Honey Buzzard, dragons, a Quail and rain!

Hello

A decent amount of rain today is much needed and it seems like we will experience showers over the next few days.

A Honey Buzzard flying west over Althorp was the star bird today, not a bird known to breed locally there have been multiple county records in July going back over the decades.

A Quail was heard calling from a wheat field between Blueberry Farm, Maidwell and the Brampton Valley this morning and migrants on the move included a Wheatear on the top of Blueberry Hill and a Common Redstart nearer the farm. A Common Redstart and two Whinchats were near to shrike hedge in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton this morning but weren't located this afternoon. Two Crossbills flew over there this morning.

At Pitsford Reservoir an Osprey was fishing north of the causeway before the rain came and this afternoon a Greenshank and a Crossbill were audible in the Walgrave Bay. Dragonflies at the Christies Copse ponds this afternoon included Blue Emperor, Southern Hawker, Brown Hawker, Black-tailed Skimmer, Four spotted Chaser, Broad-bodied Chaser and Common Darter. At least one Purple Hairstreak was in in the oaks there.

This evening there was an Oystercatcher, seven Common Sandpipers and five Yellow-legged Gulls at the dam-end of the reservoir.

Hollowell Reservoir also attracted an Osprey, six Common Sandpipers and a Dunlin and a female Red-crested Pochard was at nearby Ravensthorpe Reservoir.

A Ruddy Shelduck was at Stanford Reservoir today plus an Oystercatcher and three Common Sandpipers. Yesterday 130 new birds were ringed on-site which included three Grasshopper Warblers and a Lesser Whitethroat.

At Summer Leys today the list of birds included two Greenshanks, two Common Sandpipers, three Green Sandpipers, two Egyptian Geese, a Great White Egret and a female Goldeneye. A Dunlin and a Little Ringed Plover and an adult Yellow-legged Gull were at Titchmarsh Reserve, Thrapston Pits and the two Barnacle Geese were still at Clifford Hill Pits.

Eyebrook Reservoir catered for an Osprey, two Black-tailed Godwits and four Green Sandpipers and this afternoon Harrington Airfield provided for two Common Redstarts (between Chippings Compound and Bunker Two), a juvenile Marsh Harrier and a brood of Grey Partridges.

Regards

Neil M

Common Darter.

Black-tailed Skimmer.

Female Southern Hawker
ovipositing into vegetation.

Broad-bodied Chaser.

All the dragonfly images
were taken at Christies's Copse
ponds, Pitsford Reservoir
 this afternoon.

Juvenile male Green Woodpecker
 courtesy of Tony Stanford.

Adult male Great Spotted Woodpecker
courtesy of Tony Stanford.