Fairburn Ings

The weather last weekend decided be typically bank holiday like and was wet and windy with few sunny spots in between. Of course we're out regardless!

We did try for the Night Heron that has been seen around the far end of the lake for some time now but it is quite elusive and stayed well hidden whilst we were there. We don't often explore that end of the reserve but it was full of birdsong - Wren, Blackbird, Whitethroat, Dunnock.....

Whitethroat 

We saw lots of beetles in the plants along the paths

Cardinal Beetle

Cormorant

The view from Charlies Hide

This Red Kite appeared above us over Cutt Lane

I didn't take too many photos as we walked around the main part of reserve, the rain over the Coal Tips was persistent and I kept the camera under cover. From the Pick up hide we watched Sand Martins fly in and out of the bank, a Pheasant was hunkered down doing the if I don't move they can't see me thing.... We could hear a Cuckoo calling up near the Coal Tips, we heard one (or maybe two) as we walked around but didn't manage to see one. We were surrounded by Swifts as we walked, being high up the Swifts are pretty much head height!

We ate lunch in the car at Lin Dyke and the rain stopped but it was dull and cloudy still. A Chiffchaff was calling by the entrance and then past the bridge a Willow Warbler was singing.

Chiffchaff

Willow Warbler

Damselflies

Little Egret

Little Ringed Plover

A Bufflehead duck was on the water at Lin Dyke, I believe it's been around a while and is no doubt from a private collection somewhere. You can just see it near the end of the spit here (if you use a magnifying glass)

Orange-tip Butterfly

My daughter took these two

I'm not sure what this bee is

Froghopper

And finally as we were about to leave the sun was shining!

Goldfinch

St Aidan's

A couple of weekends back we spent the morning at St Aidan's (I might one day actually post about somewhere within a couple of days of going!), it was another glorious day. We had a look on the dragline for the Little Owls and Kestrels but spotted neither.

One patch of grass had lots of cobwebs, strange they were only in the one spot though?

Lots of posing from the Swans

I caught this Redshank on the main lagoon

First ducklings of the year

There was plenty of colour with the Gorse.....

and loads of Daisies too

We saw a few butterflies - Speckled Wood, Small Tortoiseshell and Peacock

There were Warblers everywhere, including a showy Grasshopper Warbler..........which we missed but my husband did hear. We did see/hear Whitethroat, Reed and Sedge Warbler, Cetti's, Blackcap and Chiffchaff too.

Whitethroat

Reed Bunting

We also saw Linnet in the gorse bushes, a couple of Common Tern on Astley lake. A couple of Mediterranean Gulls were on the main lake, which we saw thanks to some nice chaps with scopes! We heard Bittern booming a few times as we walked around and finally saw a Kestrel as we were on our way back to the car park.

A cuppa and a chat with the lovely folks at the visitor centre and we were off home.

Moorhen

Around the Patch

Things have been busy in the garden, lots of birds on the move and we've had more Willow Warblers, Chiffchaff and Goldcrest passing through. The Sparrow and Starling numbers have increased again after a few weeks dip. Blackbirds, Dunnocks, Robin, Woodpigeon and Goldfinch are back in the garden after mostly being absent through the summer. Lots of Tits are backwards and forwards from the feeder too.

The best bird so far though has been a Great Spotted Woodpecker which turned up last Saturday, it landed in our Laburnum, hopped around and flew off, it was lucky I was still sat by the window with my cuppa that I happened to see it. It's only the 2nd one i've seen in the garden in the 9 years we've lived here and the other was 8 years ago and landed in the same tree!

The squirrel and foxes are still daily visitors, a couple of weeks back my husband saw 5 of them (foxes) in an empty overgrown yard nearby. The foxes have just figured out if they stand up they can clean out the seed tray on the feeder and by clean I mean clean, not a scrap left in there!  Our regular Squirrel looks like she is nursing young at the moment and she tears through the nuts and sunflower hearts two or three times a day!

In Churwell Woods there were a couple of Chiffchaffs about this week, lots of different Tits and Woodpigeons galore. The fields where the fire was have been completely dug over. Makes for good pickings, lots of Woodpigeons and Magpies in the mud and from a pylon a Kestrel sat watching everything one morning, too far away for a decent photograph but we watched it a while.

These oak galls are all over one of the trees.

This nest had fallen out of the trees near the entrance to the woods, you can't quite tell but it was tiny.

A few butterflies are still on the wing, Comma, Speckled Wood and Red Admiral.

The morning walk to work has been full of birds recently too, lots more Gulls around, BH and Herring, Robins have started singing in the park, 4 of them one morning. A Chiffchaff was singing right above my head on Wednesday.

A Sparrowhawk was harassing a flock of pigeons that belong to one of the houses near Morrison, it flew right overhead as I walked through the car park. The farm by work has been ploughed it's fields and they've been covered in Gulls, Crows and Woodpigeons.

The trees are turning colour and the early mornings definitely have that autumn feel now, it makes for a beautiful walk to work!