway and the Bird Club Hide and a further sighting beside Christie's Copse. My first Gatekeeper of the season was feeding in brambles near the feed station.
Three Red-crested Pochard drakes were spotted sitting quietly on the bund from the Scaldwell Hide, two well into eclipse.
Finally a single adult male Beautiful Demoiselle was on foliage besides the bridge over the Scaldwell Bay stream. This is the first time I have ever seen this species at Pitsford.

    Regards,

               Neil H.