Skokholm encounters

Hello

At Pitsford Reservoir today David Arden located a White Admiral butterfly and some Purple Hairstreaks in the Walgrave Bay. This afternoon there was an adult Spotted Flycatcher near the Fishing Lodge and a moulting adult male Goldeneye was in the Scaldwell Bay (surely the same individual that arrives in July every year). Marbled Whites were on the wing at Hanging Houghton and Purple Emperor and Silver-washed Fritillary were on view at Salcey Forest.

Nick saw eight Green Sandpipers at Deene Park Lake today and a Cattle Egret was seen early this morning at Stanwick Pits. A Barn Owl and a Little Owl were again near Hanging Houghton this evening.

Our regular visits to Harrington Airfield have been very quiet of late and again this morning there was nothing of note again. Two days of bird ringing will be occurring at this site at the weekend when the bunkers and old airstrip will be out of bounds - the concrete track and footpaths are unaffected.

A small Northants Ringing Group contingent is currently on the island of Skokholm off the Pembrokeshire coast and they are busy helping out the wardens conducting seabird monitoring and ringing. Last night they processed over two hundred Storm Petrels and look to be catching more tonight. Nocturnal catching the last two nights included plenty of Manx Shearwaters and other birds ringed during the day included Puffins, Lesser Black-backed Gulls and Water Rail.

Regards

Neil M

Part of a group of about a
dozen Brown Hares near
Lamport in recent days,
image courtesy of Bill Draper.

Storm Petrel.

Water Rail.

Puffling!

Adult Puffin.

Skokholm images courtesy
of Chris Payne and Kenny
Cramer.

Flying machines

Hello

A few birds noted around the village here at Hanging Houghton - yesterday evening a Little Owl was seen on the outskirts and Barn Owl and Tawny Owls were vocal in the village last night. This morning and at least one vocal Spotted Flycatcher was in trees on the village green and later in the morning two Grey Wagtails flew over south.

Eric struggled to find much out of the ordinary at Thrapston Pits today but the vocal Ring-necked Parakeet was still present. The current A5 hotspot near Lilbourne with the roadside pools near to the DIRFT3 complex was the venue for a possible first summer Baltic Gull early this afternoon and the Wood Sandpiper was still present.

Despite the initial dull conditions, a few Purple Emperor butterflies were on show at Fermyn Wood this morning.

A congregation of waders and egrets at Earls Barton Pits this evening included a Common Sandpiper, a Wood Sandpiper, two Little Ringed Plovers, two Black-tailed Godwits, a Great White Egret and twelve Little Egrets.

An evening walk from Maidwell and through the Dale Farm and Blueberry Farm complexes and then back down through the Brampton Valley to Hanging Houghton was quite productive. A Spotted Flycatcher, a family of Yellow Wagtails, three Grey Partridges and a gathering of Black-tailed Skimmers on an equestrian water jump were probably the best at Dale Farm, and Blueberry Farm held a Common Redstart and at least one Hobby. A colony of Purple Hairstreaks were discovered in a field hedgeline in oaks and ash in the valley and where another pair of Grey Partridge were encountered with another calling Spotted Flycatcher in the oak wood on the Brampton Valley Way. Gone are the days when I would have walked through three Willow Tit territories on that same walk!

The images and video below are courtesy of Lewis Aaron and depict some of the House Martins and Swifts at Lamport Hall yesterday evening.

Regards

Neil M

Birds of Lamport Hall.

Hello

Birds of particular interest are a bit few and far between at the moment but Nick Parker found an adult Yellow-legged Gull on the Elinor Lake at Thrapston Pits today and there were four at Pitsford Reservoir (three by the dam and one north of the causeway).

A Wood Sandpiper was reported on the A5 pools between Lilbourne and the DIRFT3 complex early this afternoon.

At Earls Barton Pits this evening there were two Great White Egrets and a Common Sandpiper at the east end of Hardwater Lake with two Little Ringed Plovers on the Summer Leys LNR.

A ringing session at Lamport Hall this evening provided an opportunity to process seven Swifts, twenty-seven House Martins and two Swallows. Two of the House Martins were first ringed in 2018 and 2019. A Hobby made several passes, a Barn Owl was mobbed by a large gull and a Little Owl was heard calling.

Regards

Neil M

Comma.

Egyptian Geese.

A rather large
Common Toad.

More Iceland images

Hello

A few more birds filtering back through Northants today including seven Black-tailed Godwits at Clifford Hill Pits (plus a Barnacle Goose), three Great White Egrets at Summer Leys LNR and a Marsh Harrier in flight over Moulton, heading north. Fishing Ospreys were seen at Pitsford Reservoir in the Scaldwell Bay this afternoon and one this evening at Hollowell Reservoir (with a Common Sandpiper on the dam).

Some more images from Dave Jackson from what sounds like a very successful Naturetrek tour in Iceland...

Regards

Neil M

Great Northern Diver.

Slavonian Grebe.

Whimbrel.

Humpback Whale.

Mid-summer county wildlife.

Hello

This morning's birds in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton included the usual Barn Owl but also an adult male Peregrine.

At Pitsford Reservoir this morning there was a juvenile Redshank on the dam and three Yellow-legged Gulls on the buoys; a further Yellow-legged Gull was north of the causeway. Marbled White butterflies were active in the meadow between the causeway and Maytrees Hide.

Five Black-tailed Godwits were at Summer Leys LNR this morning.

Butterfly sightings in the county were dominated by Purple Emperors with a couple at Salcey Forest and as many as twenty in the Fermyn/Souther/Lady Wood complex. Three late Black Hairstreak butterflies were seen at Fermyn Wood and Wood Whites were on the wing in small numbers at Salcey Forest.

Regards

Neil M

Emerald Damselfly.

Marbled White.

Ruddy Darter.

Marsh Tit.

Otter.

Summer bird ringing

Hello

Today's weather was perfect for mist-netting and John Woollett and John Boland spent some time at Stortons Pits this morning and processed fifty-five birds from just four nets, with juvenile warblers making up much of the catch. Highlights included a Willow Warbler, two Chiffchaffs, nine Reed Warblers, seven Sedge Warblers, twelve Blackcaps, three Garden Warblers, a Lesser Whitethroat and six Common Whitethroats.

At Brixworth Water Treatment Works a slightly bigger team encountered ninety-three birds of twenty species - the captures also included warblers in the shape of a Willow Warbler, three Chiffchaffs, a Sedge Warbler, seven Common Whitethroats and ten Blackcaps. Three Great Spotted Woodpeckers added some noise and colour with twelve Starlings adding further charisma. We enjoyed processing twenty-one Swallows which included flying first brood birds, a single House Martin, two Pied Wagtails and five Grey Wagtails.

Interesting birds on-site included a Hobby, a Raven and a juvenile Cuckoo.

Birds on show at Thrapston Pits today included an Osprey watching over Elinor (trout fishing) lake.

A calling Spotted Flycatcher at Hanging Houghton suggests there are a clandestine pair in the village and this evening both Barn Owl and Little Owl were on show in the Brampton Valley below the village.

This morning an assortment of gulls off the A5 near to DIRFT3 and Lilbourne included at least four Caspian Gulls (a third summer and at least three first summers) and at least a dozen Yellow-legged Gulls.

Regards

Neil M

Juvenile Cuckoo.

Many of the Red Kites
are looking tatty now
as they undergo their
summer moult.

Garden Warbler.

Raven.

Pitsford CBC

Hello

Although it was grey and drizzly to begin with, I committed to another Common Bird Census on the reserve at Pitsford Reservoir today. Already there was evidence of autumn passage with at least four Common Sandpipers (possibly seven), a Greenshank and a Black-tailed Godwit - these are already returning post-breeding waders from the north. There were few other birds of note but the nestful of young Spotted Flycatchers are progressing nicely.

It was also a bioblitz day on the reserve with the area around the covert being selected for today's attention. Pheremone lures brought in Hornet Clearwing and Orange-tailed Clearwing moths and dancing butterflies in the sun when it did come out included a few Marbled Whites. Odonata included Black-tailed Skimmer, Southern Hawker, Common Darter, Emerald Damselfly and Beautiful Demoiselle.

The first brood of Great Crested Grebes were out and Coots seem to have had a good year with quite a number of half-grown youngsters around the reservoir. The water level is currently being artificially kept high with water being pumped in from elsewhere - not great news if you wanted to witness significant wader passage at Pitsford this autumn!

Eric's visit to the Titchmarsh Reserve at Thrapston Pits didn't reveal much out of the ordinary but several female Tufted Ducks have broods of ducklings there and the Black-headed Gulls seem to have produced plenty of young there too. A Painted Lady butterfly was on-site.

An evening visit to Kelmarsh Hall provided an adult Spotted Flycatcher feeding fledged young, a Kingfisher and a Common Newt on the path back to the car park.

Regards

Neil M

Cob Mute Swan
at Kelmarsh Hall.

Azure Damselfly.

Mating pair of Scarlet
Tiger moths.

Images from Iceland

Hello

Eleanor's run around Pitsford Reservoir between the dam and the causeway this morning provided two Common Sandpipers, several Kingfishers in the Catwalk Bay with two others elsewhere and up to six Little Egrets. This evening there was also a Grey Wagtail, a Yellow-legged Gull and a female Common Redstart below the dam in isolated bushes along the nearest fence line. In due course the Redstart flew to the bushes nearer to the track leading down to the dam from Brixworth where it was less breezy.

Tomorrow evening members of the Northants Bird Club will meet at Kelmarsh Hall for a walk around the gardens, grounds and alongside the lake. This will be the first club outdoor meeting for a couple of years due to the pandemic restrictions. I walked the route this morning in breezy conditions and a few things on show included a female Gadwall with three ducklings, a Kingfisher, a Spotted Flycatcher and plenty of insects including Azure Damselfly and Southern Hawker.

This afternoon a Black-tailed Godwit was seen at Summer Leys LNR in Wader Bay and at Stanwick Pits there was a Cattle Egret and an adult Yellow-legged Gull. The third summer Caspian Gull again put in an appearance at the A5 pools between Lilbourne and DIRFT3.

Regards

Neil M

Red-necked Phalarope.

Red-throated Diver.

Slavonian Grebe.

Above three images courtesy of
Dave Jackson who is currently
leading a Naturetrek tour in
Iceland and has kindly sent these
photos through.

Lesser Stag Beetle.

Summer highlights

Hello

After three consecutive days of ringing and associated activity today was more of an admin day and catch up on other things. Because mist-netting is so weather-dependent and our weather seems to be so volatile and unsettled it's a case of exploiting opportunities when the conditions permit.

Yesterday (Sunday) afternoon and a Siskin paid a brief visit to our garden. This species is well known for rapid juvenile dispersal from the breeding areas.

Today (Monday) and a trundle around Harrington Airfield didn't provide much for me this morning but the assorted flowers along the strip between the chippings compound and Bunker One in particular look superb. Butterflies on the wing included unidentified skippers, Small Tortoiseshell, Ringlet, Meadow Brown and Small Heath.

Butterflies elsewhere included the first Purple Emperor of the year with one seen at Fermyn Woods this morning and Andrew Cook had a good session at Salcey Forest where there was Silver-washed Fritillary, White Admiral, Wood White, other common butterflies and a couple of Beautiful Demoiselles which seem to be having an excellent year. Marbled Whites were on the wing at Stortons Pits today.

Two Yellow-legged Gulls were off the dam at Pitsford Reservoir this evening, a third summer Caspian Gull was off the A5 on pools near Lilbourne this afternoon and a juvenile Marsh Harrier was well photographed at Thrapston Pits on the Titchmarsh reserve today.

Regards

Neil M

Osprey nestling.

Purple Emperor
courtesy of Robin Gossage.

Brown Hare courtesy
of Robin Gossage.

Grey Heron courtesy
of Robin Gossage.

Sunday's sightings

Hello

Despite the mixture of weather, Stanford Reservoir was the venue for a ringing session this morning which provided good numbers of common warblers such as Blackcap, Garden Warbler, Reed Warbler, Willow Warbler, Chiffchaff and Common Whitethroat and general birds such as tits, Treecreeper and thrushes. Other birds on-site included a Great White Egret, a Hobby and a Grey Wagtail.

Three Grey Wagtails and a Hobby were near Brixworth and at Pitsford Reservoir the Pink-footed Goose was seen again in the mouth of the Scaldwell Bay.

Elsewhere an Oystercatcher was an unusual but not unprecedented fly-over record for Harrington Airfield where several Marbled White butterflies were on the wing. Two Mandarin Ducks were at Kinewell Lake, Ringstead Pits and a Great White Egret and a Black-tailed Godwit were at Summer Leys LNR.

Regards

Neil M

Grey Wagtail courtesy
of Robin Gossage.

Hobby courtesy of
Nathan Jones.

Blackcap courtesy
of Chris Payne.

Bird Ringing Demonstration

Hello

Yesterday evening (Friday) there were three Common Sandpipers on the causeway at Pitsford Reservoir, a Yellow-legged Gull near the dam and about four hundred Starlings and six Little Egrets roosted north of the causeway.

Today (Saturday) there was a Parks Trust Nature Day at Howe Park Wood in Milton Keynes where the staff and volunteers endeavoured to showcase nature within this SSSI urban woodland. Members of the Northants Ringing Group led by Kenny Cramer provided a bird ringing demonstration which resulted in fifty-seven birds being processed. It was great to see good numbers of children and adults wowing over the opportunity of seeing wild birds nice and close and to appreciate their beauty and finesse. 

Over half the catch were adult and juvenile Blue Tits but other species encountered included Nuthatch, Treecreeper, Great Tit, Long-tailed Tit, Blackbird, Robin, Chiffchaff and Blackcap.

Four Black-tailed Godwits were showing on the scrape at Summer Leys LNR today.

Eleanor discovered a colony of Marbled White butterflies today at the Old Grammarians sportsfield at Wellingborough  (wild flower strips around the edge) and others were active on the roadside bypass verges at West Haddon and Crick.

This afternoon two first summer Caspian Gulls were again on the pools off the A5 between Lilbourne and the DIRFT3 site.

Regards

Neil M

Marbled White
courtesy of David Arden.

Black-tailed Godwits
courtesy of Robin Gossage.

Treecreeper courtesy
of Chris Payne.

Starlings, weevils and butterflies

Hello

A ringing session took place at Brixworth Water Treatment Works today and provided 68 captures of seventeen species. The total included a nice sprinkling of both adult and fledged youngsters made up of a single Magpie, twenty-four Starlings, two Robins, three Wrens, a Dunnock, two Great Tits, two Blue Tits, five Chiffchaffs, six Blackcaps, five Common Whitethroats, two Sedge Warblers, two Reed Warblers, three Reed Buntings, three Pied Wagtails, a Grey Wagtail, three Great Spotted Woodpeckers and three Swallows.

A Common Redstart was reported at Stanford Reservoir today and a Kingfisher and a Cuckoo remained at Thrapston Pits.

Interesting butterflies emerging in the county include White Admiral (Fermyn Wood today), Purple Hairstreak (Fermyn Wood yesterday), Dark Green Fritillary (Twywell Hills and Dales today) and Silver-washed Fritillary (Harry's Park Wood and Bucknell Wood yesterday).

Regards

Neil M

A rather unusual colour
variant in a juvenile Starling
courtesy of John Tilly.

A more typical plumage
associated with a juvenile
Starling also courtesy of
John Tilly.

Fungus Weevil courtesy
of Robin Gossage.

Apple-Fruit Weevil courtesy
of Robin Gossage.

Silver-washed Fritillary.