White Fronted Goose Stevenage

 Bit of a drag at work this week with only a few people in, and basically tidying up loose ends. So I was browsing social media as one does to while away the time and nearly fell off my chair when I saw a photo of a juvenile Russian Greater White Fronted Goose half a mile away in the town centre park. There has been a bit of an influx inland at some odd locations recently, but I wasn't expecting one in the middle of town.

I had a bit of frustrating wait until knocking off time and was wondering how to get there as parking and traffic in the area isnt good, but luckily I got a message from Tom Spellar that it was at Fairlands.

A quick scan of the main lake after I arrived revealed a flock of Canada's with a smaller goose on the far bank so I headed there and was able to confirm it was the White Front. Unfortunately, but not unexpected, a dog walker scattered them and most swam into the middle, luckily a few were heading to the east bank and I was able to get a few snaps with the phone. Nice easy twitch, and my first county White Front for some time.

And Now Another Post

 Just like buses.

Yesterday I tried to have a walk around Fairlands Lakes. Having located 15 Siskin and the Kingfisher I thought I was on a roll then torrential rain arrived and I was forced to give up.

Today couldn't have been more different. Bright sunshine blue skies and mild. I decided on a walk around Aston End despite knowing it would be very muddy and treacherous in places. I started off at Chells Manor and walked down the river to the ford then returned via Aston End and home. 

Much of it was uneventful-lots of Robins, a few tit flocks in places and singing Skylarks, plus a few Buzzards and Red Kites. Thrushes were around of course with small numbers of Redwing Blackbird and Fieldfare, but not the numbers I have encountered recently. 

Because of the muddy conditions it was slow going so I decided to miss the High Wood detour and carry on down to the ford. A large flock of birds east of Lords Farm proved problematic. There were a couple of Skylarks, but a dozen smaller birds were with them. I thought at first they might be Linnets and Yellowhammers but they were far off and hidden from view in the furrows of winter wheat. Eventually I decided they were Meadow Pipits, several of which had been heard earlier moving south along with some Pied Wagtails. I was just about to carry on when I heard a loud tew. Hoping it might be a Bullfinch I searched the blackthorn and was very surprised when a warbler popped up with a prominent eyestripe. Confused, wondering why a Sedge Warbler would still be here, when it emerged the plain, pale grey buff, fine black bill was odd, but when I saw the greenish edges to the wing feathers I connected it with the call and realised it was a Siberian Chiffchaff. This was pretty much proven when I played the calls of various Chiffchaffs-it only responded to Siberian. Unfortunately like the few I had seen in the past it was hyperactive and in the three or so minutes it was in view I couldn't get it in the camera viewfinder.

The rest of the walk was something of an anticlimax, but I did eventually find a female Bullfinch, which has been a bit elusive this year despite my many surveys of the area.

And i was also lucky to get a clear spell this evening so the refractor came out and I got another view of Jupiter and Saturn.

Still Here

 It's been some time since I last wrote anything here. The last half of my holiday coincided with the governments tier system coming into effect, and while it would be possible for Colin and I to meet up somewhere, we wouldn't be able to travel together without social distancing (?). So any long distance twitching would be doubly expensive, not exactly environmentally friendly and we would put ourselves at increased covid risk.

So i went back to my furlough routine of gardening and local walks. A couple of times I drove out to Wallington in the hope of getting the Merlin (and Hen Harrier and Short Eared Owl are up there as well) but so far without success. There have also been a few Amwell visits where the Crossbills have shown a few times but I have yet to see the Bittern and Red Crested Pochards that are usually present.

Locally the weather has made things difficult recently with plenty of rain at times. The Beane is now flowing which is good to see but run off from the fields has made the going very soft along the footpaths. The winter thrushes-mainly Redwing with some Fieldfare and Blackbirds are starting to increase but I have found it rather tough trying to track down finches and Buntings. In early November I located a large Chaffinch flock at Aston Water Tower with a couple of locally scarce Brambling, but since then its been very quiet with only a few Yellowhammers in the hedges. Fortunately Siskin seem to be visiting Fairlands Lakes at times, and the Kingfisher is still there too.

On another topic, the 115mm refractor has been dusted off again and I have had a couple of views of the Jupiter-Saturn conjunction. Very low in the sky once it's dark enough to pick the brighter Jupiter up atmospheric dispersion and turbulence have made things difficult to put it mildly, but earlier this evening (19th December) I got a pretty good sequence of which this is probably the best.

October Holiday Part 2 Lammergeier

 The vulture is still around. Having departed Derbyshire it was eventually located in Norfolk, disappeared again and then a few days ago was seen in south Lincolnshire around Spalding and venturing into Cambridgeshire at times. It has been mobile at times pitching up in odd locations and at one point roosted in a tree on an industrial site. Yesterday it spent much of the afternoon north of Thorney, roosting in a roadside tree and on one occasion disrupted traffic by feeding on the road!

Early start again today, and we arrived at 0715 to find a row of cars parked and a small crowd beyond. Luckily the verges were wide enough for the cars as there had been problems yesterday with bad parking. I was expecting to see the vulture perched a little way off, I wasn't expecting it to be one of three trees right by the road at the exit of a local farm and birders standing underneath looking up!. We stayed a bit further back and had stunning views as it was lit by the rising sun. The digiscoping kit worked quite well with the Z7 camera.

I was fiddling with the camera and missed it flying off over the field but managed to grab a couple of poor flight shots. We were horrified to see it drop onto the road in front of an approaching car. Luckily it was a birder who managed to stop and prevent other cars passing until it had flown into the field. Apparently it had picked up a flat rat.

The views in the field were pretty good though a bit distant and after a brief flight settled down to feed on a bit of rabbit rather closer to us. With a cold wind picking up and cloud building up I was resigned to spending a lot of time watching it in the scope on the deck. Colin threatened to go back to the car for a coffee but held off for a bit which was fortunate as it took off and we got amazing flight views. By now it had gron a full tail but the wings were starting to get a bit tatty.

My one regret about our trip to the Peak District to see it was not seeing it in flight (and barely seeing it at all over half a mile away on the cliff) and once it had moved south I wasn't' really expecting to see it again, and certainly not as well as we did today. Despite it's status as an introduced species (but wild bred and after several generations) its got to be my bird of the year.

October Holiday Pt 1 Norfolk

 My usual  holiday started last weekend-the usual October fortnight.

My first chance of a trip was on Sunday 4th. Ideally it would have been to Hartlepool for a Masked Shrike. I had missed the first two records due to ill health, and despite misgivings Colin and I decided to go for it, but with apparently poor restricted views and zero social distancing we bailed and headed for Norfolk instead. Not a bad idea as much of the east coast was covered in. migrants all Saturday. Unfortunately as it turned out a lot had departed overnight and the Shrike showed well all day with a better behaved crowd.

We got to Titchwell not long after first light with only a couple of cars in the car park. There were a lot of thrushes heading east overhead with smaller birds like Siskin, pipits and a nice Crossbill.  There were a few Blackcaps and tits feeding on the car park apples and I glimpsed a larger pale warbler which could have been Garden or possibly Barred. There were also several Bullfinch as well. 

We headed off round the Fen Trail in the hope of migrant chats etc but it seemed a bit quiet. There were a lot of Song Thrush, Blackbird and Redwing in the trees but smaller birds were hard apart from a few Chiffchaff and crests. Dunnocks and Robins tried their best to be Redstarts and Flycatchers. At the end of the trail at Willow Wood I found and eastern (probably Siberian) Lesser Whitethroat-the first I'd definitely seen, but it was too far from the camera. Over the pool and reed-bed masses of hirundines were feeding-mainly House Martins but lots of Swallows and a few Sand Martins as well.

Walking up the bank, the usual assemblage of waders and wildfowl were on the marsh, but Colin found a Swift, so I alerted the guys following us but they had already had a message from further ahead. We got closer and became rather excited as the scope views seemed to show a brown bird with a pale throat-all signs of Pallid Swift, which being October is pretty much the expected Swift. Unfortunately close views put paid to that idea and it turned out to be Common-very unusual at this time of year.

The sea didn't produce much. There were hordes of gulls and waders feeding on razor clams trhat had been washed up on the previous weeks storm, but the south easterlies meant that there were few birds passing offshore apart from a couple of Gannets and a flock of Wigeon.

After lunch we headed to Burnham Norton. It was a bit showery and windy and the small crowd part way down the track had not had a sighting of the Barred Warbler for some time. A couple of Blackcaps and some Redwings were feeding in the bushes and again Robins and Dunnocks tried hard to be rare. Further down on the dunes, the reported Radde's Warbler hadn't been seen since early morning, so we gave up and headed to Holme instead.

I havent been to the NOA observatorty for a few years, so it was a bit of a shock to see the state of the wooded dunes after recent years storms with large open areas where we had in the past seen things like Little Buntings, Flycatchers and chats feeding in and under trees. What the open areas did provide though were many more hirundines, and some more Swifts! We may have seen a dozen in total and I guessed that storm Alex had brought them up from the Mediterranean.

The dunes otherwise seemed quiet so we went into the reserve which offered more sheltered feeding areas. Sophie directed us to the Heligoland trap  where the Blythe's Reed Warbler was lurking. While waiting we also checked the birches and pines opposite, and patience produced three Yellow Browed Warblers, a female Pied Flycatcher, Chiffchaffs and Goldcrests, and my second Siberian Lesser Whitethroat (this had been trapped and ringed). Eventually the Blythes Reed also showed-as I had only seen various bits of two birds previously it was nice to have a whole one for a change, out in the open and not skulking as typical. One couple had spent several hours over two days before they got to see it so we were rather lucky.

Norfolk Shrikes and Flycatchers

 After a couple of quiet weekends, I was out and about with Colin again on Sunday. The generally north easterlies of the previous few days made a trip to north Norfolk rather tempting.

As usual now, we left early and reached Warham Green near Wells around 0800. It was cool and there was still a very nice breeze that really made me feel that it was going to be a good day. I haven't been to Warham for many years, maybe not even this century and while the approach track and parking seems to have improved it was very much as I remembered as we headed west along the coastal path. Bumped into a returning Ian Bennel who had already had a good few hours out. he mentioned a Redstart near where we met, but I never saw it. WE joined the small crowd in the field and waited. Lots of activity in the hedgerows with Dunnocks and tits darting in and out, ticking Robins and regular flyovers of waders and wildfowl escaping what I later heard was an incredibly high tide.

We were waiting for a 1w Brown Shrike-my second of what was once incredibly rare but is more or less expected in autumn these days, probably more down to a greater understanding of it's difference to the Red Backed/Isabelline complex than an increase in numbers. It took a while for it to show for me and while the scope views were fantastic it was a bit too far away for the 100-400 lens on my Lumix (I was intending to have the heavier Nikon gear plus digiscoping adapters but the usual backache put me off).

After a very enjoyable time with the Shrike we headed to Wells Wood and it's very expensive car park which was fortunately rather quiet as it was still rather early. We met up with a few other birders and walked along the southern track stopping just past the dell and scanned the cattle field fence and it didn't take long for the Red Backed Shrike to show. Again a bit too distant.

The next hour or so was spent in and around the dell and meadow trying to find the Red Breasted Flycatcher with Ritchie Gannon and co. We were directed to a wooded sandy ridge which had a couple of nice sunny spots but birds were hard to locate. A long and frustrating search for a pale bird eventually turned out to be a female type Pied Flycatcher- a nice year tick but not our target. A confused message from Ritchie got us out into the meadow and an increasing crowd of birders. There was a very big tit flock moving around and with it were a number of Chiffchaffs, a Willow Warbler and some crests. 

Colin and I decided to head to the dell and it's Yellow Browed Warbler, not realising the meadow crowd were watching it (or another). After a brief rest on the bench we reached the dell and met Penny Clarke who had been in the woods since the early hours and it turned out that there wasn't much in the area now. Things had certainly got a bit quieter as it warmed up and the wind had also dropped. She did give me pointers for the Red Breasted Flycatcher which was ranging widely along the wooded edge to the meadow and our sandy ridge. 

There was a small crowd tucked now and after a short wait we got to see the flycatcher low down but rather obscured for a few minutes. It moved about 50 yards west where another group got close views and was expecting to return to our area but it seemed to vanish. There was a suspicion that a very aggressive Robin was keeping it moving. I went to stretch my legs in the meadow in the hope of seeing it from that side and then ducked back into the wood again, just as the Flycatcher appeared above me and then posed quite nicely in a small birch. The back lighting was a bit harsh but I got one or two rather nice shots. 

 We didn't linger, the woods were now heaving with crowds of holiday makers, dogs were everywhere and there wasn't much sign of Covid precautions, so we came home. Fortunately I got back in time to catch almost all of the final stage of the Tour de France, not that that affected my decision to return-honest guv.

Norton Green Chats

Popped down to Norton green for an hour this morning. The place hasn't had the usual coverage this year with lock down etc, but over the last few weeks the regulars have been reporting migrants. Whinchats Wheatears and Yellow Wagtails have been recorded over the last week so it it would be worth a visit.

Tony Hukins car was there when I arrived and I eventually met up with him. The usual access point on the bank is terribly overgrown, as is much of the track along the top so it was tough going. When I got to the open section on the west side I could see someone scoping the female Wheatear with Tony approaching. He hadn't seen much else unfortunately so we decided to scour the large rose dominated scrub in the middle. There wasn't a greta deal happening, although sunny and warm, there was a bit of a chilly northerly breeze which seemed to be keeping things down.

One Whitethroat was the best I could manage, with the occasional Robin, Wren and Blue Tit. On a couple of occasions we had brief sightings of 'something' perched up in bushes which inevitably disappeared the moment we noticed them and could never be pined down, so it was very frustrating. However after about 40 minutes we headed back to the open area and I got a good but brief view of a Whinchat in a small rose patch which then disappeared. Despite a thorough search of this tiny patch there was nothing. 

The mystery was solved when I decided to watch the Wheatear for a while, and saw a second bird with it. How the Whinchat  managed to elude us and then appear in the open 50 yards away I don't know, but there it was on the ground feeding happily. I got a couple of record shots.

Catching Up 2

 The Bank holiday gave me the opportunity for more catching up. I have been itching to get to the Norfolk coast for a while now as the only other visit this year was at there start of the year. The forecast northerlies all weekend were rather tempting as well with the promise of some decent seabirds. Unfortunately the news from Saturday was rather disappointing, with smaller numbers than hoped for, although there were some interesting sightings.

Colin and I left early again, and arrived at Titchwell around 8am as parking is currently a bit limited and the facilities likewise. The northerly winds were still present early on, though a lot less stronger than the Saturday. The intention was to head to the sea while the winds held out and then check the lagoons on the way back. The most unexpected sighting was meeting a returning Phil Ball well outside his usual Amwell comfort zone, who had been seawtaching with his bins and noted numbers of passing Skuas.

The sand blasted beach was rather uncomfortable, and as Phil had said, visibility was indifferent though improved as the morning progressed. Despite the direction of the winds, a lot of the seabirds were a fair way off and in many cases best left unidentified. Gannets were ever present, generally heading east, but most other birds were moving west, with singles and small parties of Arctic and Great Skuas, the occasional Fulmar and Kittiwake and best of all a Sooty Shearwater. There were still a few terns lingering offshore, some Sandwich were obvious but a couple of 'Commic' terns were feeding into the wind and couldn't be identified for sure, though the likelyhood  is that they were Common rather than Arctic. There were also a few largish duck flocks heading west as well, mostly Common Scoter but Wigeon and teal were also seen. 

Most of the waders were on the beach-the usual assemblage of Godwits, Redshank, Curlew, Sanderling, Turnstone, Knot Ringed Plover and Oystercatcher. The gulls on the shoreline were inspected on a regular basis but there wasn't anything unusual among them. The fresh marsh was a bit disappointing on the way back. There weren't many waders, with small numbers of Dunlin and Ruff  on the exposed mud, plus a few Avocets of course. A couple of Curlew Sandpipers were found but we couldn't see the Little Stint. 

After a welcome coffee we returned and went via the currently one way Fen Trail to Patsies Pool. We apparently missed a Great White Egret and there wasn't a great deal here. There were a a few Common and Ruddy Darters, Migrant Hawkers and a single Brown Hawker. Couldn't find any Willow Emeralds in the usual spot.

After a visit to the optical suppliers Cley Spy we had intended to go to Weeting Heath, but on arrival discovered that it has been shut since lockdown started. Should have thought of that earlier! Anyway Lakenheath Fen was just down the road so we called in there instead.

Being rather dull and cloudy, and with the breeze still present it wasn't at its best. There were very few butterflies and dragonflies, and birds were hard to get, with very little along the southern track to Joist Fen. We spent a bit of time at the view point, with lots of hirundines in the distance, but only a couple of Marsh harriers and Kestrels in the air. A very distant large white egret must have been the Great White that is resident, and Colin thought he had a brief  sighting of one of the Cranes. 

On the Monday I decided to do a circuit around Chells Manor and Aston End. Norton Green had a few Yellow Wagtails and Whinchats which would have been a safer bet, but I hoped that the sheep and horse fields would enable me to find my own. It wasn't a great success as the only migrants there were a few juvenile Swallows. Robins are starting to get a bit more vocal as it gets more autumnal, and there were around a dozen Chiffchaffs mostly heard, but the ones seen were juveniles. The usual warbler trap elder and spindle hedge was a bit of a let down with three juvenile Blackcaps-no Common or Lesser Whitethroats which were expected. A few more Swallows from the local nests were still in the Aston end area and the usual Nuthatches were heard as approached Gresley Way.

Over the summer, the work in the garden has been paying dividends with greater than usual numbers of butterflies. Obviously with more time at home that is to be expected, but a few days ago I was surprised to get a Small Copper on the verbena bonariensis. I've only ever seen a few in the garden, and they have been hard to get anywhere this year so it seems.

The pond has had a lot of work and has been completely replanted this year. Fortunately the rather wet August has meant that it is has plenty of water in it at the moment and this has been rather attractive to a variety of overflies, bees and flies. Apart from the expected spring Large red and Azure damselflies there haven't been any other dragonflies until last week when a male Common Darter has been present on the warmer days.

Catching Up

 I've been back at work for two weeks now, after 19 weeks furlough so it has been a bit of a shock to the system, although I have got back into the swing of things fairly quickly. Unfortunately work has now got in the way of all my other interests and time is again at a premium.

The last couple of weekends I have been out with Colin visiting some sites in an attempt to try and fill in a few of the large number of blanks in this years bird year list, though the main priority is to have a good day out. The trips to Otmoor and the Peak District were a good start but I have missed the east coast with only the one trip at the start of the year.

On the 23rd we went to RSPB Framton Marsh, which has in recent years become the place to see waders in the autumn, and we always have a good time. An early start got us there at 0730, just before high tide and right from the start it was a wader fest. A scan from the closed visitors centre got us a few adult Curlew Sandpipers, a Common Sandpiper and huge numbers of Godwits and Knot, along with Ruff Avocets and Ringed Plovers. A bit further down we added a few more waders, there were huge numbers of Swallows and Sand Martins, big flocks of Swifts and the usual selection of duck and geese. The walk down to the sea wall was rather quiet as many of the pools on the grazing marsh were empty, but getting up on the bank was rewarding, although very windy. 

The large number of grazing cattle had as usual their attendant flocks of Yellow Wagtails. I get the impression that this is one of the best places in the country for them now, there can't be many places with numbers in the hundreds. The salt marsh also had the expected Curlew, there was around a dozen Greenshanks, half a dozen Spotted Redshanks and eventually we found a spot where two or three Little Stints were lurking, aloe]ng with a couple of Wood Sandpipers.

We decided to head out along the bank to the Welland outfall, a bit of a log being 3km each way. Almost every hawthorn bush held a few Willow Warblers-there seems to have been a bit of an east coast fall as large numbers were reported elsewhere. A couple of Wheatears were good to see, and there were lots of Whimbrel on the marsh among the Oystercatchers, Curlews, Redshanks and Little Egrets. A few Little Terns were feeding around the river mouth were a nice bonus but most seabirds were well out in the Wash and with the tide now falling were a long way off. The walk back was a bit of a slog and having been out for five hours we were in desperate need of coffee and a bite to eat so there wasn't much stopping though watching the 26 Spoonbills fly over was worth a brief halt.

In the afternoon Colin decided to head slightly north and go to RSPB Freiston Shore, not a place we have visited before. A Red Breasted Flycatcher had been reported late morning so it was worth the short drive. When we got there we were told it had been observed sleeping but had disappeared an hour or so earlier. We hung around for a bit as there were a lot of hirundines and Yellow Wagtails around and over the cattle so it was worth scanning through them. I was hoping for Whinchat or a Redstart. While doing that I noticed an egret hidden among the grazing cattle which seemed to be remarkably buff in colour so I casually asked if anyone wanted a Cattle Egret. I was a bit shocked when the photographer next to me asked if I would be submitting the record as its a description species for Lincolnshire (and possibly the first seen this year). Fortunately he was on the records committee and was happy to take my name and number for the report.

Here it is in all its (very cropped) glory. 

On that high note and after a rather tiring day we decided to head home. I kept an eye out for reports from Graham, Paxton etc just in case there was anything to justify a diversion but in the end we didn't so it was a quick trip back.

Temmincks Stint

  A Temmincks Stint was seen at Amwell on Monday evening and rather unusually it was still present today-Friday 14th. I had seen one here maybe twenty years ago so there was no urgency to go down in the extreme heat of the last few days. However with a lot of overnight rain it had cooled down and looked to be rather pleasant with maybe a shower or two.

After the morning shop I departed and got there just before 10am. It was nice, albeit cloudy in Stevenage, but there was light rain at Amwell. One other birder from Milton Keynes was there and put me on the Stint-feeding on the front edge of the main island. Fortunately I had brought the scope (I rarely take it to Amwell) so got pretty good views as the rain increased in intensity. Scans produced a few Teal, a Common Sandpiper, a few Snipe, and a few Herring and Lesser Black Backed gulls in various plumages. There was supposed to be a Caspian Gull and a Wigeon as well. One Swallow was about the only small bird attempting to fly in the conditions , and after around 30 minutes and now totally soaked decided to leave.

A Big Twitch

 Temptation eventually got the better of me and I arranged with Colin to go to Derbyshire to see the Bearded Vulture. I had held off for a long time because of the distance and the rather erratic nature of the bird. When it first appeared it roosted high in the Derwent Valley, requiring a long hike to see it prior to leaving the roost and then, if you were lucky you might get close views. Otherwise it was a case of staking out a suitable vantage point and hoping it might appear. Earlier in the month it disappeared for a while, but eventually was rebound roosting to the north of Derwent around Crowden and Woodhead reservoirs.    

The views on the Saturday sounded particularly good and it was seen on and off all day in the sunshine, so we departed at 0330 and arrived at the Woodhead dam around 0645. Unfortunately the last stretch of the journey was in poor visibility, and gusting winds-not quite what we were expecting  from the forecast. Part of the problem I think was that the reservoir was fairly high up in the Pennines, and the valley ran east-west acting as a funnel for the easterly wind. I didn't plan on this and only at the last minute did I decide to take a fleece, but I had forgotten my hat.

There were a few other cars parked up, most had come for the Vulture which was last seen on the rocks south of the dam. Unfortunately no rocks were visible for a long time, and there were few birds around while we waited. One or two singing Willow Warblers, a couple of Swallows over the water and a family of Chaffinch. By mid morning I was rather damp and cold, but at least coffee was only a few yards away. Some of the guys decided to head over to the valley in Crowden particularly as it seemed to be a bit warmer and brighter there, and we swapped phone numbers just in case. Eventually the mist/cloud started to disperse and visibility improved sufficiently to scan the hillside. Overnight campers pointed out the crag where the Vulture had perched the previous evening, but it was became clear that the bird wasn't present. There was no news from Crowden either. A couple of Buzzards and a Kestrel were the only raptors around, and there were also several parties of Swift going through.

Around 1pm news reached us that it was on Dowstone rocks about a mile eastwards, and a fast walk got us there (where rather annoyingly it was a lot warmer and brighter). It appeared to be sitting on the rock, shuffling around now and again with some wing stretching and preening. Being around half a mile distant, scope views were adequate, but the slight haze still present caused issues with photography, which in this case meant shooting through the scope with and adaptor and the Z7.

This needed a lot of work and turned out to be the best of the bunch. Facing away, the dar head above contrasts with the back feathers, and below the wings are stretched slightly.

 

 

We eventually departed around 2pm, rather later than anticipated and the planned extra sites we were hoping to go to basically went out of the window. What I hadn't anticipated was the vast number of visitors to the area. Every car park, lay-by and verge seemed to be full up and it was clear it wouldn't be possible to avoid crowds even assuming we could actually get anywhere.

We came home via Strines moor an area we have visited many times in the past. A stop off at one usual spot failed to produce Red Grouse, Whinchat or Wheatear, the other usual stops were full of cars, and a quick exploration of part of Bradfield Dale was rather quiet, though the bridleway leading up to a farm produced a few Dark Green Fritillaries. Looks like it could be a good Dipper site and there was also potential for Pied Flycatchers and Redstarts as well. 

Hello Colin

 My last trip major trip was back in February with the Grimsby Black Throated Thrush. Over five months ago. Since then with lockdown, isolation etc, I haven't actually ventured outside Hertfordshire, and there have only been a few short drives away from Stevenage. Obviously as a result, I have missed a great deal of the things that I would normally expect to see over the course of spring and summer, but on the other hand staying local has been interesting and I have had a great time. However I knew at some point that I would need to get out and about a bit more, while still considering health risks, so I gave Colin the heads up last week and we decided on a fairly Sunday short trip, both being well out of practice at this sort of thing.

 Our main site was RSPB Otmoor, which we tend to visit in late August. Despite its attractions its never really busy so I was happy to spend a few hours here. For the first time, I took the new Nikon Z7 out, along with the 300mm F2.8 lens and 1.7 converter to get an idea of how it would handle. Unfortunately I had put my back out the day before and was unsure of the weight issue but it turned out ok in the end. Its been over two years since I had used the lens, having stuck with the micro four thirds GX8 and 100-400mm lens (sometimes with the manual 500mm Nikkor), and was well pleased with the way it worked on the Z7. A lot of people have criticised the Z7 as being a poor choice for wildlife and action photography preferring the autofocus of the D850 or D5 but it seems to work for me.

 Anyway the initial section of Otmoor is the summer meadow trail which is always full of insects and flowers and we spent some time here trying to get shots of some of them. the iNaturalist app on my phone added a few new plant species to my meagre life list as well.

 Further on we discovered that there was a feeding site for the Turtle Doves in the cattle fields. despite hanging around for a bit all we had were Linnets.

 Our intention was to go up to the northern lagoons and we reached the crossroads gate and had a chat with another visitor. I was scanning the woods to the north seeing several Buzzards and a much larger paler bird with them-and Osprey! At the same moment the other chap yelled that there were Cranes flying to our west-we could certainly hear them. After a bit of headless chicken syndrome Colin and I ran back and picked up one flying over the southern marsh, but the other doubled back and dropped down into one of the cattle fields joining another one. One showed quite well but was always distant. I  never found the Osprey again though.

 The lagoons were a bit disappointing with highish water levels and apart from Lapwings the only wader present was a Little Ringed Plover, so we reluctantly returned hoping to get Brown Hairstreak in the usual spot.

 We were held up for some time when some loud purring alerted us to two Turtle Doves. They tended to stay well in a tree, flying out on a couple of occasions to another and then returning.

 The Brown hairstreaks didn't play ball. We met a couple of guys that had one sitting on a flower patch for around 15 minutes but although we had a couple of flybys none lingered, and neither did the Purple Hairstreak that dropped down briefly.

 After lunch we headed down to the BBONT reserve at Warburg. It seems to have become rather popular with dog walkers, picnickers etc but we managed to avoid most of them. The beech slopes were quiet fortunately allowing us to spend some time checking the helleborine cages. There were some Broad Leaved on the track up, in full flower but most of the cages only had small plants, a couple well past their best and a few with flower spikes. I took close ups of all of them in the hope of identifying them at home, and as it turned out all appeared to be Broad Leaved. There were no Narrow Lipped at all, and the one flower that looked good for Violet had green stems and may have been a hybrid. 

 There were no orchids in the meadows, and few birds apart from the expected Marsh Tits. Butterflies were also thin on the ground, with only one Silver Washed Fritillary, a couple of Brimstones, some whites blues and browns and a couple of Large Skippers  (Small and Essex have been thin on the ground this year).

 

All in all a fairly good test of the camera and big lens combo, and a pleasant day out with Colin again. 

 

Some July Images

The last month or so has been a bit rather wet at times and a lot cooler (thankfully we haven't had the burning heat of last year) and while this has been fantastic for the garden (and especially the pond) its had a knock on effect on my walks with diminished numbers of butterflies etc.

 On the 7th I paid a visit to Hertford Heath and Balls Wood. It was a bit overcast and breezy but despite this it turned out pretty well. Unfortunately the ponds were dry and there were no Emerald Damselflies, though a few Brown and Southern Hawkers and Emperors were flying. Butterflies were abundant on the bramble flowers with large numbers of Meadow Browns, Skippers, Ringlets and Tortoiseshells. One Brown came a cropper right in front of my face when and Emperor zipped past and caught it.

I was lucky in that some Silver Washed Fritillaries and White Admirals were flying, but I wasn't fortunate enough to locate a Purple Emperor.

A stroll around Tyttenhanger on the 16th wasn't as productive as hoped. Again the weather wasn't ideal and few insects were flying. I managed also to miss all the good birds that seem to be reported daily by the regulars, but it made a nice break from my usual walks.

 My last view of Comet Neowise was on the 17th. I would have been out after that but a family get together last weekend involved a glass or three, and since then the cloud has been problematic. The comet has been moving higher into darker skies but apparently has been fading.

Anyway I went up again to Coombe Road near Therfield which has an excellent northern horizon. I was there from 11pm to around half past midnight (local time). Clouds were a serious problem for a long time with bands drifting slowly eastwards. At times I could see the comet through cloud, but luckily as midnight approached, the temperature and dew point fell and the clouds dissipated. The best images came with the Zeiss 135mm lens again at f2, with 400 iso and exposures of 20-30 seconds. Processing to enhance the details has been difficult, as this has despite my best efforts the illumination is uneven with gradients spoiling things. I might have to invest in some decent astro imaging software.

 

Comet Neowise

This morning I set the alarm for 2am and drove out to Coombe Road near Therfield Heath with my Z7, tracker and Zeiss 35mm and 135mm Lenses. Driving up the A1 I could clearly see Comet Neowise-easlily visible to the naked eye and probably the brightest comet I have seen (apart from a very challenging daylight sighting of one of the McNaughts with bins) since Hale Bopp in 1997 and Hyakutake in 1996.

I wasn't sure of the best spot but I ended up on a lay-by at Coombe Road and set up my tracker. The first couple of shots were tests with the 35mm just to get some idea of exposures and set to work over the next hour. 

I took a couple of close ups with the 135mm 1o seconds F4 at iso 800, and this is the cropped close up.

As the sun started to rise I could also see noctilucent clouds appearing and I eventually ended up with a sequence of three 35mm F4 images of 2-6 seconds which I ran through Aurora HDR and came up with this image.

While I was up there I also enjoyed the naked eye views of Mars, Jupiter, Saturn and eventually Venus. 

Starting To Get Out And About A Bit

 My twelve week 'isolation' has come to an end though I am still taking care with social distancing etc.

I am also still furloughed. I called work recently, expecting to return, and was told that everyone is being re-furloughed.  I presume that as long as the company is not having to pay for us it will continue. Supposedly we will receive letters eventually though since I am working for a company that has as a synonym a phrase involving a brewery I'm not expecting much.

Since my last blog update things have continued largely as they have done. I have been a bit more adventurous with some of my walks. Fairlands Valley which has been my default short stroll has on occasion got a bit longer in that I have been down to the end of Monks Wood and returned via Shackledell Grasslands, which has been very good for butterflies. In the June heatwave huge numbers of Meadow Browns and Marbled Whites have appeared, along with a selection of Skippers. Unfortunately the Blues have been very scarce.

 I also had a very long hike down to Hooks Cross and Frogmore Pit. I used to do this occasionally up until the mid 90's but not since. Again it was a butterfly bonanza with vast numbers of browns and whites, and Small Tortoiseshells in particular. The return up along the very dry river Beane ended at Aston Ford and my last sighting of the Dark Green Fritillary, which had been present for around 9 days in total.

 The Thursday before last I paid a visit to Sarah and Ed. This was the hottest day of the year of course. The primary reason was the usual plant exchange, but she took me round one of her shorter walks. Masses of butterflies of course in the field edges, and a couple of orchids-a very poor Common Spotted and a rather nice lone Pyramidal. However the Common Spotted in one of her garden pots was much more impressive.

 Apart from a couple of visits to her, and one to Letchworth to have a minor service recall for the car, I haven't been out of Stevenage for birding/wildlife purposes. This changed last weekend.

 I have visited the Bladock-Wallington road for Quail a couple of times. This seems to be one of the more favoured spots in the country these days with birds appearing most summers from June onwards. There are at least two birds present, but pinning them down is as usual almost impossible. There are also large numbers of Skylarks and Corn Buntings. On my second visit I also called in at Wallington church where I managed to locate three Spotted Flycatchers. Long gone are the days when I could expect to see several birds on any stroll around Stevenage.

 Today I was a bit more adventurous and paid a visit to Amwell. Not the best time of year, with moulting ducks and very quiet post breeding woodland birds. Also as I discovered, with lockdown etc large areas are a bit overgrown, in particular the dragonfly trail. It was rather overcast, warm and humid, so there were a lot of Swifts feeding, along with a few Sand Martins. I added a few other species to my paltry year list including Common Sandpiper and a pair of Little Ring Plovers. The regular Oystercatcher was also around for a bit. Highlight I suppose was the pair of Ravens with their two offspring.

 As expected with the conditions, insects were in short supply, and there were only a few blue damselflies seen, plus a few Ringlets that were flying up from the rank grass as I walked past. The orchid pen was very overgrown though one of the Southern Marsh spikes could just be seen.

 

Given warmer conditions I hope to be able to get out to Broxbourne Woods or maybe Hertford Heath in the next couple of weeks. I'm not expecting to do any long distance twitching for a while yet, but I do hope to get to some of our more regular summer sites eventually.

Week 10 of Furlough and Local Rares.

I'm still carrying on as usual. I think this is the tenth week off work, but I am definitely losing track of time, as a lot of people have found. I am still sticking to isolation, with shopping trips and walks most days being the only time I am leaving the house.

 Gardening is still taking up most of my time. Mostly it is pottering now, and tinkering. Over recent years I have had a pretty clear idea of how I want the garden to go, but because there has been a gradual accumulation of plants, with many impulse buys, a lot of things have been put in the ground where space has been available, or left potted. As development has progressed, some have clearly not settled and have had to be moved, others grown from seed have had to grow and flower before I can plant them in a suitable spot. As an example, I have never been particularly successful with our native foxgloves-they don't seed around much so there are only a few plants. However, Digitalis lutea, a small perennial foxglove really thrives, and so I have been raising other similar species from seed. I've tried three different ones now, with pinkish and russet colour, but as I have discovered, most seem to be identical to lutea. Seems like there is a problem with seed my supplies (which are all garden collected and supplied by the groups I belong to), either misidentification, or hybridisation. 

 Anyway, most of the pottering and tinkering actually means relaxing, contemplating the garden and chilling, watching the wildlife. I am getting visits from lots of young birds at the moment. There are three juvenile Dunnocks, along with the adults, varying numbers of House Sparrows, with perhaps five young (there are around 20 pairs locally visiting many garden feeders at the moment). The roving flock of Goldfinches drop in from time to time and there have been juveniles present at times. Unfortunately I don't know if the regular Robins have had any success, there is a pair visiting. The same with the Blackbirds, I did see a young one locally a few weeks back, but not since. Unfortunately, I definitely have young Wood Pigeons, and being so clumsy I've had to protect some of the plants in pots.

There are lots flying over. Buzzards were displaying last weekend, the Kite is seen daily-cam usually alerted by the resident Carrion Crows, and Swifts have been regular, in fact more common than they have been for many years. About two weeks back, I was working under the Rowan when I heard a clear but distant tu-tu-tu-tu repeated a few times. I couldn't place it at first but I knew it was a wader of some kind, and I eventually twigged that it was a Greenshank. Apparently the second record for the Stevenage area.

 

My local walks around Fairlands Lakes have not produced anything new. One pair of Grebes have tried to nestle and there have been a few successful Moorhen and Coot broods. Common Terns visit from time to time, along with a few of the local Lesser Black Back Gulls, and Swifts fly over the water feeding from time to time.

The woods are starting to get a bit quiet now, though there are still some Chiffchaff and Blackcaps singing. Treecreepers and Nuthatches have been seen occasionally carrying food, so they must be raising young, and of course there are a lot of Blue and Great Tit chicks around. The only notable insects have been the expected Speckled Woods and a very unexpected female Black Tailed Skimmer a long way away from any water.

 Aston End and the river Beane are also getting quieter now. Most of the Linnets seem to have gone, with only one or two pairs being seen. The warblers are also settling down so are far less vocal. While checking the Garden Warblers in High Wood, I was surprised to find a pair of Willow Warblers bringing food to a nest. I certainly didn't hear any singing earlier in the year. 

 An evening stroll on the 2nd was about as successful as the last one. The bat detector produced several Noctule and Common Pipistrelles again, but the only other mammal was a Fox. Unless you count the horses and sheep of course. I took the camera in order to try a few evening landscapes, and this one with the horses and the moon came out quite well.

 The daytime walks have been dominated by plants and butterflies, and the warm weather has really boosted the latter, with large counts of Meadow Brown, Small Heath and Small Tortoiseshells. Coming back from the ford at Aston End on the 7th, I had a frustrating experience of a large strong flying orange butterfly cross the lane in front of me and behind the hedge. I retraced my steps, entered the field but couldn't find it again. I was convinced it was a Fritillary and not a Comma.

Two days later I did the route again, and after crossing the ford I found a Dark Green Fritillary on a thistle. Whether it was the same as I saw previously a few hundred yards away or not I don't know. What I do know is that it is well outside the normal range for the county, and may be a first for the Stevenage area.

 

 Unfortunately (though not for my garden) it has been a bit wet and windy, though the rain has largely been intermittent light daily showers rather than the several inches I would like, and as a result I haven't yet been back to check the area. There are a couple of spots that might possibly be suitable breeding habitat, so I am hoping that there has been an expansion into our area rather than a wandering vagrant.

An Evening Stroll and Other News

Another week of furlough, and things are carrying on pretty much as they have for the last seven weeks or so-I'm losing track of time as there is very little variation day to day.
Although there have been some lockdown easing, I have largely continued with the doctors letter to stay at home as much as possible, apart from shopping and the daily walk. However last Wednesday I paid a visit to Sarah and Ed, this being the first time I have left the Stevenage environs since early April, and the first long drive since then. I last filled up with petrol in late March and I still have well over half a tank left.
It was nice to see them again, and it was good to have a change of scenery as well. Naturally I took the opportunity to offload some plants, but somehow managed to bring back a lot more. Still I have lots of time to sort them out. Their garden was very good for butterflies as they were still getting Brimstone, Orange Tips as well as various whites, a Holly Blue or tow and my first Common Blue. Birdwise the only thing of note was a flyover Hobby.
Fairlands Valley is getting busier as the temperature increases, and it was rather crowded on the bank holiday weekend. Migration has largely ceased now and most of the birds are settling down so its getting a bit quieter. There seem to be two pairs of Great Crested Grebes at the moment but otherwise the only notable sightings seem to be the ever increasing Canada geese flock which has at times passed 100. One or two Coot and Moorhens have chicks, but the wildfowl don't appear to be nesting.
Aston End has also got a bit quiet now, though I am still seeing decent numbers of Yellowhammer, Linnets and larks. I tend to go out early to miss the heat as it is quite a long walk, and so haven't seen many butterflies and insects yet. There are a few Swallows and Swifts around, but I haven't seen a Martin out here at all.

Yesterday I tried something a bit different and went out in the evening, in fact I didn't get home until 1015pm well after sunset.
One thing I noticed was a completely different set of results with my counts. More Blackbirds and Song Thrushes singing-not surprising really, and lots of vocal Robins and Wrens, but of course far lower numbers of Skylarks singing, and apart from Blackcaps most warblers, finches and buntings were hard to locate.
The first surprise was a singing Corn Bunting in a weedy field near the ford. This is the first I have heard here for at least five years. The second was nearly being run over by a Badger along the Walkern Road. I was walking along the footpath, hidden from the road when a car suddenly appeared, presumably just as the Badger was crossing the road, it shot through the hedge only ten feet from me into the wheat field.
Thinking that would be it I carried on heading north towards a rather fine sun set. The Little Owls were out around the paddocks and sheep fields and two showed well, though one was being chased by a Blackbird so I didn't see it for long, but the other spent some time on an old barn.
A bit later on as I headed up towards Chells Manor, the light had really dropped so I dug out the bat detector and connected it to the phone. There were several bats flying around, with several Common Pipistrelles and I got two consecutive hits which came up initially as Lesser Noctule, which isn't a British species and then moments later it came up with the much more likely and very common Noctule. I haven't yet checked to see what if any the differences are between the two, or whether the detector made a mistake.

At Christmas, I received a tuber of Dranunculus vulgaris from Sarah. It flowered today. I had to move it to the bottom of the garden as like many of the arums it is a bit pungent, but it certainly attracted the flies. In the pot, the spathe is almost at nose hight and the musky rotting meat scent was certainly noticeable!

Half Way Through Week 5

I'm certainly enjoying my enforced work break-I can really see the attraction of retirement though its still some years ahead of me unfortunately.
The birding is still confined to the two different areas that I can get to.
Fairlands Valley has been my go-to when the weather has been amp or cloudy, on the assumption that it will bring migrants down onto the lake shore. Not really happened for me yet, though another local, Andy Day has picked up a few Common Sandpipers on his early visits. One was last Sunday, which I must have missed by an hour or so, but, on the other hand, I decided to head down into Monkswood for the first time in probably ten years and was surprised to hear a Cuckoo! Apparently the first in the valley for many many years, but it only lingered for a few minutes. Otherwise the valley has been pretty much the same on every visit, however numbers of singing warblers have been gradually dropping, and other species are getting a bit harder to find as the breeding season is well under way, and proclaiming territories is no longer a priority.
There have been a few odd ducks now and again, with a pair of Shoveller a few weeks ago, and more recently a pair of Tufted Duck stayed for a couple of days. Hirundines have been regular, with Swallows every day, a few House Martins (now rather scarce in Stevenage) and more recently a few flocks of Swifts have fed over the lakes.
Over in Aston End and Chells Manor, migrants have also been a bit tough. Most of the warblers are now on territory. The Willows that I found in early April appear to have departed, and they are now far less likely to summer these days. On the other hand, there seem to be an awful lot of Blackcaps, Whitethroats and, in particular Lesser Whitethroats this year. Linnets were tough to find earlier this year, but I have found a couple of flocks in the last month, and it appears that Yellowhammer  numbers are healthy.
The route I take has been pretty constant over the last 25 years or so, with the occasional slight detour, but today I decided to do it in reverse and start at Chells Manor. One of the dog walking couples I see now and again have told me that there is still a herd of Fallow Deer here, and I hoped that an early start might be beneficial before it got too busy. I had considered then going north up towards Boxwood and maybe into Walkern, but decided instead the head north east to reach the river just south of Walkern. I think I have really missed something. I knew that there were a few sheep being grazed here but discovered that there lots of fields with short grass, fences and gates-I wonder how many Wheatears have passed through this spot? One thing I did get was a Grey partridge with what appeared to be two chicks.
The river here as I headed south looked promising as well. As I reached the more familiar fields and stable blocks I was very pleased to see a Little Owl fly low and into a hedge. This isn't far from the old nest spot, and while I have heard birds once or twice this was the first actual sighting for around four years. A little way on, a low flying white bird some way away was assumed to be an egret, but once I got it in the bins I was shocked too see a Barn Owl. It stopped in a hawthorn briefly, and its really a pity I don't have a suitable camera at the moment as it was a stunning sight.
Definitely a route to take when I get round to an evening walk.

In the garden, I have been very busy, working most days and gradually getting things in shape for the rest of the year. There have been a few distractions of course.
I get daily flyovers by the local Kite and less regular sightings of Buzzards. Its usually one of the local breeding Carrion Crows that see them first, and the noise they make mobbing there raptors that attract my attention.
Butterflies are more frequent as its getting warmer, with plenty of Small and Green Veined Whites. I have a couple of big Honesty patches this year as well as Sweet Rocket, and so there are lots of Orange Tips visiting. Less regular are the vanessids, with only the odd Peacock, Tortoiseshell and Red Admiral. Although I no longer have any ivy, several Holly Blues pop in.
On Sunday I had my first Large Red Damselfly around the pond, and they are now being seen daily. However there hasn't as of yet been anything else, though I expect to see a few Azures a bit later this month.

Week 4, and a few toys.

I am starting my 4th week off work today, and am getting used to the daily routine. Apart from a day or maybe two taking Mum shopping, it's been a case of getting out for a walk in the early part of the morning, followed by varying amounts of gardening.
There was a slight hiccup when Mum had to be taken into Lister with gallstones. Luckily it was sorted and she should have been out the next day, but there was a holdup sorting out her meds. Rather than spend the weekend occupying a bed, she came home, and I had to go to the ward on Monday to pick the pills up. Not good for me to visit the hospital at this particular time, but luckily it was very quiet, plus parking is currently free, and since its been over a week now, I guess I haven't picked anything nasty up.
The birding continues largely as before, with regular trips around the lakes, particularly during cloudy or drizzly spells (not that we've had many of those) in the hope of a wader or two dropping in. Hasn't happened yet, but with the additional tours around the Aston End area I have picked up many summer migrants now, and so far this April I have recorded 66 species, all in the Stevenage 10kM square-and that's just the two sites mentioned plus my garden.
To add to the fun I have bought a couple of gadgets. Nocturnal migration seems to be a big thing during lock down, with birders picking up species they never thought would occur over they gardens, and while many have been sitting outside for hours on end, others have set up recorders and then spent the following day trying to decipher what, if anything has been picked up. This has been well proven at places like Portland Bill, where a lot of interesting things have been logged. Unfortunately, a lot of suburban nocmigging has revealed lots of distant cars, dogs barking and various domestic disputes, but there have been a lot of gems-one guy I follow on social media has had the expected Oystercatchers, Whimbrels and so on (he's on the Devon Coast) but also had a Stone Curlew the other night-a real county mega. I have bought a recorder myself, but have yet to use it in anger.
I have been out in the garden now and again as it has been pretty clear, so I have been doing a bit of star gazing and doing a few experiments with my camera. Being clear, any birds are likely to be high up, and so I haven't actually heard anything while I have been out-not even an owl. However, along with the recorder, a Tascam DR 05X, I also got a bat detector that fits on my phone. For as long as I can remember, bats have flown around the house, and we have assumed that they are pipistrelles of some sort. On the second night of trying, the detector triggered and I got a clear record of a Common Pipistrelle. Be interesting to see if anything else gets picked up as I have on odd occasions suspected a larger species over the garden.
At some point or other, I am intending to try a late evening walk around Aston End in an effort to try and locate some owls, and I will take the detector with me. There is some old woodlands on the route, but sadly the river has almost dried up so I don't expect to get much. I might have better luck at Fairlands, as the local museum has had bat walks in recent years.

Two Aroids

r

From my garden today.

Arisaema sikkokianum.

Arisaema griffithii

Daily Birding and Old Sightings

I'm still doing my early morning walks, as per the Government advice. Naturally I am recording the birds I see, or perhaps more importantly, hear. In order to make things more meaningful, I am trying to count everything, rather than just a few of the more interesting species, though things like corvids and Wood Pigeons being so abundant and mobile are just noted as present, and the results have been uploaded to eBird, and any significant observations also end up on the Bird Club sightings page.
It's been an interesting exercise. Species numbers seem to vary dramatically on a daily basis. Obviously there is a major timing aspect in that I have to be present when the bird is making a noise or flying around, and birds are very mobile. Overall though there is a consistency to things with the resident Blackbirds, Tits, Robins etc. I've got a pretty good idea where most of the Blackcap and Chiffchaff territories are, andI know how many Nuthatches and Woodpeckers are in each bit of wood I visit. The problem, as expected, seems to be some of the migrants. I found my first Willow Warbler along the river Beane a couple of weeks back, and I thought it had established a territory as it was around for over a week, but I couldn't locate it on the last couple of visits. On the other hand, I did locate another bird in another spot near Aston End, which also seems suitable habitat. Unfortunately Willow Warblers have been declining here in recent years and I suspect birds stay for a bit and then move on.
I am also starting to record more things as well. I've had spreadsheet lists of orchids, butterflies and dragonflies for many years now, and have started to get more serious about plants, bees and so on. For the last five years I have been using the Scythebill recording program for birds, which enables easy uploading to eBird, and users have created a number of extra lists for other groups, so I can record everything in one place.
The other bonus to the program is nostalgia, and also a few surprises. Back in March I started to transfer my old notebook observations, starting with 1996, and I am now half way through 1994. It's brought back many memories of past twitches, and I seem to be able to recall details of most of them, so in these days of lockdown I am at least still twitching even if it is all past glories. I also had a bit of a shock as well. Back then I wasn't really noting insects except on odd occasions and for years I have been rather annoyed in never having Scotch Argus on my butterfly spreadsheets. Well as it turns out I saw abundant numbers back in Perthshire in August 1994, which I had completely forgotten about, but the memory has been triggered by the old notes.
There are another 15 or so books to go through, and an awful lot of sightings to transfer, so its a good job that I have plenty of time on my hands at the moment

More Daily Walks and Summer Visitors.

I have been going out for walks every morning this week, and spending the rest of the time working in the garden. Basically its been Aston End on Sunday and today, and Fairlands Lakes yesterday. I've been averaging 4-5 miles daily so at least I'm getting fit (ish). The issues I had earlier in the year with my legs seem to have gradually gone as the temperature has increased and it probably has a lot to do with my metabolism and endocrine problems as I always seem to suffer badly in the winter months.

On Sunday, the walk around Aston end produced a lot of the usual suspects that occur, including a couple of Nuthatch territories, which now seem to be encountered regularly here. Summer visitors included one Blackcap, seven Chiffchaffs and the first Willow Warbler (possibly the first reported in Hertfordshire this year).

Monday was cloudy and cooler so I thought that the Lakes would be worthwhile. Five singing Chiffchaffs seem to be around the same as my previous visit, so I guess that most territories are filled. There were also two Blackcaps again. Over the boating lake, while counting the Cormorants (five) I noticed a flock of hirundines. They all seemed to be Swallows, and I reckoned that there were at least eight, and as I was going through the flock I realised there were also two House Martins. The flock didn't linger and moved off north. I wasn't really expecting much more else, particularly on the main lake which just had a couple of gulls, but a Common Tern appeared as I reached the south end. I checked the last years Firecrest spot and then headed home.

I thought it might be a good day to search for Wheatear or Ring Ouzels as there were a lot of ploughed fields and the  stroll around Aston end and Chells Manor showed how quickly things change at this time of year.  Chiffchaffs were about the same, and in the same spots, there were now two Willow Warblers-both near the river and paddocks, but Blackcaps had risen with nine singing birds. Lots of Yellowhammers and Skylark singing, and being warm, a lot of Buzzards and Kites were up. Three Nuthatch territories now, and at least four Great Spotted Woodpeckers drumming.
I was also getting a lot of Peacocks and Small Tortoiseshells, and probably because it was fairly early and a weekday, a lot of rabbits and my first Hare in this area for several years.
Later on while gardening, I had my year's first Orange Tip.

Fairlands Valley

I have been continuing to work since our company is one of those classed as essential. However, this week they have announced furloughing to start next week as a lot of our non-essential customers have closed or are cutting work back. On Thursday I had another consultation with my GP as my chest and ribs are still hurting a bit when I cough so he has given me some antibiotics as bone bruising could lead to infection. He also pointed out that with my medical conditions I am classed as very vulnerable and should be in isolation for 12 weeks, so he sent me a letter, I presented it to my manager and am now furloughed until the end of June.

Now what is a very keen gardener going to do at the start of spring with plenty of time on his hands?
Think I'm going to enjoy my time off.

Anyway, I am still allowed to do the essential shopping and daily exercise so I did a circuit of Fairlands Lakes this morning. While it was nice and sunny, and starting to warm up there was a bit of a chill to the breeze.
With the winds switching to a southerly, I was hoping for a few hirundines going through, but with little cloud cover there wasn't much to force them down, so the best I could manage were five Chiffchaffs and two Blackcaps singing. There was also a pair of Shoveller on the boating lake.
Here is a complete EBird list. https://ebird.org/checklist/S66601714

Lockdown Birding and a Disaster

While the vast majority of the UK is in lockdown, I am still working. As my company provides essential support to medical, telecoms and transport we have to continue operating. This has made the short drive into work absolute bliss as the roads are virtually empty.
The big drawback though is I cannot participate in any of the online birding from home threads appearing in social media-many people are discovering that there are an awful lot of interesting things flying over and visiting their gardens and from their balconies. There are still some people taking day trips but generally most are accepting that non-essential travel means that they cannot get out. No twitching for the foreseeable future and trying to get a big year list has gone out of the window.
As I can only really get out for walks on the weekends, I realistically only have two venues now, Fairlands Valley and the Aston End area, though I could conceivably get to Norton Green after work.

I won't be taking my camera out now, largely because I broke it. Basically I was out in the garden last Sunday and had a bad fall, the Panasonic GX8 hit my chest, and, I think the 100-400 lens my upper arm. Not really sure what happened as one minute I was taking a step forward and the next my face hit the deck and there was a massive blow to the chest. My glasses are busted too, so I am having to get by with an old pair. Spoke to the insurance, and hopefully everything will be ok, but with the opticians now shut I can't take the glasses in for evaluation, and hopefully I can post the camera and lens to Panasonic. However from what I know on forums, the lens certainly cannot be repaired.
Obviously this was a bit of a blow. I had for some time now been considering options, whether to eventually upgrade the micro four thirds system with one of the newer Olympus bodies and perhaps the 300mm f4 lens, a combination that a lot of the pro wildlife photographers seem to be moving towards, or alternatively a new full frame high resolution Nikon primarily for landscape and garden still life work. The idea was basically have a  very portable and light four thirds gear for travelling and wildlife, and have a second system for everything else, which has been essentially what I have been doing using the (very heavy) D3s where there has been a need to use a full frame camera.
Since I have a lot of Nikon F mount lenses, including the manual 500mm f4, and the 300mm f2.8, the decision was made for me, and rather than the D850, I have got the more or less mirrorless equivalent Z7 with a 24-70f4 and an adaptor for the F mount lenses. Only done a few brief tests so far, but I like the lens, and the 300mm lens works very well with the adaptor. I will put up some images soon, but for the time being photography will strictly garden plants and insects.

This morning I had stroll around Fairlands Lakes. There wasn't a great deal to report with four singing Chiffchaffs-plus another in the woods on the way back, one Mistle Thrush around the old farm buildings and two Son Thrushes. There were only a few gulls present, two adult Black Heads, four Lesser Black Backs and a Herring. Wildfowl consisted of a lot of wild and domestic Mallards, a couple of Canada geese, a pair of Coot, two pairs of Moorhen and a Great Crested Grebe. In Ashtree Woods on the way back there was a drumming Great Spotted Woodpecker and a singing Nuthatch.

Amwell

The appalling weather over the last couple of months has, for the time being settled down and this weekend was pretty pleasant with some suggestion that spring is on its way.
The previous weekend was rather bad with torrential rain early on the Saturday-and a trip to the Alpine Garden Society show at Theydon was interesting with flooded roads. I did spend a bit of course, which meant a fair bit of time on Sunday getting things sorted out. I also had the Monday off, anticipating having plenty of work to do in the garden and I'm glad I did. It was nice and sunny, and the male Brimstone that visited while I was working was lovely to see. This was snapped with the phone.

This Saturday, I paid a visit to Amwell. It was a bit cool and cloudy, but at least it wasn't raining with a gale force wind.
The water levels are a bit on the high side thanks to all the recent rain, and it appears that the sluice is blocked, so unless something happens soon, there may not be much shoreline and islands available to attract passing waders. There are still a few Goldeneye, Teal  and Wigeon hanging around. The lack of habitat meant that Lapwing and Snipe were missing, and the only bird of note from the viewpoint was a passing Parakeet that now seem to be well established here.
A gentle stroll down to Hollycross produced a few tits and several singing Cetii's warblers. From the bridge over the river I heard my first singing Chiffchaff of the year and just beyond a quick scan of Hollycross produced three Goosander-quite why they are here on such a shallow lake is a bit puzzling but they have been around for w while.
There wasn't much else around so I returned picking up a Treecreeper, but the woods were rather quiet. Siskin and redpoll are a bit scarce, though Barry had what might have been a Mealy redpoll earlier in the week.
I reached the viewpoint ant sat down and had a long chat with Bill. This enabled us to have very good views of the pair of Ravens that appeared around noon and spent some time  in synchronised flying.

They were over the woods at least 500m away which was a bit much for the 800mm equivalent Panasonic lens, but I think they came out ok.

Black Throated Thrush

Its been a pretty bad month so far lots of gales almost continuously, and plenty of rain.  For some reason, the worst of it has been at weekends, so it has seemed rather pointless trying to get out at times.
The past weekend has been business as usual, and I was tied up on Saturday, but Colin had pretty well decided to head up for the Black Throated Thrush at Grimsby, and although it looked to be very wet, it seemed we would be driving through the worst of it. This proved to be correct, with really appealing rain at times, plus lots of wind gusts as we headed up the A1 and across the Lincolnshire  Wolds, and by the time we arrived at Grimsby Institute it was rather cold, but dry.
Unfortunately although the thrush had been reported an hour before we got there, the few birders present didn't appear to be all that happy. In fact the only thrush present was a Mistle singing from a tree in a garden opposite the Institute. Over the course of half an hour we were joined by a few more, and spent the time searching the area.
 I returned to the car to get my coat and having put it on, I became aware that the main  group were getting agitated and gesturing so headed towards them, but at the same time they were approaching me. They said they had seen the thrush on the ground before flying into one of the bigger trees. I headed back to Colin and a recently arrived photographer unaware that they had been photographing it!
Luckily I soon found it in one of the smaller trees and we enjoyed good, but somewhat obscured views. It was possible to get a position where decent images could be obtained, and eventually it dropped down for a few minutes.

 After enjoying the bird-the fifth I had seen but the first this century we decided to head to the coast.
RSPB Tetney Marsh reserve wasn't all that pleasant. To get there involved a slow 10mph drive through a vast  and rather depressing caravan and chalet site, and when we got there discovered it was a dog walking paradise. The tide was well out, few birds were on the pools and the wind really picked up. There were a few Teal and Wigeon, a lot of Black headed Gulls and a few flocks of Brent Geese flew in and out. We didn't stay long, but were buzzed by a female Sparrowhawk as we drove out.
On the way home, we called in at Deeping Lakes. A few years ago we had fair views of a roosting Long Eared Owl and hoped for a repeat performance. The wind was still very unpleasant, and if any owls were present they were well hidden. Being a well wooded lake complex, there were a few Goosander along with the usual assortment of wildfowl and gulls.