Sunday 30 June 2013

Edderthorpe, Sunday morning

Little change this morning but plenty of birds to look through;- Shelduck 2 + 8 young, Avocet 2, Ringed Plover 3, LRP 7 including a recently fledged juv, Redshank 18, Common Sandpiper 1, Lapwing 125.

Bolton Ings et al - June 30th

A warm day today, cloudy at times with a strong breeze. A typical June day, very quiet with no signs of migration and no new breeding surprises. Highlights being the pair of Oystercatchers have 3 flying young, I saw 2 last week. Not much else apart from Kingfisher and Grey Wag both seen with food for young and I counted the juv Black Heads - 173. Full list - Grey Heron 3, Mute Swan 4 adults + broods of 4 and 2, Canada Goose 37 + 27y, Grey Lag Goose 18 + 18y, Cormorant 9, Great Crested Grebe 3, Little Grebe 15 adults + 5 juvs, Mallard 25 (broods of 7, 7, 6 & 2), Gadwall 11 (broods of 10, 9 & 6), Tufted Duck 62 (brood of 6), Pochard 14 drakes (broods of 11, 5, 2 & 1), Coot 72 + 24 pairs + 47 chicks, Moorhen 7 (brood of 2), Lapwing 5, Oystercatcher 4 adults + 3 juvs, Black Headed Gull 425 (173 juvs), LBB Gull 8, Common Gull 1, Kestrel 2, Swift c100, House Martin c20, Sand Martin c10, Grey Wagtail 1, Kingfisher 1, Sedge Warbler 2, Chiffchaff 4, Blackcap 7, Whitethroat 7, Willow Warbler 1, Reed Warbler 1, Great Spotted Woodpecker 2.

Been onto Old Moor this afternoon and yesterday afternoon. Birds seen included Teal 34, Wigeon 1 drake, Shoveler 3, Pochard broods of 4 and 2, Avocet 12 adults + 12 chicks (6 broods), Oystercatcher 2 + pair with 3 chicks, Mediterranean Gull 2 (Saturday) and Little Egret 1 on Wader Scrape today. The breeding Common Terns have 2 well grown chicks. Yesterday evening Jeff had fantastic views of 2 juvenile Bitterns on the Reedbeds.

Wintersett 30.06.13

Warm but cloudy 18 degrees,  westerly breeze.
Anglers CP: Curlew 1 N,  Little Ringed Plover 2 juveniles,  Common Sandpiper 1 + 1 WREs.,  Common Tern 3,  Yellow Wagtail 1, Goldeneye 1 female,   Teal 1 male,   Canada Goose 180  and  Tufted Duck 42 + 4 CHRes..
ACP Young stuff:  Mute Swan 2 + 3 and  4 WRes,   Mallard 1 large,  Black-headed Gull 3 (still) and Great Crested Grebe 2 + 1 CHRes..
Also flying:  The first Emperor dragonfly of the year.

Saturday 29 June 2013

Carlton Marsh

This afternoon's warm sunshine produced some good counts of butterflies and moths. Small Skipper, Large Skipper, Dingy Skipper, Orange-tip and Small Tortoiseshell 10, Ringlet 50 and a Painted Lady at Cudworth Bridges. 4 Blackneck moths were also found in the Western Meadow. (Chris Parkin)

This evening's ringing session was very good with 4 Chiffchaffs, 3 Willow Warblers, 1 Reed Bunting, 2 juv Robins and 6 adult Reed Warblers from just two nets.

Cawthorne

No sign of any falcons 1pm to 2pm. They could have moved, hopefully not too far away. Buzzard 2, Little Owl 2, singing Linnet 2.

Wintersett on C 29.06.13

15°C, Warm, sunny with a light westerly.
A female COMMON  SCOTER and a Common Sandpiper  were on Anglers CP.   A juvenile CUCKOO was near the canal at Stone Heaps   A  Crossbill went over  Wintersett Res. at 11.32  and 3 Common Terns were flying around.  
Birds not beginning with C:   2 summer plumage Black-tailed Godwits  flew in to the shallows on ACP at 14.05hrs and a little later so did  2 juvenile Little Ringed Plover, Oystercatcher 2 over WRes.    Goldeneye ♀ ACP,  Teal 2♂,  Sedge Warbler 2♂ Walton Golf Course area.
The ringing session on WRes. was productive this morning with 11 Whitethroat  and 11 Chiffchaff ringed.  

Edderthorpe, Saturday morning

Black-tailed Godwits are on the move again - a flock of 11 were on the flash for the first couple of hours and a single came in at 09.00 hours but all were gone by 10.00. Other waders were;- Avocet 3, Ringed Plover 7, LRP 2, Redshank 16. At least 8 Green Woodpeckers were seen today as I walked around the site with the majority on Park Springs Tip and 2 Grasshopper Warblers are in song also on the Tip.

Friday 28 June 2013

Carlton Marsh

3 male Tufted Duck, Gadwall with a new brood of 6, Moorhen new brood of 3. Also present Kingfisher, Heron and 2 Mute Swans. Field Scabious, Rose-bay Willow-herb, Hedge Bedstraw, Hairy St. John's Wort and Common Melilot are all coming into flower.

Cudworth
A Little Owl was sat on the roof of a bungalow in Oulton Drive this evening.
(Keith Bannister)

Edderthorpe Mid Morning

Grey Plover, Greenshank, Oystercatcher, Avocet 3, Little Ringed Plover 3, Ringed Plover 5, Redshank 14, Teal 4 and Shelduck 2 adults with 8 young.

Night-god-bless!


Bittern - Jim Thompson
With almost no news so far today apart from the Bitterns (above) it seemed like a good time to post a couple of record shots of the Night Heron (below).

Night Heron- Chris Harris
Night Heron- Chris Harris


Another Wader Day

Midhope Reservoir - 1 female Teal with 2 ducklings, 3 Little Grebes and 1 Little Ringed Plover.
Low Moor, Upper Midhope - 4+ Snipe with 2+ young and a pair copulating (second brood?) and 5 Lapwings with 3 very small (<two days) and 1 medium chicks.
Castle Dam - female Mallard with 4 very small ducklings and Coots with broods of 2+2+1.
Cranberry, Penistone - 110+ Lapwings.

Wintersett 28.06.13

13°C,  rain, westerly wind until 10.30, dry until 14.30 and then more rain.
Anglers CP:  Common Sandpiper 1,  Sand Martin 3,  Mute Swan down to 2 from 3, other Swan family not visible.  Common Tern 1,  Goldeneye 1♀ and  Teal 1♂.    A Tufted Duck ♀ appears to be sitting (on eggs?)on the middle raft.

Thursday 27 June 2013

Carlton Marsh

Three Skippers today is unusual. Small Skipper 1, Large Skipper 12 and a late Dingy Skipper. Also present Small Tortoiseshell 6 (new brood), Brown Argus 1, Small Copper 1, Common Blue 5, Small Heath 18, Ringlet 17, Meadow Brown 12 and Speckled Wood 4.  Moths included Silver Y, Shaded Broad Bar and Yellow Shell.

Chris Parkin

Night blog

No sign of Night Heron by dark. Birds that were at Old Moor today included a couple of Bitterns, 2 Little Egrets, drake Wigeon, Peregrine and 2+ Med' Gulls, 2+ Barn Owls. Large numbers of Swifts were over Wath Ings/Bolton tonight. 4 LRP's were on Wombwell Ings.

Anglers CP - New arrivals pics 27.06.13

Many thanks to Gerry McShane  for the photos of the new mute Swan family..



Wintersett - Beetling about on the Pol. 27.06.13

Cloudy but warm 16°C,  showery early afternoon.
Wintersett Res: Common Tern 3
Anglers CP:  Wigeon 5 in early but flew off at 09.10hrs.  Curlew 1 W.  2 broods of  Mute Swan  3 + 3,  Great Crested Grebe 1 young,  Goldeneye 1♀
Highlight today, (and with many thanks to those concerned) was a visit by Yorkshire beetle experts who offered to carry out an impromptu beetle survey on the Pol.  We readily agreed and it quickly turned into a mini bio blitz.  47 plant species,  ants, bees, spiders, slugs, snails frogs, toads and newts were all identified.  The high point was the discovery of  an immature GREAT CRESTED NEWT  which confirms there is still a breeding population on this site.  The beetles collected have been taken away to be identified and we will get the results later. 
Meanwhile, here are some photos of  species identified today.  
               Ladybird -  Calvia -14 Guttata                     A Smith
      Buff Tip Moth   Phalera bucephala                      A Smith
      Marsh Thistle - white form  Cirsium palustre       A Smith

now a bit of mundain stuff

Elsecar Reservoir - 2 Mute Swans, 9 Great Crested Grebes and 1 Grey Heron.

TONIGHT HERON?

More on the Night Heron: First seen by Barnsley Blade on Willow Pool making a brief flight at 20.10 last night it was finally ‘nailed and pinned down’ about an hour later. Sounds cruel I know, but nailed and pinned down is not nearly as bad as being chopped up by a wind turbine! It sat deep in Willows (but was very vociferous) and was viewable from the Wath Ings Hide until about 10.15 when it ‘came out to play’ first heading towards Bolton Ings and then over to Manvers Lake where it was lost to view. Although long predicted, this is the first record for the Old Moor area although there have been two previous sightings in the Barnsley area. The first was a juvenile over the Anglers Retreat pub near Wintersett on 25th July 1990 (allegedly seen by a group of drunkards!) and the second was an adult at Scout Dike Reservoir on 9th February 2008. Perhaps of interest is that there have been several sightings of  possible Night Herons at both Old Moor and Bolton Ings over the last month or so (by different observers) but the only thing we can be sure of (thanks to Nigel’s vigilance) is that one (an immature) was present last night. Perhaps not surprisingly, there has been no sign of it so far today, so we will have to hope for a repeat performance tonight. Once again, thanks to Dave and the RSPB team, special opening hours are in place for tonight and the reserve will be kept open till dusk. Good luck!

Edderthorpe, Thursday a.m.

The Grey Plover is still present along with;- Avocet 4, Ringed Plover 5, LRP 3, Redshank 16, Shelduck 2 adults with 8 young, Buzzard 1 and a singing Grasshopper Warbler on the edge of Park Springs Tip.

Wednesday 26 June 2013

Stop Press

Night Heron,immature at Old Moor currently on Willow Pool from Wath Ings hide and still showing at 10.10

Goosander

An intriguing record of a female Goosander flying upriver on the River Don at More Hall Tip today per SBSG website. The only record of breeding in the Barnsley area took place on this stretch of the river in 2004.

Adwick wash 19.30hrs

Spoonbill, Green Sandpiper.

Cudworth

Although it is relatively quiet for birds right now, as warmer weather prevails the peak season for moths is just beginning. As we head towards July some of the brightest and most colourful moths are on the wing. Here is a sample of last night's catch in my garden.

Burnished Brass
 Common Marbled Carpet
Ingrailed Clay

Wintersett Ringing Ticks 26.06.13

Warm and sunny this morning,  strengthening  westerly and cloudy this afternoon.
The first ringing session of the main season was very productive.  A total of 61 birds were ringed.  A tick went to Archie on the north east bank,  who had  his first Wintersett , juvenile Stonechat, (the first to be seen in this plumage, and only the 5th to be ringed here).   Becky, on the south west corner, had her first Nuthatch, (only the 4th to be ringed here).   Other birds ringed today included:  Coal Tit,  Treecreeper, Blackcap 14,  Whitethroat 10 and Chiffchaff  7.  After last years disastrous breeding season, it was most encouraging to see the good numbers of juveniles of a range of species.
Wintersett Res:  Common Tern 2,   Pheasant 1♀ + 1 fledged young.
Anglers CP:  Curlew  15 W at 07.55hrs + 1 W over WRes. at 10.55.  Yellow Wagtail 1,  Teal 1♂,  Goldeneye 1♀.
Also flying:  Orange Tip 2 (Botany),     Meadow Brown 1 MHLponds) + 1 WRes. and  Longhorn Moth 1  ACP
Archie's  juvenile   Stonechat

Becky's   Nuthatch

Longhorn Moth   (Nemophora degeerella)

Today's news

Old Moor: Bittern 2 ads, 2 juvs, Peregrine, Hobby (showing frequently), 3 Med' Gulls (as last night).

Adwick: Little Egret.

I received the following email from Martin Garner today:

Following on from Barnsley Bird Study Group hosting us in January- we have been invited to do a gig at the Birdfair. Wonder if you could pass this on the Barnsley Bird Club members please? Tormod and I both feel the bird clubs really helped us. Warm welcomes like the one you gave us and great reviews after we visited.
So a really big thank you. I am hoping to have a booklet which contains some of the ideas we share in the talks and there is a free drinks reception at the end. There’s a bit more information here:  http://birdingfrontiers.com/2013/06/26/birdfair-2013-pushing-boundaries-tour-reloaded/




Same 2 dudes speaking. Similar format and content. Some new spicy bits. 

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,RELOADED!

So we invite you:

When: Friday 16th August 4:15-5:15 pm
Where: Events Marquee, Birdfair, Rutland Water

Old Moor last night

A bit late but spent a couple of hours at Old Moor last night.

On the Main Marsh, Grey Heron 4, Little Egret 1, Wigeon 1 drake, Teal 1 drake, Gadwall 7 broods (9, 7, 5, 5, 3, 2, 1), Pochard 2 broods (4 and 2), Tufted Duck brood of 4, Shoveler new brood of 10 ducklings, Redshank 1 and Oystercatcher 1.

On the Wader Scrape, Teal 27 (5 females), Avocet 6 broods (3, 2, 2, 2, 1, 1) there were also some chicks that I probably missed as they are spending a lot of time behind the islands, also some of the broods are now over 3 weeks old so their chances of success are getting better. Oystercatcher pair plus 3 chicks, interestingly 1 of the adults was continuously flying to the Golf Course, collecting worms and bringing them back for the chicks, quite a flight. Little Ringed Plover 2, Common Tern 8 and Barn Owl 1. Finally 3 Mediterranean Gulls were present, the adult male, the second summer female with 1 leg and the first summer photographed by Keith last week.

Wader chicks & Teal

Plenty of young waders today, with Curlews giving alarm calls at nearly every stop.
Windleden Edge - 1 Curlew chick at the side of the road.
Winscar Reservoir - 37 Canada Geese + seven broods totalling 23 gosling, two new broods of Mallards totalling 9 ducklings, three pairs Oystercatcher  with 5 young, two pairs of Common Sandpipers, one with 2 young and a pair of Whinchat.
Ingbirchworth Reservoir - 30 Canada Geese, 43 Mallards, 5 Tufted Ducks , 1 Great Crested Grebe, 1 Little Grebe and 2 Oystercatchers.
Langsett Reservoir - 21 Canada Geese + two broods of 11 goslings, 1 Greylag Goose x Canada Goose and 2 Common Sandpipers + 2 young.




Low Moor, Upper Midhope - 2 adult Common Snipe with 4 young (one significantly smaller than the other three) - pictured abave -, and a large Curlew chick dead beside the road.
Midhope Reservoir - 7 Mallards, a female Teal with 2 ducklings, 1 Little Grebe and 2 Moorhens.

Edderthorpe, Wednesday morning

Highlight this morning is a Grey Plover on the mud alongside Avocet, Redshank 20 (plus 3 chicks) Ringed Plover 1. The pair of Shelduck still have 8 Young, a couple more broods of Gadwall and Mute Swans are building up - there are now 26. Over on Houghton the Ringed Plovers finally have chicks - at least 3.
On the downside the mink is still in residence on the river

Tuesday 25 June 2013

Carlton

Noctule Bat and both species of Pipistrelle in Dave Smith's Carlton garden this evening.

Broomhill Flash

 A little surprise on Broomhill this morning with the reappearance of a female Shovelor with a brood of 6 duckling, apart from that pretty much as usual.

Gadwall 4,
Little Grebe 7 + 5 juvenile,
Tufted Duck 8,
Mallard 3 + 6 duckling,
Pochard 1♀ + 5 duckling,
Mute Swan 1.

Rabbit 1.

Carlton Marsh

Buzzard, Kingfisher, Sedge Warbler 1 and Reed Warbler 4 singing and 2 Great Spotted Woodpeckers.
Warmer conditions produced Ringlet 1, Small Tortoiseshell 1, Comma 1, Large Skipper 2, Speckled Wood 4, a late Orange-tip male and a Silver Y Moth.
Amongst the abundance of plants coming into flower are Ladies Bedstraw and Greater Knapweed.

Azure Damselfly

Angler's Country Park
Peter, just received this information about one of your Swans from Dan Sidley Founder of Yorkshire Swan Rescue
Mute Swan red darvic ring Y846 was ringed at the Heronry on 18/8/2011 (not sexed) with an unrung male.
I read its ring number on 28/3/2013 at Anglers and it was still there on 20/5/13 when it was standing beside another bird presumably a female on a nest in front of the hide.

Chews News

Old Moor: 2 Bitterns, 2 Med' Gulls.

Broomhill Flash: Brood of 6 Shoveler.

Adwick: (additional to Ken F) Spoonbill

Wintersett 25.06.13

Warm and sunny 20°C,  clouded up mid afternoon.
Anglers CP:   Highlights today were - Grey Wagtail 2 juveniles and the first juvenile Black-headed Gull from elsewhere dropped in.     Common Tern 3,  Goldeneye 1♀,  Teal 1♂,  Yellow Wagtail 1 + 2 WRes.,   Oystercatcher  7 adults and 3 young.
Also flying:  Small Heath 1  (ACP)

Something Old Something New 25 June

Edderthorpe this morning, 1 Green Sandpiper, 1 Curlew, 3. Little Ringed Plover, 5 Ringed Plover, 9 Redshank and young, 2 Shelduck and young, 4 Teal and 2 Common Tern through.

Adwick washlands (mid morning)

Little Egret 1, Little Grebe 4, Avocet 6, Oystercatcher 1, Snipe 1, Ringed Plover 1 pr +2 well grown young, LRP 6+, Redshank 20+ (inc young birds), Tufted Duck 2 broods 9, 5, Yellow Wagtail 2.

Monday 24 June 2013

Monk Bretton Reclamation

Butterflies in the emerging sunshine this afternoon were: Ringlet 2, Meadow Brown 4, Small Heath 34, Common Blue 8, Large Skipper 4 and Speckled Wood 1.
Also of note were Bee Orchid and Locust Tree in flower.

(Chris Parkin)

Cudworth Common (this evening)
Ringed Plover 1 pair with 3 well grown young, Redshank 1, Mallard 5 small young, 2 Little Grebes and 2 Lapwing chicks.

Symphony factory
Ringed Plover 1 (south side) and 2 Meadow Pipits displaying.

Monday's highlights

Old Moor: Bittern 1+ (3 adults photographed recently), Peregrine, Marsh Harrier, male flew towards 'Goldie Fields' this morning, Med' Gull 3+ .

Friday's first-summer Mediterranean Gull reappeared today - Keith Pickering

Broomhill Flash same old same old

The usual suspects for Broomhill this morning!

Gadwall 4,
Tufted Duck 8,
Mallard 3 + 6 brood,
Mute Swan 1,
Little Grebe 6 + 4 young.

More Hall & Red Kite

More Hall Reservoir - 1 drake Mandarin Duck, pair Great Crested Grebe with 3 young, 4 Moorhens and 1 singing Lesser Whitethroat.

Harley - 1 Red Kite drifted NE towards Wentworth  per SBSG website.

Wintersett 24.06.13

Cool 10°C,  overcast and still until late morning, then strengthening westerly wind. Sunny and warm by mid afternoon.
Anglers CP:  Common Tern 6,  Goldeneye 1♀,  Teal ♂,   Oystercatcher 4 adults and 1 fledged + 2 large young.  Yellow Wagtail 2.
Cold Hiendley Res: Mallard brood of 3 large young.
Walton Hall: Great Crested Grebe sitting.
Also flying:  Since the Carlton Dream Team alerted us to the presence of Tree Bees at Anglers CP we have seen them all around the area.  These were at Walton Hall today. Also there were 2 Chimney Sweeper moths.  For more information on Tree Bees click on the link.   http://www.dalswildlifesite.com/treebees.htm
Tree  Bee    Bombus hypnorum                            A Smith     

Tree  Bee        Bombus hypnorum                                    A Smith

R. Dearne B.O.D to Adwick Wash. pm

On the river a pair of Mute Swans + 5 Cygnets 6 Tufted Ducks 1 pair with 9 ducklings, 1 Kingfisher, 1 Grey Wagtail nr mexboro rd bridge. Bolton sewage works c 20 Sand Martins, c40 Swallows some feeding juvs perched on river bank trees. Lowfield lakes 2 Common Terns, a pair of Sedge Warblers feeding at least 1 fledged young. Also 1 Whitethroat. On the Wash a Little Egret on the 1st pool Bolton end. Spoonbill on the main pool and 2 Little Grebe. Also 8+ pairs of Redshank + chicks lots of Lapwings + chicks 3 Ringed Plovers +2 fully fledged chicks, 9+ LRP, 4 Avocet, 1 Kingfisher on central stream. 6 Skylark, 1 Yellowhammer c 40 Sand Martins 6+ Swift well worth the walk down today.

Sunday 23-6-13 +

Cawthorne- hobby briefly, flew into wrong side of oak so not on view, buzzard 2, sparrowhawk 1. After looking at field guides juv. great black backed gull over upper commons, ewden on 16-6-13.

Muddy Report at Edderthorpe 24 June

More or less the same birds are showing this morning and plenty of glorious mud. This should be a magnet for the early Autumn passage or a passing rarity while the tide is out, weather permitting. 1 Greenshank, 2 Little Ringed Plover, 4 Ringed Plover, 3 Avocet, 16 Redshank plus 4 chicks, 2 Shelduck with 8 young, 3 Teal and 1 Buzzard.

Sunday 23 June 2013

Bolton Ings et al - June 23rd

Weather this morning was blustery, cool and wet at times but brightened up this afternoon and was quite warm when sun came out. Viewing was difficult in the strong winds with many of the birds keeping low and hard to see, a typical webs count day. Plenty of Swifts and Martins today, the first brood of Tufteds and 5 broods of Pochard seen. The first pair of Oystercatchers have 2 flying young now and the single Lapwing seen again for the second week running. Full list :- Grey Heron 2, Mute Swan 5 adults + broods of 4 and 2, Canada Goose 45 + 27y, Grey Lag Goose 14 + 18y, Cormorant 7, Great Crested Grebe 6, Little Grebe 9 + broods of 1 and 1, Mallard 31, Gadwall 17 + broods of 11 and 7, Shoveler 1 female, Tufted Duck 93 + brood of 6, Pochard 17 drakes, 1 female + broods of 11, 6, 6, 5 and 1, Coot 84 + 22 pairs + 49 chicks, Moorhen 7 + broods of 2 and 1, Lapwing 1, Oystercatcher 4 + 2y, Redshank 1, Little Ringed Plover 1, Black Headed Gull 291, LBB Gull 1, Common Gull 1, Buzzard 1, Kestrel 1, Swift c500, House Martin c50, Sand Martin c30, Grey Wagtail 1, Kingfisher 1+, Sedge Warbler 3, Reed Warbler 2, Willow Warbler 3, Chiffchaff 5, Blackcap 5, Whitethroat 3.

An Osprey flew over Old Moor about lunchtime while I was on Bolton and despite a phone call I couldnt pick it up, cheers for call Jeff.

Ventured onto Old Moor in the afternoon, only went as far as the Mere hide and saw a Peregrine over, the adult male Med Gull and the female Bittern on the Reedbeds. A couple of Med Gulls were on the Wader Scrape where there are now 5 broods of Avocets including a new brood of 4 and a brood of 3 Oystercatchers.

Cudworth Common

A Little Owl was found dead today near the Symphony factory security guard's office. (Chris Needham)
I haven't seen anyone shooting in that area, but there is evidence of quad bike activity all around the ponds where Ringed Plover and Redshank etc. are breeding. The police were doing a sting today in the area looking for illegal off-road vehicles. 

Carlton Marsh
Wildfowl counts; Mute Swan 2, Tufted Duck 1, Gadwall 1, Mallard 12, Coot 2 ad & 6 young + 2 adult & 3 young, Heron 1, Moorhen 4 & Kingfisher 1.
Also present Buzzard & Little Owl.

Broomhill Flash

A bright start to the morning but it didn't last too long and with the strong westerly's as well a lot of birds kept their heads down. Here's the webs count for today.

Lapwing 4 + 1 young,
Ringed Plover 1,
Grey Heron 1.

Tufted Duck 16,
Mallard 4,
Gadwall 3,
Pochard 1♀+5 duckling,
Mute Swan 1,
Little Grebe 4 + 2 Young,
Moorhen 3,
Coot 49 + 4 Juvenile,
Canada Goose 53,
Lesser Black-backed Gull 1.

Swift c200,
House Martin c6
Skylark 2,
Reed Bunting 4,
Goldfinch 2.

Red-legged Partridge 2,
Kestrel 1,
Osprey 1.

Low Moor Sat/Sun

Saturday 22/6/13

Relegated myself to the bench due to the strong winds .. Had 3 common buzzards, 2 kestrels, 2 common sandpipers which were seen and heard on Midhope Res and then 1m +3f mallards with broods of 5,6 and 2.

Sunday 23/6/13

Hid behind Mr Tyke's van due to even stronger winds .. Results were 3 kestrels, 2 common buzzards, 2 ravens, at least 4 snipe and 1 lapwing .. The 'set aside' field is still fairly busy with snipe, lapwings and curlews all present ..

Wintersett 23.06.13

Cool, 13 degrees, dull, damp, drizzly start,  gusty westerly wind.
Wintersett Res/CHRes:   800 Swifts and 8 Sand Martin.
Anglers CP:  Common Tern 1,  Goldeneye 1 female, Teal 1 male,  Black-headed Gull 3 vs young.  Oystercatcher 4 adults and 1 fledged + 2 large young (3rd presumably  predated).

Elsecar WeBs

Heron 1, Mute swan 2, G C Grebe 8, Coot 8 (4 juvs), Mallard 83 (2 broods), Blackhead 8, Moorhen 14 (5 juvs), also singing reed warbler.  Not very exciting I'm afraid.

Saturday 22 June 2013

Cudworth Common

This morning; 1 pair of Ringed Plovers with 2 half-grown young, 2 Redshanks and a female Gadwall. A singing Reed Warbler has adopted a small clump of Phragmites reed in the big round pond. Another first. However, this pond is blighted with Floating Pennywort (Hydrocotyle ranunculoides) a native of North America, but has become naturalised in this country since the 1980's.
It forms dense mats of vegetation that quickly covers the surface of the water thereby interfering with the ecology of the water. Once established it can grow up to 20cm per day and is extremely difficult to eradicate.

Floating Pennywort

I also found a Tree Bee nectering on White Clover, a new species for this site!

Carlton Marsh
2 Buzzards and a Little Owl with 1 juvenile. A female Tufted Duck had a wash and brush up and a fly round before returning to her island nest. 

Broomhill Flash

A little quiet on Broomhill Flash this morning but the count was early and expected to see some more entries in the logbook when I went to close up but only 2 other entries. Anyway here are the sightings for the day.

Pochard 1♀ & 5 duckling,
Tufted Duck 15,
Little Grebe 7 & 4 young,
Mallard 1♂ & 1 ♀,
Mute Swan 1♂,
Canada Goose c50.

Skylark 2,
Swift 1,
House Martin c80.

Red-legged Partridge 1.
Kestrel 1.

Wintersett 22.06.13

13 degrees,  cloudy with short sunny spells,  south westerly breeze.   Quiet day birdwise.
Anglers CP:  Yellow Wagtail 2,   Oystercatcher 8 adults, Cormorant 5,  Canada Goose 166,  Teal 1 male,   Common Tern 1 and a Great Crested Grebe with at least 1 young.

Haigh 18th June


A new fly for Yorkshire, a Tachinid, Subclytia rotundiventris, from wasteground at Haigh.

Friday 21 June 2013

Carlton Marsh

This evening: Mallard with 8 new young, Little Owl, 3 Song Thrush and 1 Red -legged Partridge singing. A Kingfisher had returned, the first since Mid-April.
3 Common Blue, 1 Large Skipper and a Snout moth flew out of the grass.

Broomhill Flash & Wombwell Ings.

For the Broomhill Flash reserves we had:-

Redshank 2,
Grey Heron 1.

Gadwall 3,
Shovelor 1♀,
Little Grebe 3 + 2 juv.
Tufted Duck 13,
Mute Swan 1.

Swift c150.

Kestrel 1,
Red-legged Partridge 1,
Brown Hare 1.


Wombwell Ings.

Redshank 10,
Little Ringed Plover 2
Ringed Plover 1.

Shovelor 2♂,
Gadwall 37,
Mute Swan 2 + 1 signet,
Kingfisher 1.

Wintersett 21.06.13

Heavy rain around dawn,  warm  morning,  but hot, sunny and humid by midday, strengthening westerly and increasing clouds by late afternoon.
Anglers CP:  Little Ringed Plover 2 adults.  Buzzard 3,  Common Tern 1.    Black-headed Gulls have hatched 3 young on the island. Oystercatcher 7 adults and 1 fledged  + 3 large young.  Canada Goose 3 broods ( 3 + 3 + 1).  Goldeneye 1♀ and  Teal 2♂.
Also flying: The first Ringlet butterfly of the year,  a Silver Y moth and 2 Tree Bees.

Large  Skipper    20.06.13                      Lynz Harston

Friday's movers!

A decent day so far as might have been expected with the heavy overnight rain and early morning mist.
Old Moor: 5 Bitterns, 2 Little Egret, 36 Teal, 2 Wigeon, 12 Curlew (through), Knot, Green Sand, 4+ Med Gulls including a new first-summer bird.

Wombwell Ings: Common Sand'.

Manvers Lake: Little Tern at 10.05 then flew off.

One for Mr Gorman



Had this moth inside the house today feeding on (a vase) of Sweet William.
My knowledge of moths streches to Elephant Hawk-Moth - full stop.
Excuse the blurry photo (I do not possess the correct lens), but can you ID it for me Cliff?

Edderthorpe - Summer Solstice

Mid summer and the autumn waders are returning! Four Common Sandpipers were present this morning as were;- Avocet 2, Oystercatcher 1, Ringed Plover 5, LRP 4, Redshank 12, Shelduck pair with 8 Young and a Common Tern.
Yesterday at CUDWORTH COMMON - Redshank 3 pairs with chicks (4,3,2,) Ringed Plover 3 pairs with chicks (3,3, 4,) pair of LRP displaying, Grey Partridge 2, Cuckoo 1, and on Ferrymoor a Great Crested Grebe.

Midhope (20th June)

Midhope Reservoir - 4 adult Greylag Geese + 25 goslings, 1 drake Common Scoter, 1 Little Grebe and 100+ Common Swifts - per Dave Woodriff

Thursday 20 June 2013

Barrow Reclamed Spoil Tip

19th June
Buzzard.
Butterflies; Small Heath 146, Common Blue 23, Dingy Skipper 12, Small Copper 1, Large Skipper 7, Orange-tip 1 male, Small Tortoishell 2 and 6 new brood Peacocks. There were also 10 day flying Burnet Companion moths and Harebell was in flower. (Chris Parkin)

Thursday's highlights

Old Moor: Bittern 4+ (3 juvs),Hobby, Wigeon 2, Med' Gull 4, (pair apparently feeding young, pair presumably sitting addled eggs),  LBB Gulls also appear to have failed.

Mickleden Beck Area

Been doing a BTO survey in this area today and had Marsh Harrier female south, 2 Buzzard, 2 Raven, 1 Cuckoo, a pair of Stonechat and 200+ Swifts south. No sign of any Whinchat and this used to be a good area for them in the olden days!
I went on to look for Golden Plover and Dunlin on the recording area western boundary and combined with another BTO survey area further west a couple of days ago and it looks like we have more than 26 breeding pairs of Golden Plover and at least 20 pairs of Dunlin in the Barnsley recording area Dave Pierce has been doing surveys on the Broomhead Estate so we need to get together to look over the maps and add his records in. Another area to survey in the next few days then see what total we have. I don't think we have done a detailed survey like this before but also in comparison with my Golden Plover/Dunlin surveys this year on RSPB Dove Stones numbers appear to be up this year.

Cuckoo

Barnsley Ringing Group have closed their bank account (people buy their own rings for what ringing we do) in which we had £25. It was either share the money up, go for a pint or sponsor a Cuckoo.
We decided to sponsor a Cuckoo and have put our money on a new ringed adult caught this year in Norfolk.
The Cuckoo already has a sponsorship name, "Nelson", although I have been informed it has two eyes!!
So, you can follow the migration progress of the Barnsley RG sponsored bird on the BTO website and hopefully it will complete its migration to Africa at least.  

Wintersett 20.06.13

13°C, humid, cloudy with some short light drizzly spells.  Very very quiet.
Anglers CP:  Teal 1♂,  Common Tern 1,  Yellow Wagtail  1 + 4 CH field.
Wintersett Res:  The first Painted Lady of the year was on the west bank.
Many thanks to Lynz Harston for the following Cormorant and Meadow Pipit  pictures taken today.










Elsecar

Elsecar Reservoir - a pair of Mute Swans, 80+ Mallards, 12 Great Crested Grebes including well grown young, 2 Grey Herons, Moorhen with broods 4y+3y and 1 Common Tern

Adwick washlands (am)

Tufted Duck 1 + 8 young, Knot 1, Ringed Plover 8, LRP 6, Dunlin 1, Green Sandpiper 1, Curlew 2 south, Redshank 7/8 pr with young, Yellow Wagtail 1.

Wednesday 19 June 2013

Carlton Marsh

Until today I had convinced myself that Sedge Warbler had failed after earlier singing birds appeared to have moved on. However, one was singing this afternoon. If our situation is anything to go by, this species is in trouble!
This mornings lepidoptera count included 9 Speckled Wood, 10 Small Heath, 3 Large Skipper, 3 Orange-tip, 3 Common Blue and a late Dingy Skipper. 7 Four Spotted Chaser and 3 Broad Bodied Chasers were  also present. (R. Hibbert & L. Corrall)

Cudworth
As it was the warmest night so far this year with a minimum of 16.8c, I was hopeful for some good moths in the garden. Little owl called while I was setting up the trap. Moths included, The Shears, Peppered Moth, White Ermine (2) Nutmeg, Mottled Rustic and 2 pristine Elephant Hawk Moths

 Peppered Moth
 Elephant Hawk Moth
White Ermine

Day before Thursday

Old Moor: 3+ Bitterns, 2 drake Wigeon (Wath Ings), 2+ Med' Gulls.
Wombwell Ings: LRP 2, Redshank 12, Greenshank.
There are now an excellent 10+ broods of Pochard in the area.

A Savi's Warbler was heard singing at Old Moor for a while late on Monday evening from an area with no general access. It wasn't seen and was also difficult to hear. Discussions took place as to the possibility of arranging some form of limited and guided access, similar to what was done last time the species occurred here. This would have proved to be difficult due to the presence of sensitive breeding birds, but as it turned out, there has been no further sign of it since.

Wintersett 19.06.13

Hot, humid, 21°C,   clouded over by midday.
Wintersett Res:  Highlight today was a flock of 19 Common Scoter  (17♂ and 2 ♀ ) near the south bank. These birds will be on their way west to carry out summer moult.   2 pairs of Yellow  Wagtail in oilseed rape field next to west bank track.
Anglers CP: A Cuckoo was heard early morning. Meadow Pipit 1,   Common Tern 1,  Teal 1♂,  Goldeneye 1♀,   Canada Goose 184,  Greylag Goose 40,   Oystercatchers 7 adults and 3 + 1 young and a new brood of  7  Mallard ducklings.
Cold Hiendley Res: Great Crested Grebe with 1 young.
Butterflies and Moths:  Orange Tip 1♂  NWbank WRes.
Moth trapping overnight was much improved due to the humid weather.  Highlights were: Alder Moth (4th record),  Grey Birch,  Seraphim,  Latticed Heath,  Lime Hawk-moth,  Elephant Hawk-moth,  Scorched Wing and Poplar Grey.

Alder Moth                               A Smith

Wednesday morning, Edderthorpe...

A few waders on show now that plenty of mud is becoming exposed;- Avocet 2, Ringed Plover 6, LRP 6, Redshank 17, Shelduck -the pair still have 8 young, Shoveler 3, Teal 5, Mallard 54.

Tuesday 18 June 2013

Tuesday's briefing!

Lots of ducklings now appearing but very quiet migrant wise. Old Moor: 3+ Bitterns, 2+ Med' Gulls. A Grasshopper Warbler was 'reeling' on Warbler Way.

The Gannet was taken to Bempton today where it was hoped it could be released but unfortunately it was not up to it and ended up in a nearby seabird rehabilitation centre.

Wintersett 18.06.13

The hottest day of the year so far.  20 degrees, sunny, light east breeze.
Wintersett Res:  A huge swirl of thousands of bees was over the west bank around midday.  Didn't wait around to ID them but  an internet search suggests that only honeybees fly together in such large numbers. Can anyone confirm please?
Anglers CP:  A Water Rail was calling from the Pol ditch.  Teal 1 male,  Common Tern 1, Cormorant 4,  Buzzard 2 + 1 CHRes.,  Yellow Wagtail 1 + 1 WRes., Oystercatcher young 3+ 1,  3 broods of Canada Goslings  3 + 3 + 1,   3 Mallard broods 4 + 2 and  6 vsmall MHLPond,
Disposal Point:  Little Grebe 2 MHLPond,  Green Woodpecker 1.
Butterflies and Moths on WRes: 2 Common Blue, the first of the year, were seen in the ruin area also an Orange Tip.    Chimmney Sweeper 8 NE bank + 1 WBank.  Small Copper 1 W Bank.
Mammals WRes.    Stoat  1,   Mole 1 dead by boathouse.

Misty Edderthorpe, Tuesday am.

Despite the early morning mist the following counts were made;- Shelduck 2 adults & 8 young, Gadwall first brood of young - 10, Oystercatcher 1, Avocet 2, Ringed Plover 2, LRP 4, Redshank 16 adults and a few young.

Monday 17 June 2013

Monday early evening

A few highlights from reliable sources at Old Moor: Osprey east at just before 6pm.  5 Med' Gulls, a presumed pair feeding young, a pair 'sat tight'. Today's new arrival is a second-summer. The Gannet found its way into the reeds and has now been taken into care. Dave Waddington is now having second thoughts about this bird having seen it in flight and thinks it may not be the same bird as Friday after all.

Grey Wagtail at Broomhill today - Jim Thompson

Adwick washlands late afternoon

Spoonbill still present, rest no change.

Wintersett 17.06.13

17 degrees,  cloudy, warm and humid.  Very quiet again.
Anglers CP:  Yellow Wagtail 1 + 4 CHRes area.   Common Tern 1 + 2 WRes.,  Oystercatcher  9 adults +  1 fledged  and 3 medium young.   Goldeneye 1 female and Teal 1 male.
Butterfly:  Orange Tip 1 ACP.

Broomhill Flash

For the sightings for Broomhill pretty much as usual:-

Redshank 1,
Grey Heron 1.

Little Grebe 7 (4 Young),
Tufted Duck 14,
Gadwall 6,
Shovelor 2,
Mallard 2,
Pochard female + 6 duckling,
Mute Swan 1.

Red-legged Partridge 3,
Kestrel 2,
Sparrowhawk 1 male.

Late raptor news

A Red Kite passed SE at Hoylandswaine on Friday 14th June per Brian Penistone and 4 Hobbys were hawking moths at Hurkling Stones/Broomhead Moor yesterday evening (16th June) per Andy Deighton.

Gannet update

The Gannet at Old Moor yesterday - Jim Thompson

The Gannet remains at Old Moor today still present on the Mere early afternoon and apparently still looking unwell.

Cop for that! Black-headed Gulls, giving it the traditional WIM treatment - Jim Thompson


Wharncliffe Woods & Chase

1 male Redstart, Garden Warbler, Blackcap, Willow Warbler, Skylark, Meadow Pipit, Tree Pipit, Yellowhammer, 2 Cuckoo, Sparrowhawk, Kestrel, flock of 7 curlew over chase plus plenty of individuals, Great Spotted Woodpecker

Sunday 16 June 2013

Bolton Ings et al - 16th June

My normal Sunday routine was changed this morning at 06.40 with a text from Dave "Gannet on Mere", 40 minutes later I was in the mere hide watching it. Mainly sat on the water being mobbed by hundreds of Black heads but did have a fly round a couple of times. Fantastic sighting, cheers for the text Dave. After a coffee I ventured onto Bolton, main highlight being a pair of Garganey, the first in the area this year. They were in the far eastern corner of the eastern pond and therefore couldnt be seen from the hide. Other highlights today were at least 7 broods of Pochard now, 5 on the east pond and 2 on the west pond. The first brood of Gadwall and I finally managed to see an Oystercatcher chick which was fully grown and could fly. I couldnt see the third pair of Oystercatchers so they have probably failed and only 1 Lapwing seen and no Redshank so looks like they have failed as well. There have been about 20 pairs of Black Headed Gulls nesting on an island on the western pond but today they had all gone, looks like a predator has got onto the island and wiped them out.Full list :- Grey Heron 2, Mute Swan 4 adults + broods of 4 & 2, Canada Goose 35 + 27y, Grey Lag Goose 14 + 18y, Cormorant 6, Great Crested Grebe 4, Little Grebe 24 + broods of 2,1,1 & 1, Mallard 31 + brood of 2, Gadwall 7 + brood of 6, Garganey pair, Tufted Duck 94, Pochard 16 drakes + broods of 9,6,6,6,5,4+ & 1, Coot 70 + 27 pairs + 61 chicks, Moorhen 7 + broods of 2 & 1, Lapwing 1, Oystercatcher 4 + 1y, Black Headed Gull 430, LBB Gull 1, Common Tern 3, Swift c100, House Martin c30, Sand Martin 4, Green Woodpecker 1, Barn Owl 1, Kingfisher 1, Grey Wagtail 1, Sedge Warbler 2, Reed Warbler 1, Willow Warbler 1, Chiffchaff 8, Blackcap 5, Whitethroat 4, Lesser Whitethroat 2.

After Bolton went back onto Old Moor, as previously posted the Gannet was still present and looked a bit sorry for itself, hope it survives. A few migrants with 4 Black Tailed Godwits on the Main Marsh and a Dunlin on the Wader Scrape along with 14 Teal (2 females). All the 4 Mediterranean Gulls were present as was the summering Common Gull and also 12 Common Terns. 2 Little Ringed Plovers were seen and there are now 5 broods of Avocets. Finally 4 Bitterns were seen today, the female plus 3 juveniles. A great day considering its the middle of June.

Carlton Marsh

2 Mute Swans, Coot with 6 small young and Yellow bunting, Whitethroat, Chiffchaff, Willow Warbler and Bullfinch all feeding young. Also present Buzzard, Cuckoo (not singing) and 5 Lesser Black-backed Gulls north.
Insects included the day-flying Mother Shipton Moth. A melanic Rabbit and a Stoat were also present.

 
 Stoat with baby Rabbit


Mother Shipton

Moor-ooned?

The Gannet on The Mere tonight - John Hewitt
The main news from the Old Moor area today was this near adult Gannet which was found on The Mere early morning and was still present when I left at 19.50. Dave Waddington who saw Friday's bird which flew through Bolton Ings is of the opinion that is the the same individual. If so where has it been? Still we kept losing a Spoonbill and getting it back for a long time before we found out where it was going, so who knows? Many people have commented that this bird looks like it is dying as it spends much of its time with its head tucked in and seemingly doing nothing, though who can blame it the way the 'Black-heads' are dive-bombing it. Whilst it wouldn't shock me if it does die on us, I can recall several instances of seabirds stranded inland that looked like they were dying, only to suddenly fly off strongly. Here's hoping! There have been ten records of Gannet in the Old Moor area prior to this year, but it wasn't until the one on Bolton Ings on 27th and 28th September 2011 that one was actually 'twitchable'. The other main news was of a pair of Garganey on Bolton Ings. Full details will presumably follow later from the Barnsley Blade.

The Gannet on The Mere tonight - John Hewitt


Adwick washlands (afternoon)

Teal 5, Ringed Plover 1pr + 2 well grown young, LRP 6, Oystercatcher 1, Snipe  3 (2 drumming), Yellow Wagtail 1pr feeding young, Grey Partridge 2, Wheatear 1m (Kev Farr).

Quiet

Fairly quiet with nothing much to report. There are however, as Simmo reports, plenty of these little chaps about.

Curlew chick.                       photo Dave Pennington

Moorland News ..15/16th June

Sat 15th Low Moor

Seen today were a cormorant, 3 common buzzards, a female peregrine, 16 lapwings, 4 snipe and a crossbilll (heard only) .. There was also a wheatear on Ewden Height but no sign of any whinchats ..


Sun 16th Broomhead Moor.

A decent list today .. Peregrine x1, common buzzard x6, red kite x1 seen at 1:50 circling over Upper Commons, kestrel x2, sparrowhawk x1, raven x2, ring ouzel x2, linnet, flock of 12 plus plenty of singles, cuckoo x1, lesser black-backed gull x1, golden plover x2, snipe x1. Plenty of irate adult curlews would indicate that there are quite a few juveniles around the area along with juv mipits and red grouse broods too..

Wintersett 16.06.13

15°C,  warm and cloudy.  Very quiet today.
Anglers CP:  Yellow Wagtail 1,  Common Tern 4,  Goldeneye 1♀,  Teal ♂,  Oystercatcher young 3 + 1.

Cliff Wood 15/6/13

1 pair of Pied Flycatchers, Spotted Flycatcher, Willow Warbler, Chiffchaff, Blackcap, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Grey Wagtail, family parties of Mistle Thrush, Nuthatch, Treecreeper, Siskin and Wren.

Several Speckled Wood butterflies also

Saturday 15 June 2013

Cudworth Common

Ringed Plover 2 + 3 young, Lapwing 6 + 1 young, Redshank 5 + 1 young, 2 Teal, 4 Gadwall and Canada Goose 2 + 4 young. Singing Cuckoo, Green Woodpecker and Garden Warbler.

Southern Marsh Orchid

Wintersett 15.06.13

11°C,  dry with sunny spells,  cool south westerly breeze.
Wintersett Res:  Swift 700.   Grey Partridge 2 adults with 7 medium young.
Anglers CP:  The 1st Summer Little Gull  was very obliging and flew into the shallows in front of the hide. Common Tern 6,  Teal 1♂,  Goldeneye 1♀,  Grey Wagtail 1 adult,  Yellow Wagtail 2 + 1 ORFlash,  Sand Martin 1, and a new brood of  5 Canada Goslings.  Goose numbers increased with 170 Canadas and 33 Greylags on the lake this morning.
This afternoon a 1st Summer Hobby flew over at 14.33hrs and, at one stage,  was circling around with a Buzzard.  There were also 8 adult Oystercatchers with1 fledgling now flying competently and 3 medium size young.
1st Summer  Little Gull                                                 A Smith

Edderthorpe, Saturday morning

Shelduck 2 adults and 8 young (one chick has disappeared), Gadwall 94, Teal 3, Great Crested Grebe 1, Avocet 3, Greenshank 1, Redshank 13, Ringed Plover 5, LRP 4, Dunlin 1, Yellow Wagtail 2, Common Buzzard 1.

Friday 14 June 2013

Carlton Marsh

Today's highlights were: Buzzard, Little Owl, Little Grebe with 3 young, Jackdaw with at least 2 young and 10 singing male Whitethroats. 3 Dingy Skippers, and 1 male Orange-tip butterfly. 

Red Nail Gall (Eriopyhes tiliae)

This gall was found on the leaves of a Lime tree. During late spring and summer, tubular growths develop on the upper surface of the lower leaves of Lime (Tilia europaea). These galls are created by mites that move on to the foliage in spring having overwintered in the bark crevices or around buds. These gall inducers are less than 0.2 mm long, however, the chemicals they release whilst sucking the sap from the leaves have a dramatic and colourful effect, causing upward growing, hollow, red finger-like extensions.
Before the autumn, the mites, which up to now have been actively feeding and growing inside the galls, depart to seek protected sites on the tree. The mites pass the winter in such locations and then the cycle is repeated.

Adwick Wash 8pm

Spoonbill, 3 Snipe, 5 Teal 4 drakes. 1 RP +2 chick were on the pool nr the central footpath Bolton end so the chicks must be up and away now to get there from their usual place on the top pool. Also seen my 1st Redshank chick take flight tonight. 3 Little Grebe. 1 Common tern on Lowfield lakes.

Anglers CP.

Tfirst-summer Little Gull is still present today. A pair of Teal, female Goldeneye and drake Pochard are all on the lake. Cormorant 5, Common Tern 2 and Yellow Wagtail 3.

Fri pm update

Old Moor: female Bittern + 4 juvs, Peregrine, Med' Gull 2+, Dunlin 1.

Bolton: Hobby

Bempton-on-Dearne?

Bolton Ings: A major early-morning surprise was an adult Gannet that passed though at just before 6am, eventually leaving over Bolton-on-Dearne village towards Adwick (Dave Waddington). Also five Black-tailed Godwits but no sign of Black-necked Grebe.

Thursday 13 June 2013

Old Moor

A very pleasant visit today with Ralph Hibbert and Les Corrall produced the following additions to John's blog. Azure, Common and Blue tailed damselfies around the ponds and a male Brimstone butterfly. Earlier as we walked down Green Lane this beast strolled across the path. At first it was thought to be a Devil's Coach Horse beetle, but on closer inspection it turned out to be a very well developed Great Diving Beetle larvae taking a stroll. It was about 2 inches long.


Rabbit Ings
 Among the Ox-eye Daisies (Ray Dye)
Dingy Skipper (Ray Dye)