Back to pleasant conditions

Hello

A warm and blustery day and thankfully a reduction in the intense heat of recent days made it feel fresher.

A visit to Ravensthorpe Reservoir again this morning provided a minimum of six Grey Wagtails (perhaps up to two family groups), a Kingfisher and some good breeding records of scarcer birds on-site. A large congregation of Greylag Geese had left behind a doddery and obviously sick bird - hopefully not evidence of a resurgence of bird flu again? Many of the larger dragonflies were not on the wing today but an inquisitive Southern Hawker was my first of the season and is probably my favourite dragonfly. A couple of Beautiful Demoiselles were also present. All the usual butterflies were there and included a freshly-emerged Peacock butterfly.

In the Nene Valley the small Cattle Egret colony is showing signs of post-breeding dispersal with just a few juveniles now in attendance.

A 'reeling' Grasshopper Warbler was again at Stanford Reservoir today and the three Pochard and a Kingfisher were also present.

With the buddleia bushes now beginning to flower there will no doubt be some interesting butterflies turning up in gardens and evidence of that today was a Silver-washed Fritillary in a Blisworth garden.

A Broad-bordered Bee Hawk-moth was an excellent record from Bucknell Wood today - they can be overlooked as Hummingbird Hawk-moths.

I have updated the Norway tab/page with some extra images from the tour.

This coming Wednesday evening sees Chris Hubbard providing a presentation at the Northants Bird Club. Chris is the main patch birder for Stanford Reservoir straddling the Northants/Leicestershire border and works closely with the Stanford Ringing Group. Chris keeps a close eye on the migratory birds passing through the reservoir and in addition records the breeding and wintering birds too and maintains an on-line record of interesting sightings for the site. As usual the meeting commences at 7.30pm with biscuits and a hot beverage beforehand, and the venue is the Fishing Lodge at Pitsford Reservoir - all welcome!

Regards

Neil M

Osprey 3AY is a locally-breeding male
currently feeding three nestlings - this 
just-caught Perch won't be enough to
feed them all!