Thanks
Wurzel, I'm not sure what the Coot did, although they aren't the most innocent and peaceful of birds themselves so perhaps the Grebe was just holding a grudge
Thanks
David, yes I'm very pleased with that Siskin shot, I wish they spent the summer down here too, they're even brighter in their breeding get up
February 2019 part 2
23rd February
I finally felt up to an all day trip outside of London, and Bookham seemed like the obvious choice. With all this silly warm weather around I’d cleared all other plans for the weekend and set out to start the butterfly chasing in earnest. The day started rather grey with mist and fog for the whole journey but thankfully this lifted and burned off when I arrived at the site late morning. Obviously, there was still a bit of a nip in the air whilst the sun got to work so I set about looking for eggs, only managing to locate 3 Brown Hairstreak eggs. The two Purple Hairstreak eggs near one of the car parks I’d found last year couldn’t be located, their marker having fallen off in my absence.
I got a bit of a shock when I got to Banks Common. The hedge where Millerd and I find most of our Brown Hairstreaks in late summer had been almost entirely grubbed up
. A bit further along I also discovered the Common was now the proud owner of a large pond. I can only surmise the hedge was sacrificed to give access to the heavy machinery that made the pond. Hopefully the hedge will be allowed to grow back but it remains to be seen how the field is to be managed, the newly installed fence line would suggest livestock of some kind.
- The grubbed up hedge would have completely hidden the newly installed fence
Birds were plentiful, like the butterflies they seemed to be intent on getting a head start with lots of pairs flitting around and marking out territories. I watched a pair of Long-tailed Tit busy nest building, already halfway to completing their remarkable dome of feathers and cobwebs.
Finally though I came across the first of the real targets for the day and species number three for the year, my first Brimstone of the year quietly warming up.
Half an hour later I had 4 of them flying around the little sheltered sun trap, all males and already wasting no time as they fluttered around searching out still sleeping females. That early find was the last time I saw any of them settled, I saw about a dozen or so in the end but the sight of male Brimstones flying around at the tail end of winter will always remain one of the highlights of the year for me
.
I was also rather pleased when a Marsh Tit posed for me, giving me the chance for the best shots I’ve ever got of one of them
.
24th February
I stayed local on the Sunday, the morning on Walthamstow Marshes before moving on to Tottenham Marshes for the afternoon. There was no mist or fog today so things warmed up much quicker but even so I was to come away from the morning session with just one butterfly. On the plus it was a new species for the year, a Small Tortoiseshell, and a particularly fine looking example to boot.
As usual the birds kept me occupied in the absence of the butterflies.
The afternoon at Tottenham Marshes was significantly more successful on two counts, a pleasant combination of more butterflies and less people. I made a bee line for the sheltered sun traps that always come up trumps at either end of the season. The first one was deserted but halfway along the second a Comma flew up from my feet. He circled me a couple of times before settling back on the ground, a little tatty but no less a welcome sight. In this patch I totalled 4 Comma (but no Peacock who they usually share this patch with).
Exploring further afield, a larger open area that Small Tortoiseshells prefer I quickly came across a Red Admiral and from its behaviour it looked to be a female looking to lay. I managed a few snaps before she vanished, only to return a few minutes later with something slightly smaller in tow. A Small Tortoiseshell was trying his luck and even more interestingly, the Red Admiral didn’t seem overly bothered and even looked as though it was encouraging her confused and desperate suiter… it must have been a long lonely winter for the both of them
! In the end the Red Admiral escaped, or rather the Tortoiseshell got lost in the undergrowth trying to keep track of her.
I finished the afternoon with a return visit to the Commas who were all still enjoying the sun
26th February
The day before I’d done another lunch time walk at work, finding a Comma and a Brimstone, neither interested in sitting still but I did nearly step on a Robin doing a bit of sunbathing. I got a look of disdain as though I was being told to watch where I was bloody walking next time!
Anyway Tuesday was my half day so I decided to have a wander round Epping Forest, usually a place crawling with Peacock and Comma early in the season. The train journey there was noteworthy when an unidentified White (most likely a Small) was seen fluttering around on the other side of the tracks at one of the stations, bringing my species list for the year to 6 (I’d had a very brief encounter with a Peacock at work that morning). Epping Forest was however rather desolate and it took around 2 hours before I caught sight of a butterfly. It was another Peacock but it didn’t settle in my presence, instead a Comma appeared and took over his spot and proceeded to pose like a pro, well who was I to say no to such a willing subject!
That was it for the day so I went home for an early night ready for my first trip of the season into deepest Sussex the next day
.
27th February
I’d been chatting to Millerd the weekend before and ended up convincing myself that a trip down to North Stoke would be worth a punt. Not only because of the very slim chance of increasing my yearly tally with another hibernating Nyphalid but also of the reports I’d seen of huge numbers of Brimstone, David Cooks total of 76 at the weekend must be verging on pestilence levels, the local Buckthorns must be petrified
. I like to make the most of my longer trips out so I got there quite early, about 10ish, put on my wellies, and went off to wade through the mud. The forecast had predicted cooler temperatures today but this sites steep bank had been catching the sun for a couple of hours already and it felt much warmer than what the apps were saying. Despite the warmth though the sun was obviously just not high enough in the sky to tempt anything out, so once again it was time to point my camera at the local birdlife.
- I'm glad the Swan didn't fly directly overhead!
It was an hour before I saw anything, a small orange butterfly halfway up the bank, too small and fluttery to stop the heart though. Not long after I found a more accommodating subject
and then a short while later the first human I’d seen since arriving sauntered up to me, Millerd had arrived to see what all the fuss is about with this site. His arrival seemed to bring out a few more butterflies, Peacocks and Brimstones now joining the occasional Comma. Not large numbers of any of them but all welcome at any rate. It is very noticeable these past week or so how early the butterflies seem to vanish to roost and by 2 it was pretty much show over, still a very pleasant way to spend a day
.
- Spot the Brimstone