START OF MY BUTTERFLY YEAR

With the weather colder than usual, there hasn't been much in the way of butterfly activity recently but now I am beginning to see a few species emerging to start my butterfly year list. Back in February I saw my first Red Admiral (1) at Lower Moor Farm in some winter sunshine then in the middle of March I started to see Brimstone (2) butterflies fluttering along the hedgerows, my first one  being on 17 March whilst driving between Tadley and Greenham Common. 

On 27 March I found a Small Tortoiseshell (3) sunning itself on the wall outside the school where I work as I left at lunchtime and then during the Easter holidays, spotted my first Peacock (4)  butterfly whilst staying in Cambridge with my sister.  Apart from Brimstones I saw nothing else until a visit to Slimbridge  WWT  on 8 April produced a  Speckled Wood (5) on some nettles along a sheltered walkway then later in April (20th) I found a couple of Orange Tips (6) and a Comma (7) in a sheltered part of the nature reserves by the River Thames at Farmoor Reservoir ( a brisk NE wind was blowing along the causeway). 

     Speckled wood at Slimbridge  WWT

Comma at Farmoor

Orange-tip at Farmoor

RING OUZELS ON CLEEVE COMMON

 Last year I visited Cleeve Common in Gloucestershire in the hope of finding some ring ouzels which are often seen in April as they stop off on their migratory route to breed. Sadly I was unable to locate any so I  decided to make another attempt this year. 

I left home at  by 7 a.m as I knew the area was likely to be popular on a Saturday morning, not just with birders, but with joggers and dogwalkers for whom this is a popular spot. After driving up the windy road that leads to the top of the hill, I found a parking spot in the already nearly full car parking area adjacent to some large pylons. 

I'd read that up to 5 birds had been seen during the early part of this week so I was fairly hopeful of seeing at least one today though I had no idea where to start looking on this vast expanse of hillside dotted with gorse bushes and small trees. It is easy to get lost but the tall pylons are a useful marker as to where the car park is situated!

I meandered amongst the gorse checking for any dark blackbird sized birds in the trees.  I also used my phone  to find out  what  their  call  was  like so I could  listen  out  for it amongst  the gorse. On descending a path I noticed two dark coloured birds, roughly the size of blackbirds, fly across in front of me, one of which was emitting a call similar to what I had just heard on my phone. However not being able to make out any white crescent on the birds' breasts I couldn't be sure.

I made my way  across to the direction in which they had flown but couldn't see or hear anything to indicate their presence. Across the small valley  few photographers had set up tripods  but I couldn't see what they were looking at as they were quite a distance away. Another lady approached me and said she'd noticed the photographers  too so we decided to make our way towards them.

They had gone before we reached the spot where they had stood, but I could see them talking to some other people who came in our direction and said that there were some ring ouzels to be seen across the valley, probably not far from where I had just been looking. We followed them and sure enough  it was possible to make out some birds feeding on the grass between some large areas of gorse. Looking through binoculars I could make out the white crescent which distinguished them as ring ouzels.  Every so often they would retreat back into the gorse before reappearing. Although not as close as I would have liked, these birds were a 'lifer' for me so I had to be content. Although tempted to go  and see if I could gain a closer view, I was aware that the birders I'd spoken to had a dim view of people who got too close, and anyway the birds would probably keep out of sight if they detected human presence.  I've read of photographers who had to spend 2 or 3 hours hidden in a gorse bush in order to get some decent pictures. Not for me! 

distant ring ouzel

female stonechat

 

SLIMBRIDGE WWT

I  drove over to Slimbridge WWT Centre this morning, as I hadn't been for a while, I knew the Kingfishers were active and had heard reports of   Mediterranean gulls, both of which I hadn't managed to see so far this year.

The car park was quiet  and so was the Centre itself. There was admittedly nothing particularly of note reported as the White rumped sandpiper had gone, and so had all the Bewick swans. It was cloudy to start with but it brightened up to give blue skies, although the wind was still brisk.

I decided to go up to the Estuary Tower where high tide was due, though it wasn't predicted to be as high as earlier in the week. Nevertheless, there were many birds to be seen, including large numbers of black headed gulls, amongst which I was shown a couple of Mediterranean gulls, which I initially looked at through someone's 'scope as I would never have found them myself, particularly as one was was asleep! 

From the tower I could see white fronted geese, and barnacle geese with a snow/Ross goose amongst them.  A snipe was  in the reeds below the hide and I also saw a few pintails, wigeon and avocet. 

As I walked through the grounds, I heard many chiffchaffs and spotted a Brimstone butterfly, signs that Spring is nearly sprung!  

I approached the Discovery Hide, and noticed that a few people were looking intently along a stretch of water to the left - a pair of kingfishers were thought to be making a nest  in the bank ( out of view) and were perched in the trees and bushes nearby.  Although they were always partly obscured by twigs and branches, they gave closer views than the ones nesting in the banks viewed from the Kingfisher hide. 

I visited the remaining hides and  revisted some of the earlier ones, but there was nothing particularly of note today. Waders included lapwing, redshank, black tailed godwit, avocet and dunlin but I didn't see any herons or egrets. However any trip to Slimbridge is enjoyable and today was no exception, with two more birds added to my year list. 

robin

mallard

greylag

kingfisher (M)

avocet

shovelers

chiffchaff

wigeon

snipe

redshank

barnacle goose

sleeping wigeon

sleeping pintail

WHELFORD

 The past few weeks' cold and windy weather has not motivated me to go out birdwatching although I have enjoyed watching what birds have been visiting my garden feeders. There have been more greenfinches and chaffinches than usual plus I have had up to 3 blackcaps (2 f, 1 m) which have been visiting daily since the end of January.  Initially a female showed up on the day of the Big Garden birdwatch, then a few days later I spotted a male.  In the last week, a second female arrived, Interestingly the second female appears to have a slightly paler chestnut cap. I rarely have blackcaps in my garden so it has been a treat to watch them though I suppose they will move on quickly when the weather gets warmer. 

Today I went out to Whelford Pools to sit in the hide there and hopefully practise  using my camera  using some tips which I'd learnt from a camera workshop which I attended earlier in the week. There was very little there to start with - all the feeders were empty, so  I scattered some seed on a couple of logs in front of the hide  watched the tits and robins arrive to take advantage of the food. On the lake, birds seen included shovelers, great crested grebes, gulls and a few goosanders. Then I noticed some small birds flying fast above the water in a flock and after studying them through binoculars I came to the conclusion they must be newly arrived sand martins. 

LESS IS MORE AT FARMOOR

 A few days ago a Lesser Scaup, a  rarer diving duck than its cousin the Greater Scaup,  was found at Farmoor Reservoir near Oxford and as this would be 'lifer' for me I decided to drive over to see it. Although cold, the north wind was relatively light and walking the causeway was not the battle it sometimes can be!!

I have seen several Greater Scaups, usually at Farmoor Reservoir, and currently there are two at Slimbridge WWT. Smaller than the Greater Scaup, the Lesser Scaup is about the size of tufted duck and resembles the male of that species but with a greyer back and more marked, whitish sides and no tuft on its head.  This shows in the video below where both can be seen together. 

 Earlier in the morning the duck had been reported in front of the cafe, in other words just a short stroll from the car park. But by the time I arrived it had moved and was with some tufted ducks further out in the reservoir but  seemed to be heading in the direction of the causeway so I started walking in that direction. It was hard to pick it out amongst the ducks and coots but by following the group of birders who were all making their way along the causeway I caught up with it  where it was swimming not too far off from the shore. It stayed with a group of three tufted ducks, which made a useful comparison,  and like them, it dived frequently. 

I spotted a friend's  son amongst the birders so started chatting and then we both continued along the causeway so I could  show him where the hides and nature reserve were as he was unfamiliar with the site apart from the reservoir itself.

From the Shrike Meadow we heard and saw  a flock of siskins in the alders by the hide and then spent some time watching and photographing birds around the feeders including good numbers of reed buntings. As I returned across the causeway the Lesser Scaup was no longer in sight, but judging by the presence of photographers, it had probably relocated on the far side of the reservoir! I was, however, shown a rock pipit which I added to my year list. 

So a enjoyable morning, for which I am grateful to whoever found the duck in the first place and to all those other more observant birders who point me in  the right direction  and find those sought after rarities! 

WHITE RUMPED SANDPIPER AT SLIMBRIDGE

A few days before I left for Kent last week,  there were reports of a white rumped sandpiper at Slimbridge WWT but I knew I would be unable to see it unless it remained until after my return. Having kept an eye on the daily sightings I was pleased to see it was still there today. It is a  sufficiently rare bird in the UK for the centre to consider it worthwhile opening the  Discovery Hide extra early for members but that had now ended and normal opening hours applied. 

I got to the Centre at around 9.45 so went straight to the Discovery Hide which overlooks South Lake where the sandpiper has been spending most of this time. There were only one or two others in the hide and I was told that it had been there until a few minutes earlier when the birds had been flushed by a peregrine! The chap who told me this said he was going to go over to the Rushy Hide to see if it had relocated there  but  after searching a bit longer,   then said that he had  re-found it in the same place as it was before! 

The bird was pretty distant and was hopping about (on one leg, for some reason) amongst some snipe. We watched it for a while hoping it would gradually work its way nearer to the causeway but then  it suddenly flew....and landed in a little inlet much closer to the hide! 

It gave good views through binoculars but the overcast weather made it difficult to get a clear photo with my bridge camera. It looked very similar to some dunlin which were  feeding fairly close but the beak is shorter.  Within minutes of the bird flying closer to the hide, I turned round and realised that the hide was now filled with birders with their scopes and cameras trained on the sandpiper! Someone had obviously sent out a message! I was already close to an open window so was glad I at least had a decent view.  Then all of a sudden it flew off with the dunlin  so that was the signal for me to leave the hide.

I went to the Hogarth hide to see if it had relocated there but it hadn't so I made my way to the Kingfisher hide where a little grebe on the pond was my first sighting for the year. 

After eating my sandwiches in the heated Peng observatory I visited the hides on the estuary walkway. The water rail was giving good views again, and there were plenty of geese and ducks to be seen.  It won't be long now  before the Bewick swans and pintails leave .

water rail

wigeon

wigeon and white fronted geese

little grebe

little grebe was in front of the kingfisher nest holes in the bank

pintail

tufted duck, pintail, shelduck and Bewick swan

plenty of  Bewick swans about

white rumped sandpiper with lapwing

the following photos were all taken in the aviary

black tailed godwit

avocet

garganey

little egret

male smew

avocet

redshank

ringed plover