Birding in Northants (1 Viewer)

As I was out watching a comedian last night and given that beer was almost certainly going to be involved I thought it would be prudent to book today off and so I used the opportunity to go nature spotting in the Welland Valley. Walking through the town I passed the boating lake where the population of Greylags is huge and seemingly growing while the Coots are also adding to their numbers. A Yellow Wagtail was heard as I walked towards Middleton where I hoped to begin a search for Beautiful Demoiselles along the river, one has recently been reported in Market Harborough so its not quite as far fetched as it sounds.

I've not been to this part of the river before but it's an attractive site, I was a little early at this stage for dragons but I did flush a lot of Banded Demoiselles on my walk through armpit high nettles, thank goodness I wore my jeans! During the course of the day I was to see many Bandeds along the river, always a pleasure to see this beautiful species even if I was unable to find any actual Beautifuls. A pair of Cormorants flew over on their way to Eyebrook reservoir while Swallows hunted over the riverside fields. A nice find here was a couple of Large Skippers which were my first of the year.

Not a lot to report from the Welland near Cottingham but a little further on at a point on the Jurassic Way I found over a hundred White-legged Damsels ( grid ref SP861920ish if you fancy a bash), many were immatures but a few were beginning to look more like adults. A few Large Reds were here too, I'm enjoying a good year for this species with sightings from many more sites than usual. Another good find here was a year first Meadow Brown while new brood Small Tortoiseshells are beginning to appear. Just down from Rockingham a Sedge Warbler was singing well, I also heard several Lesser Whitethroats during the day which were my first for a while.

I found another White-legged on my way to Gretton where the Welland meets the road but it was at the weir where I enjoyed a productive spell. White-legs again were common with many hiding in the long grass and nettles joining their frequent companions the Banded Demoiselles. As with the last visit there were a few Red-eyeds resting on the lilies and more Large Reds. Other species noted here were Common Blue, Azure and also rather a lot of Blue-tailed which included one of the violacea form. A Reed Warbler was singing here, I never heard it on my last visit so it may be a bird displaced from elsewhere. A battered and faded Small Torty here was most likely to be a survivor from last year, a true butterfly geriatric. Given that the day was pretty hot by now and the hill in Gretton fairly steep I popped into the pub on my way past for a medicinal lager and lime but after that it was back to business.

Brookfield Plantation was quiet with just a male Emperor hawking the rides and the old Sunday market site was a little dull too though I found more Bee Orchids, beautiful flowers and always worth looking for.

James.

Some more shots from today.

James.

A bit of a strange day really with a lunch time church function (don't ask) limiting my time out to quite a large degree. Keeping in mind those time limitations I kept it local with a walk around several sites in the Weldon area and also took a quick peek at the patch on the way home.

The A43 pond was fairly quiet though there are still six Tufted Duck drakes there, once again I'm hoping that any ducks may be sitting on eggs. Apart from the usual Dabchicks and Coots there was not much else though I did see half a dozen Blue-tailed Damsels. Bee Orchids are another speciality of this place and once again they did not disappoint, there were rather a lot in the general area. At the other pond a group of fellas were hanging around, although they had a couple of rods I can't really call them fishermen as the amount of beer involved and some paddling in the shadows suggests that catching anything was not a priority. While I did find a couple more Blue-tailed and a Banded Demoiselle or two I did not want to hang around in such a disturbed place.

From here I wandered through the woodland park where a Meadow Brown posed well, I did have a squint at the nearby pocket park but could not find anything of interest there. When I finally arrived back at the pond the "fishermen" had moved on and I took a little more time to explore. A single Red-eyed Damsel forsook the lilies to sit on a discarded plastic sack while a Large Red was a new sighting for this site. Walking back along the stream I found a few Azure Damsels and a couple of wasp mimic hoverflies but not a lot else. A Blood-vein moth showed well here, they're a common though attractive species.

Popping into the patch on my way home a slightly worn Dingy Skipper may well prove to be my last this year and there was also a Speckled Wood. Butterflies are fairly scarce at the moment and I think that's because we're at that transitional phase between Spring and Summer species. Some Common Blue Damsels were found while both Azure and Blue -tailed made it on to the site year list. Rather a lot of Mother Shipton moths about and for once I didn't confuse them with skippers. Good numbers of bees were seen today but I can't devote too much time trying to I.D them despite just having bought a new field guide. It would appear that putting a name to many insects involves scrutiny of their genitalia and to be quite frank I don't have enough time to tackle tackle. One final thing to record was a tent next to the ponds suggesting that a rough sleeper has moved in, it has become quite a regular phenomenon around the town over the last couple of years but to be honest if they don't bother me I don't bother them.

James.

Another nature spotting excursion today with a walk along the Nene at Oundle and a look at Barnwell CP. I saw Kingfishers again for the third day running, this really is a reliable area for them and I've yet to dip this year. A family of ducklings faced some very real threats from both a pair of Carrion Crows and a quartet of Black-headed Gulls. Thankfully there is little honour amongst thieves and their constant squabbling allowed the mother a chance to usher her youngsters to a place of relative safety. On the subject of ducks the first signs of eclipse plumage means that I probably will not be looking at the yucky duckies again until September.

Next to the bridge close to Oundle Mill there were the first of several Scarce Chasers and this included an egg laying female. There were others further along the river and also one in Barnwell. A very good day for Red-eyed Damsels with as many as I can remember seeing in any one day. Lilly pads were their preferred choice of resting place but many were hunting in the riverside vegetation and I got stung by nettles more than a few times while trying to photograph them. Four other species of damsel were seen in addition to these and they included a rufesens form Blue-tailed. My favourite sighting today was a first Black-tailed Skimmer of the year, the yellow and black colouring was really quite striking. Other dragons seen included Emperor at the fishing lake opposite the marina and a newly emerged Four-spotted Chaser at Barnwell.

A few more Meadow Browns were on the wing and they were joined by my first Ringlet of the Summer. Other species seen were two Red Admirals and two fresh Small Torties and also a Speckled Wood. Proof that not all insects are welcome came in the form of a cleg taking a nibble on my hand, a bit on the painful side for me but sadly fatal for the cleg. I try to live and let live but if something comes into the swat zone...

James.

An after work excursion over to the patch today where I had hoped to find a few butterflies. Not a total waste of time either as I eventually found a total of six species. Two Speckled Woods served as a welcoming committee and a Small Torty showed soon afterwards. A couple of Small Whites seemed more intent on their scrap than on posing for pictures so I'll have to wait for a tad longer to get some shots this year. A trio of Small Heaths were very active in the longer periods of sun while a Large Skipper showed briefly next to the stream. Finally a Red Admiral was feeding on bramble blossom, their numbers have increased over the last week which could hint at some recently arrived migrants.

What was a little unusual today was that the number of damselfly species matched that of butterflies, this is not usually a good site for them. Star performers were a pair of mated White-legged Damsels, not only a first record for the site but also a first for the town as the closest I've seen them is on the Welland at Rockingham. Numbers of Banded Demoiselles exceeded fifty, not bad when there can be single figure counts in most years. A Large Red was my first at the site since that pioneer on the 19th of April while Azure, Blue-tailed and Common Blue were more standard fare.

Tomorrow I'm hoping to catch up with local Marbled Whites so will be keeping my fingers crossed that the weather holds.

James.

Amongst my small circle of friends my impression of being a total idiot is widely recognised as being utterly convincing and completely natural, my impression of knowing what I'm talking about on the other hand is almost unknown. Today I feel as if I played the second role as my search for Marbled Whites was not only successful but also required next to no effort at all.

The site of the old Corby Sunday market adjacent to Cockerell Road proved to be as good as I though that it might be, some sightings of individuals along this road last year having tipped me off as to its suitability. Walking in the area closest to the railway track I found my first individuals and although there were a few elsewhere on site this was far and away the best bit for them. A total of about fifteen were eventually found and many showed rather well. Similar numbers of both Small Heaths and Meadow Browns were present and there was also a single Small Torty.

Two Pyramidal Orchids were a nice find and although the file size means I can't show pictures here I can finally show an image of one of the Bee Orchids. They're looking a little tired now but still lovely all the same.

James.

Took a walk around the Laundimer Wood complex this afternoon and had a few nice bits and bobs to report. Several Ravens were heard calling and a day hooting Tawny Owl were the bird highlights. First off for the butterfly team was a White Admiral within a couple of hundred yards of the entrance, sadly it didn't hang around but hopefully there will be more to come. There were at least three Red Admirals ranging from a pristine individual to a faded character that had probably been around the block a few times. The commonest two species were Speckled Wood and Ringlet with good numbers of both on view. Large Skippers were seen in reasonable numbers and I also saw three Brimstones. Finally a couple of newly emerged Commas had me thinking in terms of Fritillaries until better views prevented any stringy type incidents.

Not many dragonflies to mention, only two but they were both firsts for the year. First up was a male Southern Hawker hunting along one of the rides, I know this seems early but I was very careful with the I.D and this has been a rather crazy year. Second in terms of timing if not quality was an immature Broad-bodied Chaser and thankfully while my autofocus hates hawkers it does appear to like chasers. The only other things seen were a couple of Common Blue damsels and there was also a barking Muntjac.

James.

An interesting day with good stuff spread pretty much throughout. Started at the old market site here in Corby where the butterflies were active before 7:30. Well over fifty Marbled Whites were very actively flitting about, I don't think that I saw one of them land. Other species present were Small Heath, Meadow Brown and Small Skipper.

Moving on through Brookfield most of the rides were still in shade so there was not much to report, Speckled Wood was the only addition. At the flooded quarry near Gretton the first of many Ringlets were seen and also the first Small Torty another species that showed well today. A superb male Emperor dragonfly showed very well as it hawked around the scrub.

Taking the Jurassic Way east from Gretton I passed through the butterfly field where Small Heaths in particular were common and there were also good numbers of Meadow Browns and a few Common Blues. Harringworth Lodge Lake was alive with dragonflies with more Emperors that included an egg laying female. Quite a few Black-tailed Skimmers and Four-spotted Chasers were also present as well as a veritable swarm of Common Blue Damsels. Walking back towards Gretton I saw two year firsts within about two foot of each other, a Small Copper and a Brown Argus. Just a little further along from these I managed to get my first picture of a Large White this year so it was a good five minute spell.

Passing back through Gretton I carried on towards the weir where there was a lot of damsel activity. Lots of mating White-leggeds and at least one pair of Large Reds while Banded Demoiselles seemed abundant. Both Common Blues and Blue-tailed were also found whilst amongst all this small fry an Emperor looked like an albatross amongst sparrows. Taking the public footpath along the river and sadly out of the county into Rutland (not my fault, the family booked a meal in Caldecote) a pair of Curlews flushed by a kite may just have strayed briefly over the border into Northants but I can't be a hundred percent sure. One other bird of note was a fine adult Peregrine seen earlier on my travels.

With the weather being so glorious it appeared to be a good day for flying and I enjoyed a low pass from a 1944 vintage Fairchild Argus that took off from Spanhoe airfield.

James.

A few more pictures from today's wanderings.

James.

A sure fire, ten picture special and a true humdinger of a nature spotting bonanza centred mainly on Fermyn Woods. With news filtering through and mouth watering pictures appearing of Purple Emperors (not so keen on the close up Thoras mind) being out I had no choice but to give it a bash. So it was that I cheated on my normal bus and took another instead over to Brigstock, happily my infidelity was rewarded in spades. It takes about twenty five minutes of fast walking to get to the wood from the village but it sure was worthwhile.

On reaching the wood I was soon treated to decent views of an obliging White Admiral which turned out to be the only one that I saw in the wood. Sightings of Small Tort, Speckled Wood and Ringlet soon followed as I began to build a decent day list. In the gap between the two areas of woodland I was treated to views of a couple of White-lettered Hairstreaks in the patch of elm regrowth. Meadow Browns and Small Skippers were also present in this area.

On reaching Lady Wood I was treated to a flypast by a pair of warring Silver-washed Fritillaries but they were far too busy to land. Knowing the unsavoury dietary habits of the Emperors I'd packed one of my wife's Osmond CDs in case I had to tempt them down but thankfully it was not required. I saw at least five individuals resting on the paths, they were making only brief stops but thankfully stayed long enough for pictures. Strange to think that such beautiful creatures have such foul dining habits but at least none of mine were feeding on dung so that makes for nicer piccies! Red Admirals and Commas made an appearance and there was also a tired looking female Common Blue. Having managed to see the three species that I most wanted to see I turned around and headed for the exit.

On the way back I stopped at some oaks and managed to see a couple of the reported Purple Hairstreaks, apparently these are the first to be recorded in the county this year. It's not often that I get in at the start of anything so this was quite a novel feeling. Approaching the gate I found yet another Emperor resting on the ground and although there were plenty of doggy dollops lying around it did not appear to have been tempted. Other species recorded in the wood were Painted Lady, Large and Green-veined White.

I popped into Fermyn CP on the way where I added Marbled White to my list as well as another sighting of White Admiral and a more obliging Silver-washed. A few Emperors ( the dragonfly variety) had showed today while there was at least two Southern Hawkers in Fermyn Wood. Having met up with a friend at the country park we decided to try for the Dark Green Frits at Robert's Field in Lincolnshire. Definitely not a Northants record but only a few miles over the border and well worth a peek if you're in the area. I've included a pic even if it stretches the Birding in Northants theme more than I usually do so lots of apologies if it causes offence.

James.

Come on you didn't think that I'd forgotten the stars of the show did you?

James.

My hot June streak continues as on a short wander around Weldon I added another species to my growing Northants year list. Taking my now almost customary post work walk I decided to head over to the pond in the Woodland Park and see what I could find. Five or six Small Red-eyed Damsels were the main prize, like so many other species they seem early but that's been par for the course this year. These appeared to be quite adult so they must have emerged a while ago. I only found this colony last year and I'm not sure if anyone else had found it before me but it is nice to have them this close to my house. Other species included plenty of Red-eyeds (I'm not sure that I've seen these two out together before), rather a lot of Banded Demoiselles, Common Blues and Blue-tailed. Dragons were represented by a male and female Emperor and two male Black-tailed Skimmers.

Not many butterflies and all of them were from the brown family. The undoubted highlight was a Marbled White in the Woodland Park which was my first for this site. The other species were Meadow Brown, Ringlet and Speckled Wood, what price an early Gatekeeper?

James.

Well this month is getting better and better and while I was not remotely tempted by the Bufflehead found yesterday at Clifford Hill I did enjoy a stroll around my local area. The early phase of my wander was a little on the dull side with just a Meadow Brown and a few Ringlets as I walked down Bears Lane near Weldon and along the public footpath through the fields. With lots of cereal crops growing I listened for Quail but struck out on that one.

A hedgerow provided some respite from a fairly stiff breeze and several species of butterflies were taking advantage of the shelter. Lots of new brood Small Torties were joined by the three common whites, numbers of Large and Small are definitely increasing and there was also a Speckled Wood. A Lesser Whitethroat was singing as I managed my first pics of the year of Small White. Across the A427 and getting closer to Deenethorpe Airfield more species were added with Red Admiral, the first of lots of second brood Commas, a first Peacock for a while and many Large Skippers. Now the expression "Keep an eye out for Frits" is the slightly misspelt version of advice handed out to allied service men in war films of a certain vintage but it's becoming more relevant with each passing year in Northants too because as I reached the back of the metal aircraft hangars a Silver-washed Fritillary zoomed past and headed for a huge patch of brambles. Hoping to get a photo or two I raced over but just could not find my target. In the meantime a large butterfly landed on the side of one of the sheds and a peek through the bins revealed a Purple Emperor! It flew off into the neighbouring Weldon Park Wood before I even reached for my camera and left me standing feeling rather stunned, Giving up on my fruitless Fritillary quest I got back on to the footpath and was almost immediately passed by another Silver-washed and while looking for that one I picked out another Purple Emperor flying around the top of an Oak tree, yet another passed me as it flew by at waist height. The whole two minutes was like a combination of being slapped in the face and having a toke on a funny fag (or so I imagine).

On the fringes of the airfield itself a Meadow Pipit was likely to be a local breeder and the melodious cascade of Skylark notes filled the air. A first Ruddy Darter of the year was not unexpected and was followed by more a little later in the day. In Deenethorpe village a family party of Grey Wagtails were calling from trees around the stream where both White-legged Damsels and Banded Demoiselles were present. Both species were found on the other side of the road at Deene lake inflow too, an immature Shelduck here may have been locally bred. Up to six Lapwings were feeding on the mud while the Wheelie Bin Triangle played host to three Herons.

At the dam on the main lake a pair of Shelducks had three young ducklings and three Little Egrets were also seen. The ponds had both Red-eyed Damsels and Emperors though another surprise came in the shape of a male Scarce Chaser, my first for the site. This species appears to be going from strength to strength and this is the first one that I've had within walking distance of my house. On the way along Kirby Road I decided to call in on Priors Hall and while walking on the edge of a large field near a wood called the Rookery I found yet more Marbled Whites and some Small Heaths. A bramble lined path held half a dozen Red Admirals and many superb looking second brood Commas. Small Skippers were also added to what had become an impressive selection of species.

At Priors Hall I tried to visit as many of the ponds as possible but this requires a lot of effort as many of the alders have been cut down and left where they fell making walking difficult. Add in lots of brambles, banks of nettles and some pretty obscured uneven ground and the going is difficult. Despite this I found my first Emerald Damsels, Common Darters and more Ruddies. Other species were not to be left out and Broad-bodied and Four-spotted Chasers, Black-tailed Skimmer and more Emperors were seen and Azure damsel was added to the day list. Photography was a little difficult as every time that I stopped I had to fight off a swarm of attacking horse flies but I was happy with the results. At one of the ponds I photographed a pair of darters whose I.D I was uncertain of. I've put the pictures on the Northants Dragonflies Facebook page and await some expert input, I'll keep you informed.

The weather was beginning to get a little wetter so I turned for home more than happy with my day's spotting.

James.

Some of the dragons and a damsel that I could I.D

James.

It seems as if those darters that I mentioned in my last post were Ruddies and not something more exotic so it's a case of back to the books for me! I was a county traitor again today so nothing new to add at the mo but here's a picture of a Heath Fritillary that I saw today in Essex, it was a cracker.

James

When I began this thread I was kind of hoping that it might become a forum for people that wanted to exchange views and news about birds and wildlife within the county, it was certainly never my intention to create a blog. Given that fact I think it's about time that I stopped contributing here and hope that others may take over instead. As many of my posts in "Birding in Northants" often fail to mention birds at all and even occasionally talk about non county or even non wildlife stuff this is probably not the best place for them anyway. I may well carry on posting in the "Your Birding Day" part of the forum where perhaps these kind of posts may sit better. Thanks to anyone that's either read or contributed and happy wildlife watching.

James.

Happy wildlife watching too James...Keep that camera snapping !!

Mark

Thanks Mark, I've just bought another Nikon so there's plenty more snapping still to come!

James.

In the unlikely event that anyone should want to carry on reading my ramblings about my err ramblings then I now have a shiny new blog to peruse. It's the same old spiel as usual but who knows, there may be a diamond amongst the dross. The web address is (I hope) http:// wildnorthants.blogspot.com

I'm to computers what snakes are to virtuoso piano playing so it's a bit on the simple side but given that I am too that shouldn't be a surprise!

James.

Im new here, but had an interest in wildlife my whole life. Not sure if you have ever been, but try Delapre abbey in northampton, My mate showed me it one day on a dog walk. Free, free parking and under a mile from Northampton town centre but full of all sorts(including an otter i've spent over an hour watching), good mix of reservoir/lake, open cultivated grass, wild grass, kept garden and wooded area to roam around.

Spotted, green and greater spotted woodpecker, jays and other corvids, kingfisher, Grebe, various duck species, Cormorants plus the otter and more common garden species etc.

Well worth a look.