Wintersett 09.07.20

11 - 12 degrees, dull and drizzly with a light north easterly.  Very quiet!
Anglers CP: Common Tern 10. 
Wintersett Res: Pochard 9.  Goldeneye 1 female.  Sand Martin 80.
Botany Bay: Mallard 2 large young.

Cudworth Common

The mid-afernoon cloudy conditions wasn't going to produce much in the way of insects, but to our surprise we found 4 Purple Hairstreaks flying briefly over the same Oak trees as the other day. There were a few Ringlets and the odd Meadow Brown flying. 

From a distance we could see at least 2 Oystercatchers in the Symphony compound, but no sight or sound of the Redshanks.

Kestrel must have bred somewhere nearby as there is always a couple hunting over the Common. A Green Woodpecker flew onto the Ash plateau and few Mistle Thrushes were present. (Les Corrall CG)
A Willow Tit called from the samne area of Woodland as before.

Wintersett 08.07.20

12 - 16 degrees, dull and drizzly from mid morning with a light south easterly. 
Anglers CP: Common Sandpiper 1.
Wintersett Res: A Nuthatch was in the Willow Wood.  Pochard 6.  Cormorant 1 + 1 CHRes..

Carlton Marsh

15 LBB Gulls, Little Egret, Sand Martin, Cormorant and 1 LRP were on the wader scrape this morning. (JP)

Elsewhere a Willow Tit called near the hide and a pair of Blackcaps were feeding at least 2 fledged young there. A Kingfisher, 2 Little Grebe and a female Gadwall with 7 very small young were on the main scrape.

 This Black & Yellow Longhorn Beetle (Rutpelia maculata) was found yesterday. (Dave Smith)

Staincross 7/7/20.

2 calling Crossbills s over Moorland Crescent 11-20 a.m.

Wintersett 07.07.20

10 - 12 degrees with 8/8 cloud, a light south westerly and some light drizzle late morning with heavier showers in the afternoon.
Anglers CP VisMig:
Going south 8 Crossbills,  an adult Yellow-legged Gull and 59 Sand Martins.  
Anglers CP: Siskin 2.  A Hobby flew over   Redshank 1. Little Grebe 1.  Common Sandpiper 1. Common Tern 10. 
Wintersett Res: Pochard 12.  Goldeneye 1 female. A Little Egret flew west at 11.20hrs.   
Cold Hiendley SF: Oystercatcher 2.
Walton Hall: Gadwall 2 young. 
Reptile: Grass Snake 1 ACP.
Lepidoptera: A Painted Lady was on the Pol ACP.

Wintersett 06.07.20

11 - 13 degrees with  3/8 cloud and a cool, light, north westerly breeze.
Anglers CP: Common Sandpiper 3 + 2 WRes..  Redshank 2.  Curlew 3 south.  Oystercatcher 4.  Cormorant 2.  Common Tern 10.   
Wintersett Res: Goldeneye 1 female.  Kingfisher 1.  Pochard 2.
A total of 85 Tufted Duck were on Wintersett and Cold Hiendley Res..
Botany Bay:  Nuthatch 1.

Carlton Marsh

A Little Egret was on the wader scrape this morning. (K. Bannister)

This afternoon 5 Sand Martins were over the wader scrape and a single Lapwing was down with 3 Herring and 3 LBB Gulls. In that area from the watchpoint, Greenfinch and a juv Coal Tit and a Treecreeper further along was only the second this year. (Dave Smith)

Monk Bretton (near Ardagh Glassworks)

This morning an adult female Peregrine with prey was followed by a very vocal juvenile male heading towards the Ardagh factory. (Dave Smith)

Cudworth Common (with Les Corrall)

Notable birds today included Green Woodpecker, Garden Warbler, Coal Tit and at least 1 Willow Tit that sang and called from the usual territory.

It was a bit a windy and cloudy for large counts of butterflies, but here is what we counted. 108 Ringlet, 23 Small Skippers, 12 Small Tortoiseshells,  4 Comma, 13 Meadow Brown, 1 Peacock, 2 Small Heath, 1 Peacock and 2 Purple Hairstreaks, flying around the top of  a couple of Oak trees.. As far as I know these are the first records of this insect at this site. Single Shaded Broaded Bar and Silver Y moths were also observed.

 Symphony Compound 
A pair of Oystercatchers were with their 2 well grown young on the Grimethorpe side with 3 Ringed Plovers.

Ferrymoor Flash
2 Sand Martins were hawking over the flash with 2 Swallows, the latter in short supply this summer. The Great Crested Grebe is still on the nest, the male close by and 2 adult LBB Gulls were resting up.

Woolley (yesterday 5/7/20) 
15 species of butterfly included 12 Gatekeeper, 3 Red Admiral, 18 Small Tortoiseshell, 8 Comma, 7 Marbled White, 1f Brimstone and 17 Large White. (Chris Parkin)

Old Moor

At Old Moor this afternoon there was a sub adult gull which looked like it might be struggling to survive.  Distant due to restricted access but I am fairly certain it was the Yellow-legged.

Low Moor 5/7/20, G and J Wasse, S Green.

Very good light but constant cold winds with disruptive showers. 4 Crossbills down briefly with a pair showing well. Total of 8 Ravens, possibly 10. Displaying Snipe still impressive with c 7, includes 5 together after a rain shower. Lapwing mostly flocked up, 100+ with a few with chicks. Oystercatcher 2, LBB Gull 6, BH Gull 2, Swift 7, House Martins 6, Skylark 2. Sparse on raptor species again with 3 C Buzzard, 2 Kestrel, 1 Sparrowhawk. Meadow Pipit c6.

Carlton Marsh

2 Little Egrets, 2 adult Little Grebe and 1 juv and 2 Sand Martins were on the wader scrape this morning. (Keith Bannister/JP)

This afternoon a drake Teal was on the marsh with 3f & 1m Tufted Duck, 2 Grey Herons and a KIngfisher.

Dragonflies included 1m 1f Emperor, 1 Brown Hawker, 1m Black-tailed Skimmer and a female Banded Demoiselle.

2 Red Admirals were in addition to Small White and Ringlet.

An American Crayfish was on the dike yesterday. 

Wintersett WeBS for July 2020

Here is the WeBS count for the Wintersett Area July 2020

Coot 96   Mallard 84   Greylag Goose 33   Canada Goose 128   Mute Swan 10   Tufted Duck 78   Moorhen 6   Great Crested Grebe 16   Common Sandpiper 1   Lapwing 38   Oystercatcher 3. Goldeneye 1  Pochard 2  Gadwall 4   Common Tern 10.  

Wintersett 05.07.20

13 - 16 degrees, warm, sunny with a breezy  westerly and strong gusts from late afternoon.
Wintersett Res: Goldeneye 1 female.    Pochard 2.  Gadwall 4.   
Anglers CP: Yellow-legged Gull 1 adult  flew south.   Swift 160 flew south west.  Common Tern 10.
Haw Park Wood:  Siskin 5.
Odonata: Emperor 1 male in Haw Park Wood per Pete Smith
Diptera: A Tiger Cranefly, Nephrotoma flavescens was  on Anglers CP per Steve Denny.
Coleoptera: A beetle Pyropterus nigroruber beetle was seen in Haw Park Wood per Francis Hickenbottom

Pyropterus nigroruber    Haw Park Wood   FHickenbottom

Tiger Cranefly Nephrotoma flavescens Anglers CP   SDenny

Wintersett 3rd and 4th July 2020

 03.07.20 
Anglers CP:  Redshank 1.  Common Tern 6.   Pochard 1 + 2 WRes..
Wintersett Res: Tufted Duck 87.  Goldeneye 1 female.  A brood of Cetti's Warblers by the boathouse bench.  Oystercatcher 4 flew over.  Curlew 1 south.  
Cold Hiendley Res: Mallard 1 very small young. 
Lepidoptera: A Small Skipper and a Large Skipper were on the north bank WRes..


 04.07.20
18 degrees with 8/8 cloud and a moderate south westerly. 
Anglers CP.Vis.Mig. 
Mediterranean Gull  1 adult north 08.15.  Crossbill 8 south at 08.18.   Siskin 25 south.
Anglers CP: Oystercatcher 2. 
Wintersett Res: Goldeneye 1 female. Common Sandpiper 1. 

Carlton Marsh

On the wader scrape this morning 32 LBB and 30 Herring Gulls. (JP)

This evening 1 Sand Martin with c30 House Martins, a Green Sandpiper and a Little Egret. At least 3 fledged Chiffchaffs were being fed by the parent birds.

This juvenile female Peregrine came down in a garden in Monk Bretton today. Karen Pickard contacted Ian Fletcher from Clayton West, who has nursed this type of bird back to health before. As its wings were good, he tried to release it in a lane nearby, but it couldn't stand so he took it home with a view to taking to a specialist for an assesment tomorrow. He had been home about half an hour when he phoned Karen to say it was frothing at the mouth and what was coming out of the vent was a sign that it could be from poisoning.

Ian is going try and get the RSPB to carry out a PM to try and ascertain if it was poison that killed it.

Thanks to Karen and Ian Pickard for caring enough to try and save the bird. It is almost certain to be one of the Adargh Glassworks fledged juvs.

Carlton Marsh

New in today Common Sandpiper on the wader scrape. The only other birds of note were Kingfisher, 3 Siskin feeding on Alder seeds and 6 LBB Gulls.

A few Ringlets, 1 Comma and 1 Large Skipper were eclipsed by 2 male Banded Demoiselles.

Meanwhile two Hornet Mimic Hoverflies (Volucella zonaria) were feeding on Privet (Ligustrum) flowers in Geoff Miller's Beech Avenue, Cudworth garden, which is about 3/4 of mile east of the reserve. One was photographed at Carlton Marsh on 3rd August 2019. I believe it's a migrant from the Mediterranean.

Carlton Marsh

I have opened the sluice in the wader scrape to try and reduce the water levels after recent rain. Birds today 2 Grey Wagtails, breeding Meadow Pipit and 2 more broods of 4 + 4 small young Gadwall. 3 Siskins flew out of a Scots Pine and a drake Teal was on the wader scrape. 

A Green Woodpecker seen earlier across the main scrape, was the first this year (Dave Tattershall)

3 Peregrine Falcons were flying around the Ardagh Glassworks chimneys and Fish Dam Lane at 11.30hrs. (Dave Smith).

Wintersett 02.07.20

A cooler 14 degrees with 8/8 cloud,  drizzly rain showers  and a light north easterly.
Anglers CP: Common Tern 9.  Gadwall 3.  Greylag Goose 31. 

Carlton Marsh

The wader scrape is pretty full right now so no waders yet, but a few big gulls included 7 LBB and 3 Herring Gulls with the first 3 juvenile Black Headed Gull juveniles from elsewhere. A pair of Dabchicks have one well-grown young with them.

5  Siskins were feeding on Silver Birch seeds along the embankment and at least 3 Song Thrushes were in full cry.

A pair of Dabchicks on the main scrape were accompanied by several Tufted Ducks, 2 Kingfishers and several juv. Reed Warblers feeding on very small green caterpillers on Common Reed.

Littleworth Park Yesterday

12 species of butterfly included Small Copper, Red Admiral, 2 Comma, 416 Meadow Brown and 228 Ringlet. (Chris Parkin)

Carlton (last night)

Dave Smith caught a Small Ranunculus in his garden moth trap. If you include the Angler's one taken on 28/6/20, this is the 5th record for barnsley of this once extinct moth. Cudworth & Old Moor 2013 and Wombwell 2018.

 Small Ranunculus (Dave Smith)

Wintersett 01.07.20

14 - 17 degrees with 8/8 cloud and a north easterly breeze.
Anglers CP Vis.Mig: A Crossbill flew south.  A Snipe flew over.
Anglers CP: Tufted Duck 54.  Common Tern 4.  Common Sandpiper 1. A Willow Tit was near the cafe.
Wintersett Res: Goldeneye 1 female.  Mallard 6 very small young.  Mute Swan 4 young.
WRes. Ringing: 2 juvenile Garden Warblers were ringed,  at the ruin, by Archie.
Odonata: Red-eyed Damselfly 1 male on Botany Bay.
Moth trapping highlightst: Blackneck 1.  Beautiful Hook-tip 3.  Scarce Footman 2. Sycamore 1.
Eyed Hawk-moth 1.  Dingy Shears 1.  White Satin 1.