Still the cool northerly winds

Hello

Static birds at Harrington Airfield today included the female Ring Ouzel, the Short-eared Owl and a male Common Redstart but apparently the Ferruginous Duck wasn't seen at Stanford Reservoir.

Summer Leys LNR hangs on to a Cattle Egret today and a Dunlin and eight to ten Common Terns were seen but little else new was reported. A Shelduck, an Oystercatcher, two Little Ringed Plovers and a Common Sandpiper were at Earls Barton New Workings.

Two Grey Wagtails, two Yellow Wagtails and twenty House Martins were at Ashton sewer works and at Pitsford Reservoir there were three Common Sandpipers on the dam this morning.

A Siskin and two Redpolls were around in the garden here at Hanging Houghton today and two Short-eared Owls re-appeared at Blueberry Farm, Maidwell this morning with two Wheatears at the Blueberry Hill summit. A Whinchat and a Wheatear were in the Brampton Valley near shrike hedge below Hanging Houghton this morning but were not seen this afternoon but a Wheatear was on a muck heap in the valley closer to the Brampton Valley Way.

Yesterday afternoon there was a Green Sandpiper in the Welland Valley below Cottingham.

Regards

Neil M

Collared Dove courtesy
of Tony Stanford.

Common Sandpiper courtesy
of Tony Stanford.

Grey Heron courtesy
of Tony Stanford.

Great Crested Grebes 
courtesy of Tony Stanford.

Dagger Fly courtesy
of John Tilly.

Speckled Wood butterfly
courtesy of John Tilly.

Naturetrek Day Tour

Hello

Not such dramatic weather today but still with cool winds and periods locally of sunshine and rain.

I spent the day at Rectory Farm, Great Easton and Eyebrook Reservoir as part of a Naturetrek Day Tour which included a walk around the award winning regenerative farmland and then a later spell watching over the reservoir. Many landmarks available to see from the high ground on the farm includes Rockingham Castle, the Welland Valley, Harringworth Viaduct and many others spanning the counties of Northamptonshire, Rutland and Leicestershire. We enjoyed a good number of Brown Hares galivanting about and of course the Common Buzzards and Red Kites thoroughly enjoy cruising around in the gusty conditions. There is a profusion of Skylarks on this farm and other birds today included a couple of Ravens, Yellow Wagtails, Common Whitethroat and others. The reservoir was relatively quiet but we enjoyed a smart male Whinchat and singles of Lesser Whitethroat and Common Sandpiper.

At Stanford Reservoir today the drake Ferruginous Duck was still present and at Harrington Airfield both the female Ring Ouzel and the Short-eared Owl were reported as being present and correct.

At Pitsford Reservoir birds around the dam area included an adult Yellow-legged Gull, two Common Sandpipers, Yellow Wagtails and plenty of hirundines. Ravensthorpe Reservoir again attracted two Ospreys and one of them fished successfully.

A Cattle Egret, three Black-tailed Godwits, about ten Common Terns and two Peregrines were about the best on offer at Summer Leys LNR and the female Ring-necked Duck again showed on Cotton Reel Lake at Ditchford Pits with a Common Sandpiper nearby on Dragonfly Lake. A Common Sandpiper was at Clifford Hill Pits and an Osprey was seen near Corby Golf Club flying north this morning.

Regards

Neil M

Brown Hare - hoping it
hadn't been seen!

Male Orange-tip butterfly.

Great Crested Grebe courtesy
of Robin Gossage.

Grey Heron courtesy
of Robin Gossage.

Maelstrom Monday

Hello

Yet more dynamic weather today as the turbulent year continues!

An early morning meander at Harrington Airfield confirmed the continuing presence of the female Ring Ouzel at Bunker Three and Short-eared Owl at Bunker One.

Over at Stanford Reservoir a drake Ferruginous Duck was a good find and remained all day off the dam and two Shelduck and five Common Sandpipers were present too.

An Osprey was at Hollowell Reservoir early this morning where there were about one hundred and eighty Sand Martins and a Common Sandpiper. This afternoon there were two fishing Ospreys at Ravensthorpe Reservoir, one of them successfully catching something. There was a single Shelduck present and a Kingfisher carrying a fish in flight over the causeway will be breeding nearby.

This afternoon Boddington Reservoir attracted four Common Sandpipers and another Common Sandpiper and seven Yellow Wagtails were at the dam at Pitsford Reservoir.

In the Nene Valley there was a Cattle Egret and three Ringed Plovers at Summer Leys LNR and a Common Sandpiper, two Redshanks, an Oystercatcher, a Little Ringed Plover and Yellow Wagtail all at the New Workings at Earls Barton. A Marsh Harrier and a Curlew were found at Stanwick Pits today and six Oystercatchers were at Upton Country Park.

Regards

Neil M

Rook courtesy
of Tony Stanford.

Kestrel courtesy
of Tony Stanford.

Redshank courtesy
of John Tilly.

Greenbottle courtesy
of Robin Gossage.

Dark-edged Bee Fly
courtesy of Robin Gossage.

Ringing at Linford Lakes

Hello

The weather yesterday (Saturday) was good enough to unfurl the mist nets and Kenny and his team enjoyed another super session down at Linford Lakes, Milton Keynes amassing a total of one hundred and thirteen birds caught and processed of seventeen species, the majority of which were fresh birds in. A male Grey Wagtail was perhaps star of the show but the high numbers of Lesser Redpolls amounted to twenty-six birds the majority of which were new birds. Twenty-three Blackcaps were a fresh arrival and there were six Chiffchaffs, three Willow Warblers and a Reed Warbler. Eleven Greenfinches was another good total and other birds processed included five Goldfinches and two Reed Buntings. A Cuckoo was seen and heard.

Dave did some ringing in his Northampton garden and birds processed included two Siskins, a Greenfinch, six Goldfinches, two Blackcaps and a Chiffchaff.

Today (Sunday) and an early visit to Harrington Airfield turned up the female Ring Ouzel plus a Short-eared Owl, a male Common Redstart, two Wheatears and four Grey Partridges.

In the Nene Valley three Cattle Egrets flew west at Summer Leys LNR this afternoon and other birds included a Peregrine, a Curlew and common warblers with Cuckoos at Mary's Lake and Quarry Walk and a Grasshopper Warbler at the latter site too. A drake Garganey was on the Main Lake at Stanwick Pits early this morning and the long-staying female Ring-necked Duck remained on Cotton Reel Lake, Ditchford Pits

An Osprey was briefly at Hollowell Reservoir late this morning and a Wheatear was at Borough Hill Country Park, Daventry.

Three Redshanks were at Stanford Reservoir and other birds included a Wheatear, a Common Sandpiper, two Cetti's Warblers, two Reed Warblers, a Fieldfare and a Lesser Whitethroat. A Black-tailed Godwit was in the Scaldwell Bay at Pitsford Reservoir briefly this morning and a Common Sandpiper was on the dam.

A Ring Ouzel was on private farmland between Cottesbrooke and Naseby late this morning and other birds included a Raven, a Fieldfare and a Siskin. A female Common Redstart was in a hedgerow at Stoke Albany this morning.

Regards

Neil M

Male Grey Wagtail.

Willow Warbler.

Reed Warbler.

Long-tailed Tit.

All images courtesy
of Kenny Cramer.

Butterflies, snakes and passerine migrants

Hello

Migrant passerines set the scene in the county today with large numbers of warblers, some chats and more waves of hirundines arriving even if the waders and terns are in short supply.

At Pitsford Reservoir David enjoyed his early morning birding with a smart male Whinchat below the dam and also two Common Sandpipers on the dam. At the other end he saw a female Common Redstart and a Lesser Whitethroat in the Scaldwell Bay hedge between Maytrees and the Bird Club hides and a couple of Common Snipe.

A Stanford Reservoir there were three Oystercatchers, two Shelducks, two Lesser Whitethroats and two Cetti's Wartblers. Harrington Airfield now has at least eight singing Willow Warblers back on territory plus a Wheatear, two Redpolls and a Raven but with no apparent sign of the female Ring Ouzel today.

A male Common Redstart was on view briefly at Blueberry Farm, Maidwell this afternoon plus three Redwings and two Fieldfares, and two Short-eared Owls remain on private land west of Lamport.

Four Waxwings were still at Warth Park, Raunds this morning but weren't seen later, a male Common Redstart was at Stanwick Pits near to the A45 causeway and birds at Summer Leys LNR included a Greenshank, a Whimbrel, a Cuckoo, a Great White Egret, a Common Sandpiper, two Little Ringed Plovers, two Redpolls and a reported Sandwich Tern. A Cuckoo and Grasshopper Warbler were at the back of Mary's Lake and one or two Common Sandpiper(s) and two Green Sandpipers were on the Earls Barton New Workings.

Another male Common Redstart was found at Honey Hill, Cold Ashby this morning and a Grasshopper Warbler was at Oundle in a field between Prince William school and the River Nene. A Lesser Whitethroat was at Clifford Hill Pits this morning.

Regards

Neil M

One of two Grass Snakes
in the Brampton Valley
 below Lamport. Image
courtesy of Eleanor.

Lots of butterflies
on the wing today
including plenty of
Orange-tips.

Black-headed Gull courtesy
of Robin Gossage.

Black-tailed Godwit (and Avocet)
courtesy of Robin Gossage.

Birds of a warm spring day

Hello

Another day of pleasant temperatures and weather and the female Ring Ouzel at Harrington Airfield performed rather well to all-comers as she gleaned the areas around Bunkers Two and Three. A gentle, quiet approach and keeping still provides the best views.

A male Ring Ouzel was again in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton near to Shrike Hedge at lunchtime with three Yellow Wagtails there too and later a Short-eared Owl flew through. Two Short-eared Owls and a Jack Snipe and six Common Snipe were west of Lamport but no Short-eared Owls were seen at Blueberry Farm today. A Curlew moved north along the Brampton Valley below Brixworth this morning.

An Avocet was a good find at Stanwick Pits where it remained on Layby Pit for much of the day. Other birds included a Shelduck, a Common Sandpiper and two Redshanks.

At Titchmarsh Reserve at Thrapston Pits birds included a pair of Egyptian Geese, two pairs of Oystercatchers, a Common Sandpiper, a Kingfisher and a Great White Egret. The female Ring-necked Duck remained on Cotton Reel Lake at Ditchford Pits and other birds on the complex were a Cuckoo and a Cattle Egret.

A drake Red-crested Pochard again showed up at Earls Barton New Workings where there were also singles of Common Sandpiper and Green Sandpiper.

Yet again an Osprey was seen over the dam at Pitsford Reservoir, with almost consecutive day sightings usually in the afternoons. A male Wheatear was on unused land next to Morrisons Warehouse on the Willlowbrook Estate at Corby early this afternoon and a Lesser Spotted Woodpecker was heard drumming at Yardley Chase early this morning. 

Two Cetti's Warblers were at Sywell Country Park this afternoon, a Siskin, four Ravens and a Grey Wagtail were at Cottesbrooke and Stanford Reservoir hosted a Great White Egret, two Common Sandpipers, two Shelduck, two Cetti's Warblers and four Ravens.

Regards

Neil M

Chiffchaff courtesy
of Tony Stanford.

Female Sparrowhawk
courtesy of Tony Stanford.

More Tree Sparrow boxes
went up today as we fight
to keep this species in the
county!

A trotting Fox or a Foxtrot?
Either way he kept a watchful
eye on me as he trotted past!

A warm April day

Hello

As forecast a much warmer day and with some nice sunshine too brought forth a number of insects and the birds were in full voice.

There were no reported positive sightings of the Purple Heron at Stanford Reservoir today and in some  respects it was Harrington Airfield that stole the show with the remaining female Ring Ouzel around Bunker Three, a low profile male Common Redstart near Bunker One and a Short-eared Owl again this evening.

Two Cattle Egrets and a Great White Egret were at Summer Leys LNR, three Little Ringed Plovers were on Earls Barton New Workings and two Common Sandpipers and two Wheatears were at Clifford Hill Pits. A Nightingale was at Stanwick Pits this morning, along the old railway line between the A6 road bridge and the main car park and a Grasshopper Warbler was 'reeling' on the other side of the A6 near to the Greenway Bridge over the River Nene on the Irthlingborough Lakes and Meadows reserve at Ditchford Pits.

An Arctic Tern remained at Eyebrook Reservoir, there was a pair of Mandarin Ducks in the Welland Valley below Middleton and at Hollowell Reservoir an Osprey flew south this afternoon and two Common Sandpipers were on the dam.

A Brambling was at Braunston and two Ravens and a Kingfisher were near Cottesbrooke village. Blueberry Farm near Maidwell continued to host a Short-eared Owl today where there were also two Wheatears, and two Short-eared Owls re-appeared west of Lamport after a day's absence. At least two Siskins were feeding in a garden on the eastern outskirts of Northampton.

Regards

Neil M

Great Spotted Woodpecker.

Brown Hare.

Muntjac.

All images courtesy
of Tony Stanford and
from Pitsford Reservoir
today.

April migrants

Hello

For those that were patient enough to wait the Purple Heron showed itself at Stanford Reservoir a couple of times today. Other birds on-site included two Shelduck and eleven Yellow Wagtails.

Pitsford Reservoir didn't really compare but there was an Osprey again around the dam today plus two Yellow-legged Gulls (adult and second calendar year) and an un-ringed but fairly tame female Wood Duck and a Grey Wagtail.

Another Grey Wagtail was at Kelmarsh Hall where there were two Siskins and a Raven. A single Short-eared Owl at Blueberry Farm, Maidwell appears to be the only bird left in the immediate area with none at Lamport today and none seen at Harrington Airfield either. A Grey Wagtail was in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton with a Jack Snipe and four Common Snipe further along the valley below Lamport. A Siskin was mobile in Hanging Houghton village.

Harrington Airfield provided a male Common Redstart between the Chippings Compound and Bunker One and a Ring Ouzel moving around between Bunkers Two and Three. A Wheatear, a Yellow Wagtail and about six Fieldfares were there too.

In the Nene Valley the Cattle Egret and two Little Ringed Plovers were at Summer Leys LNR and a Black-tailed Godwit was on the Titchmarsh LNR at Thrapston Pits with two Common Terns on the complex too. Three Common Sandpipers and two Wheatears were at Clifford Hill Pits and four Oystercatchers were at Upton Country Park.

Regards

Neil M

Kestrel.

Robin.

Chiffchaff.

Grey Heron.

All images courtesy
of Tony Stanford.

Purple Heron

Hello

Another day of strong weather with powerful south-west gusts, squally showers and periods of sunshine.

The best find of the day was undoubtedly a Purple Heron found at Stanford Reservoir, spending time in both counties, but it wasn't seen during the latter part of the day but could still be present in the reservoir reed beds. Other birds there included a Lesser Whitethroat, yet another early migrant in a spring with plenty of premature arrivals.

In the Nene Valley a small influx of terns at Thrapston Pits increased to a dozen birds and appeared to include both Common and Arctic Terns and like most waters there was a good concentration of hirundines of all three common species.

Clifford Hill Pits attracted an Arctic Tern, two Common Terns, two Little Ringed Plovers, two Ringed Plovers, three Common Sandpipers, three White Wagtails and two Yellow Wagtails. It seems the terns had departed by this evening.

Earls Barton Pits attracted an early Hobby, a Peregrine, a Little Gull, a Cattle Egret and common hirundines and warblers and the female Ring-necked Duck was again on Cotton Reel Lake at Ditchford Pits.

Pitsford Reservoir seemed to suffer a quiet day with plenty of Swallows and martins to enjoy but not much else! The adult Yellow-legged Gull was still present and was seen mating with a Lesser Black-backed Gull - creating another identification headache for the future perhaps! A Raven and a Little Egret was all I could find and no sign of any terns! A single Common Tern was at Hollowell Reservoir this evening and an Arctic Tern was seen at Eyebrook Reservoir.

A sheltered area along the concrete track at Harrington Airfield was the venue for a female Ring Ouzel this morning with four singing Willow Warblers hopefully being returning breeders and also two male Wheatears in the field beyond Bunker Three.

Regards

Neil M

Red-legged Partridges
courtesy of Tony Stanford.

Mistle Thrush courtesy
of Tony Stanford.

Incoming drake Mallard
courtesy of Robin Gossage.

Bathing Robin courtesy
of Robin Gossage.

Calm once again

Hello

A relatively calm day following the strong gusts of the week-end meant that ringers could once again utilise mist nets! Dave Francis completed some garden ringing with nine Siskins hitting the nets plus two Goldfinches and more typical garden birds. The migrant finches such as Siskin have been piling on the weight the last few weeks with some birds gaining over five grams in readiness for their next big flight north.

Over at Linford Lakes the targets were again the migrant finches and incoming warblers. Kenny and his small team catalogued ninety-six birds, the majority of them being newly-ringed. Finches included five Siskins, a spectacular twenty-eight Lesser Redpolls, five Goldfinches, a high total of fourteen Greenfinches and a Chaffinch. Thirteen Blackcaps was an excellent early season total plus two Willow Warblers and two Chiffchaffs and a Kingfisher added the glamour.

I opened our garden net at Hanging Houghton after what seemed an age and after a slow start managed to process fifteen Goldfinches which clearly included many birds similarly fattening up and providing high weights ahead of moving back to their natal areas.

Back to general birding and two flocks of Waxwings were found in the county today - nine were in a tree by the sluice between the main barrage lake at Clifford Hills Pits and the Holiday Inn early this morning (with no further reports) and six were found at Raunds at Warth Park behind the Howdens Warehouse - What3Words location position.poets.senior - and were still present this evening.

Other birds for Clifford Hill today included a Cattle Egret which flew west from there early morning, two Common Sandpipers, two Oystercatchers, a Black-tailed Godwit and a fly-over Ring-necked Parakeet. At Stanwick Pits a pair of Garganey were on the Main Lake, three 'Commic' Terns were noted and a Reed Warbler was logged and at Summer Leys LNR there was a Cattle Egret, a Black-tailed Godwit, a Curlew (which flew off west) and a Common Sandpiper. A Cattle Egret and eight Oystercatchers were at Upton Country Park today

Birds at Ditchford Pits included the female Ring-necked Duck still lingering on the Cotton Reel Lake, a Reed Warbler, a Sedge Warbler and a fly-over Curlew.

Mark's sightings at Hollowell Reservoir amounted to a Jack Snipe, two Common Snipe and five Common Sandpipers. A Green Sandpiper was on pools in the Brampton Valley below Brixworth and a few Siskins and Redpolls and four Ravens were on the Cottesbrooke Estate. Stanford Reservoir hosted two Common Sandpipers, five Ravens, fourteen singing Willow Warblers, two Common Whitethroats, five Yellow Wagtails, three Sedge Warblers and four Cetti's Warblers.

A Ring Ouzel was seen at Honey Hill, Cold Ashby at about 7.30am this morning but was then lost to view; three female Wheatears were at Harrington Airfield plus a Yellow Wagtail and two Redpolls and four male Wheatears and two Yellow Wagtails were in fields between Walgrave and Old this afternoon. Two Short-eared Owls remain at Blueberry Farm, Maidwell.

A female Common Redstart was found near the summit of Newnham Hill, Daventry this afternoon and two or three Arctic Terns made it to Eyebrook Reservoir.

Regards

Neil M

Cattle and Little
Egrets at Upton 
Country Park today
courtesy of Tony Stanford.

Male Blackcap courtesy
of Kenny Cramer.

Male Lesser Redpoll
courtesy of Kenny Cramer.

The spillover was still
very busy at the dam
at Pitsford Reservoir
yesterday evening - yet
another spring with exceptionally
high water levels!

Sunday's strong southerlies!

Hello

Two Short-eared Owls and two male Wheatears were at Blueberry Farm, Maidwell this morning and a female Wheatear and about fifty Fieldfares were in the Brampton Valley below Hanging Houghton this afternoon. Four Siskins remained at Scotland Wood on the Kelmarsh Estate and at least six were coming to a garden on the east side of Northampton.

A Cattle Egret was still at Summer Leys LNR today and summer migrants are now becoming more widespread in part helped by the southerly winds. A singing Common Whitethroat was reported from near Wellingborough Railway Station today

An Osprey was seen in flight between Loddington and Orton this morning and the best of the birds at Stanford Reservoir amounted to a Common Sandpiper, three Goosanders, four Little Egrets, a Kingfisher, a Cetti's Warbler, five Yellow Wagtails, fifteen Swallows, six House Martins and ten Sand Martins. A female Wheatear was at Borough Hill Country Park, Daventry this morning.

An Osprey flew south over the dam at Pitsford Reservoir this evening where there were also an adult Yellow-legged Gull, a Raven, fifty Sand Martins, six Swallows, four House Martins and two Yellow Wagtails.

Regards

Neil M

Green Woodpecker
courtesy of Robin Gossage.

Pied Wagtail at
 Pitsford Reservoir.

Raven at
 Pitsford Reservoir.