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.