Northamptonshire Birding: Pitsford CBC

Hello

A long and busy day, it's always a good idea to make the best of the good weather!

I started the day at Pitsford Reservoir where I completed a Common Bird Census around the reserve, concluding in the early afternoon. It takes me ages because I'm continually distracted by mammals, insects etc. Bird-wise it was pretty routine with the summering Pink-footed Goose still present, a Spotted Flycatcher on eggs and fledged young birds everywhere. Waders were confined to Oystercatcher and Lapwing.

The main spectacle were the damselflies which today must have numbered in their tens of thousands. Common Blue Damselfly were the most numerous but there were good numbers of Large Red-eyed too. Other odonata included Large Red Damselfly, lots of Beautiful Demoiselles, Four-spotted Chasers, Black-tailed Skimmers, a single Hairy Hawker, a single Southern Hawker and plenty of Blue Emperors.

Butterflies included Ringlet, Meadow Brown, Speckled Wood, Large Skipper, Common Blue, Small Heath, Small Tortoiseshell and Red Admiral and it's a good year for Chimney Sweeper moths with plentiful numbers on-site.

Muntjacs were seen all the way around the reserve, a single Brown Hare showed itself and a Grass Snake was a rare treat.

Some more strimming and tree work this afternoon was required and three feed stations were visited and the birds fed. Eleanor's best sighting at Harrington Airfield were two very young Red Fox cubs playing out in the open.

This evening I checked on some of the breeding birds at Lamport Hall where there are at least twenty-two pairs of House Martins and a few pairs each of Swift and Swallow. A Barn Owl was hunting again this evening in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton.

The Garganey was again seen on the scrape at Summer Leys LNR today and birds at Thrapston Pits included two Cuckoos, two Hobbies and a Ring-necked Parakeet.

Regards

Neil M