Chicksands Butterflies

Norfolk Natterjack

3 Days in Hampshire

Beautiful Demoisel

Two Butterflies and a Gropper

Okay so this is another post featuring exactly zero birds but it is summer and so butterflies can't help but take centre stage for a while! I hadn't been out birding (butterflying) for a while so decided to go for a summer stroll with my girlfriend around Rutland Water. After introducing her to her first Grass Snake we spotted what turned out to be a Large Skipper, the first lifer of the day. I then got a suprise as I heard a Grasshopper Warbler reeling away just the other side of a bush. I eventually managed to get good, albiet short views of the bird- a nice yearer! On the way back I picked up my second butterfly lifer in the form of a Speckled Wood. All in all, a very nice day. This butterflying is addictive!

(Strange looking bug. No idea what it is but there were loads of them so obviously nothing rare)

Blue Tit Baby!

Just as I was leaving to go back to Uni, I noticed this fledgling Blue Tit on my driveway. It's the offspring of the two Blue Tits that I've been watching from my window throughout Easter. It's really nice to know that they've been successful! I quickly took these pics of the little guy without getting too close and watched to see the parents return to it throughout the day with grubs and bugs. I knew they'd make great parents!

Great Knot Dip.

We set off early this morning in order to catch up with the suspected Great Knot that was found at Breydon Water last night. Unfortunately it wasn't early enough; the bird was seen at 4:45am and flew off at 5am. This was my first big 'dip' but we made up for it by visting Britains's largest Little Tern colony containing nearly 400 birds! We also saw a Curlew Sandpiper, Whimbrel and two Stone Curlew on the way back. Steve also introduced me to the world of Butterflies to alleviate the boredom of waiting for the Knot to reappear. I can see me getting more and more interested in them...

The species photographed are: Wasp Beetle, Wall Brown, Hairy Hawker and Green-Veined White. The Wall Brown and Hairy Hawker dragonfly are apparently both fairly scarce.

Bird Hunt!

Despite the terrible weather forecast I decided to go on a bit of a bird hunt today. My targets were Golden Oriole and Montagu's Harrier. I got to Hockwold Fen (Lakenheath) just after 7am and someone helpfully directed me to a Oriole nest site. Once I got onto the nest I could just about see a tail poking out and after waiting a few minutes the tail turned into an Oriole as the female left the nest. She came and went several times and gave us brief but good views. We also heard the male calling frequently but just could get on to him. Just as I was about to leave the Bittern that had been "booming" away behind me appeared out of the reeds and flew 20m or so. As I was walking back to the car I caught a glimpse of two MALE Orioles chasing eachother through the trees. They really didn't look like they belonged in amongst a rainy grey backdrop of windswept Poplars!

Next stop was Norfolk and the Monty's. I'd been "tipped off" about a location that reportedly held several breeding pairs. As soon as I arrived at the site I caught a glimpse of a harrier quartering a field. Naturally I slammed the brakes on and got the bins on it...it was a brilliant female Monty's! Unfortunately it was a little distant and incredibly dull and blustery, so taking pictures was tricky to say the least:

I decided to have a walk up to the top of Burnham Overy Staithe but the weather got progressively worse and I started to wish I hadn't! I was rewarded with nice views of two Little Terns on the way back though. My first of the year...

(Frustratingly just out of focus!)

Life list = 237