Thursday, 29 May 2008

One Off Special 3

Almost a silhouette of a CuckooWhitethroat
Linnet
Comma - high in a tree

Another morning with excellent, but fleeting views of Cuckoos, especially the rare rufous form. The Turtle Doves were also in evidence, but again were wary and quickly disappeared in thick cover. The venue was a pleasant surprise to everyone, and will hopefully become a firm fixture in next spring's schedule.

Wednesday, 28 May 2008

One Off Special 2

Record shots of Cuckoos


Cuckoo (female)
Record shot of Linnet (male)
Damselfly

Star of Bethlehem
They seek him here, they seek him there...
There were at least 3 Cuckoos at this location and possibly four, including one female of the rufous brown form. Unfortunately, no pics were taken of this individual. There were also at least 3 purring Turtle Doves. Dave Stevenson identified a Barn Owl hunting over the fields nearby while he was having his lunch, and a Kingfisher was disturbed when it tried to travel between the 2 lakes. This seems an excellent location for Cuckoos, so an early morning visit would probably prove to be very worthwhile. In the 2 days spent at this location we have so far recorded 52 bird species - a very respectable total. Another venue worth adding to next spring's schedule.

Friday, 23 May 2008

Friday Spring 6 - North Cliffe Wood

Brimstone
Wall
Bob's Garden Warbler!
Pauline's Great Spotted Woodpecker
Avocet

Record shot of Willow Tit
Tiger Beetles
Common Blue Damselfly (teneral male)
Alkanet
Hare

Thursday, 22 May 2008

Thursday Spring 6 - Howden Marsh

Chiffchaff (c) 2008 Patrick Ferguson
Long-tailed Tit (youngster)
Song Thrush
Song Thrush
Flag Iris
Dandelion Clock - with thanks to Maggie Clancy
Dryad's Saddle
Orange-Tip
Holly Blue taking salt!
Thanks to Patrick Ferguson for his excellent shot of a Chiffchaff.

Wednesday, 21 May 2008

Wednesday Spring 6 - Skipwith Common

Tree Pipit (c) 2008 Maurice Gordon
Record shot of Tree Pipit Parachuting
Spotted Flycatcher

Spotted Flycatcher (c) 2008 Maurice Gordon
Hobby (c) 2008 Maurice Gordon
Cuckoo (c) 2008 Maurice Gordon
Four-Spotted Chaser (c) 2008 Maurice Gordon
Tiger Beetle (c) Maurice Gordon
Roe (buck)
Brimstone

Oak Apple Gall
Displaying Willow Warbler (c) 2008 Maurice Gordon

The Tree Pipit was the star performer today, followed by a Spotted Flycatcher. A Cuckoo appeared briefly in the afternoon. We looked for Hobbies without luck, but here's one photographed yesterday at Thorne Moors. If you only click on one pic for a larger version, please make it the Four-Spotted Chaser or the Tiger Beetle - you won't be disapppointed! No sign of a Lesser-Spotted Woodpecker this time!

Tuesday, 20 May 2008

Tuesday Spring 6 - Chalky Valley

Redstart


Record shot of the whole bird!
Dingy Skipper
Spotted Flycatcher
Swallow (male)
Yellowhammer
Unidentified Moth
Unidentified Egg
The star bird for views today was the Redstart. We saw a pair, but only the male was close enough for pictures. A Goshawk flew close to us this afternoon - what a moment for my camera to go on the blink! We also saw a pair of Flycatchers in the nature reserve, but they disappeared when the sun went in. The same thing happened with the Dingy Skippers this morning. They were very active when the sun shone, but became very hard to find when the clouds moved in. It was great to get reasonable views of this declining species. Although cooler than when we came a fortnight ago, the bird life was more interesting, so I won't visit earlier than mid-May in future! If I am able to identify the egg (Red-legged Partridge?) or moth I will alter the captions above the photographs!