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Extended update part 3- Other bits and bobs

Debs being arty at Strumpy
Holly Blue

Only by listening to Black Mountain have I made it this far- the third and final update, for now.

On the 29th of July, James and I made an early start in The Broads. Fairly unproductive, although a few juvenile Bearded Tits were welcome (only the second sighting for me this year, the first being pinging birds at Breydon). Feeling like not a lot was doing, we signed in at Cantley Beet Factory for a Wader watch. 2 Wood Sandpipers were undoubtedly birds of the day, and allowing for comparison were 5+ each of Common and Green Sandpiper. Still no sign of the rumoured flock of 45 Green Sand, so I will be back again before long. Other Waders included 1/2 Ruff, Dunlin and 3+ Lapwing. It was difficult to not flush the birds feeding around the edge of the pit, so will hidden were they. My counts above are conservative; infact, it seemed like Green Sands in particular were dropping in regularly, perhaps having fed in the nearby dykes of grazing meadows and marsh.

Summer returned yesterday, so Debs and I spent the evening at Strumpshaw. A nice range considering the time of year, including Common Tern, Little Egret, Green Sandpiper (heard only), Stock Dove, Jay, Marsh Tit and the usual Marsh Harriers. A Holly Blue posed nicely, and we watched a pair of Common Hawkers near the small pond.

Comments

  1. Nellie from Beyond My Garden1 August 2011 at 10:33

    Is Holly blue the moth? Such a delicate flyer.
    nellie

    ReplyDelete
  2. Jim2 August 2011 at 01:17

    Hi- Holly Blue is one of our smallest Butterflies. You are right, it does look very delicate. The image above shows the insect with wings closed; if you search on google images I expect there are plenty of 'open-winged' shots!

    ReplyDelete

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