A day’s birding in Leicestershire & Rutland - September 29, 2012

Dave and I went to Dean’s Lane where we met Roger all hoping for some good visible migration.

It was relatively quiet but there was some movement of Skylark; Swallows, alba wagtails, Meadow Pipits, Chaffinch, Goldfinch and Linnet.

Roger and I then went to Rutland Water and visited the north arm first.  There was no sign of the Black-necked Grebe but we did find a single Ruff, two Black Terns and a Common Tern.  There were two Pintail and five Little Egrets and a Red Kite, two Sparrowhawks and several Buzzards were observed over Burley Wood.

There being little else we went to the centre and walked to lagoon four were a Curlew Sandpiper had been reported.  We did find two Dunlin, four Ruff and a Snipe but there was no sign of the Curlew Sandpiper.  There was also five Yellow-legged Gulls roosting and two Hobby were observed towards lagoon three.  We eventually went to lagoon three were plenty of birds, which were primarily Gadwall and Tufted Duck.

A final call at the centre failed to produce anything else although there must have been close 1000 Tufted Duck.

Canada Geese over the north arm

Wigeon over lagoon three

Adult Herring Gull over lagoon three

Comma close to badger hide

An early morning at Dean’s Lane, Leicestershire - September 28, 2012

Dave and I went to Dean’s Lane to observed visible migration but it was rather quiet, although we did have some movement.  The best was thirty-three Siskin and 124 Swallows were observed with smaller numbers of Meadow Pipits and Alba Wagtails.

A day in West Norfolk - September 26, 2012

There had been a god selection of birds in West Norfolk over the last few days, so Dave, Roger and had decided to have a day to try and catch up with some of them.

Roger drove and we set off in some very heavy rain, which had stopped by the time we reached Uppingham in Rutland.  The only bid of note on the journey to Burnham Overy Staithe was a Red Kite between Morcott and Duddington.

We arrived at Burnham Overy Staithe with no report of the Booted Warbler but the Barred Warbler was still present.  A single Pink-footed Goose flew over but we must have had at least 2000 during our stay.  As we walked down the initial path to the sea wall there were a few Skylarks and Meadow Pipits flying over and a few Wrens, Robins, Dunnocks and Linnets and as we approached the sea wall nine Bearded Tit flew across the path.  We climbed the wall and found a number of Redshank, two Grey Plover and two Curlew feeding on the tidal marsh. There was also a distance Marsh Harrier, which turned out to be my only sighting of the day.  We continued walking along the wall to the sea and as we approached a group of birds we could see they were actually watching something below the sea wall.  They indicated that we should drop below the wall in order to get to them, which we did but as we approached them a walker went by along the bank and had flushed the Booted Warbler.  We did have a distance view of the bird perched and a couple as it flew further away.  We decided to continue to the boardwalk and hopefully connect with the Barred Warbler and get the Booted on the way back.  Roger and Dave had brief views of the Barred Warbler in the bushes but all I managed was three flight views, two of which were pretty good.  We continued into the dunes where we had good views of a male Redstart, a juvenile Whinchat and a Wheatear.

As we walked back along the sea wall we had quite a few views of the Booted in flight and several distance views of it perched in the sueda.  As we were trying to see the Booted Warbler a Greenshank flew over calling.  There was now a single Knot and two Dunlin present on the tidal marsh as we returned.

 We had lunch when we arrived at Titchwell and then set off down the track to the sea.  There were plenty of waders present on the fresh marsh and we soon found a juvenile Little Stint and shortly afterwards a juvenile Pectoral Sandpiper.  Other waders included Oystercatcher, Avocet, Ringed Plover, Lapwing, Knot, Dunlin, Ruff, Black-tailed Godwit, Bar-tailed Godwit, Curlew Redshank and a single Turnstone.

It was during this time that David and I noticed a large group of Starling in flight over Thornham Marsh and picked out a smaller and pale bird close to the front of the flock.  They dropped into the marsh on two occasions and we picked the pale bird out both times.  We were certain it was a Rose-coloured Starling and one had been reported at Home yesterday and earlier today.  Despite a prolonged search we couldn’t relocate the bird and assumed it must have left when a Peregrine flew over.

We continued to the sea and saw more Bar-tailed Godwit and Turnstone in flight with many of the Turnstone roosting on the tidal marsh.  The tide was clearly coming in and on reaching the sea was quite high.  There were still a few Bar-tailed Godwits on the shoreline with a few Knot a single Sanderling and Greenshank and there must have been at least 250 Oystercatcher.  The sea was generally quite although we did have five Red-throated Divers, four in flight and one feeding just off shore.  There was also several Great Crested Grebe, seven Gannet, a few Cormorant and two Common Scoters.

As we walked back there was still no sign of the Rose-coloured Starling but we did locate a single Spotted Redshank on the saline marsh and five Spoonbills were now present on the fresh mash and the Little Stint was now much closer.  As we walked back to the car park a Cetti’s Warbler burst into song but as is usual it was not seen. 

There was a report of the Rose-coloured Starling still being at Holme so we headed off only to find out later that the report was erroneous and that it had been seen again at Titchwell later in the day. 

It had been a successful day and I recorded ninety-two species and saw four of the five we had hoped for with only Red-breasted Flycatcher eluding us.

A day’s birding in Leicestershire & Rutland - September 22, 2012

I went to Eye Brook Reservoir first today and although the water is high it is showing signs of falling and there were areas of mud on along the stream.  Despite this the only waders were Lapwing and a single Redshank.  There was a single Little Egret and two Red Kites and six Buzzards were observed over the fields on the Leicestershire side of the reservoir. And a single Sparrowhawk was observed as it gliding into a tree.  The wildfowl numbers were still increasing and four Pintail were observed but there was nothing else of note.

Having exhausted Eye Brook Reservoir I moved to the north arm at Rutland Water.  I walked down towards the point and found the Black-necked Grebe feeding at the entrance to the fishponds.  Two Little Egrets were feeding in the north arm and two mor were found roosting in the fishponds where there were masses of duck, which were mainly Tufted Duck.  A single Ruff was observed on the north shore and a Chiffchaff was heard calling but with little else I moved off to the Egleton Reserve where I joined Roger,

We walked to snipe hide and found a juvenile Whitethroat in the brambles close to the hide.  From the hide we found two juvenile Ruff, a Green Sandpiper and a Little Egret feeding on the wet meadow flash.  Whilst we were in the hide, a large flock of Lapwing flew over with a few dropping onto lagoon one.

We moved off to the new 360° hide on lagoon five but there were fewer birds than my last visit and the only birds of note were three Little Egrets and five Pintail.

A walk to heron hide produced very little where the water level remains very high with no exposed shore line.  As we walked back to the car park at Egleton we did see a couple of Chiffchaffs but generally passerines appear to be well down.

On reaching the car park we had lunch before moving off to lagoon four.

Juvenile Little Grebe in Heron Bay

Egyptian Geese on lagoon five

Adult and juvenile Goldfinch on the bund of lagoon six

Lapwings over the wet meadow

We decided to visit dunlin hide on lagoon four as we would be closer to any roosting gulls.  As we approached the hide we saw Norman who appeared to be looking for something in the hedgerow.  He had seen a Blackcap but there was no sign whilst Roger and I were there but a juvenile Hobby put on a good show above one of the meadows.

There appeared to be less on lagoon four than on recent visits but we still found six Yellow-legged Gulls roosting to the left of the hide but the waders we could find were three Golden Plovers and Lapwings.  There were nine Pintail and six Little Egrets but little else.  I could hear several Long-tailed Tit calling from the hedge behind and took a look from the left hand flap.  I soon located several and also found a Chiffchaff and a Lesser Whitethroat and eventually a male and a female/immature Blackcap.  A juvenile Marsh Harrier was then observed hunting over the reed-bed on lagoon three.

Peacock close to the badge hide

Juvenile Hobby over the meadow close to lagoon four

As we approached shoveler hide on lagoon three we saw two Chiffchaffs and a Reed Warbler and there was at least another three Reed Warblers seen from the hide.  There were plenty of duck on lagoon three with most congregated right at the back of the lagoon but a single Pintail was found close to the hide.  Two different Water Rails were also heard but neither was observed.  After a while we decided to call it a day and headed off back to the centre.  There was little on lagoon one except for plenty of Tufted Ducks.

It had been a rather quiet day in some beautiful autumn weather and with the water levels being fairly high around most of the reserve and reservoir it has been a disappointing autumn for waders.

Migrant Hawker from shoveler hide

Juvenile Reed Warbler from shoveler hide

A day at Spurn Point, East Yorkshire - September 21, 2012

Dave, Roger and I went to Spurn today hoping for some good sea watching.  We had chosen Spurn over Flamborough as rain was forecast and there was a sea watching hide at Spurn.

There had been some heavy rain whilst we were travelling but it eased when we arrived at Spurn and we were able to get to the hide without getting too wet.  It was pretty full and there was standing room only but we did eventually get a seat and remained in the hide from about 08:30 until 13:00.

Most birds were passing south and Gannets were ever present and there was a good passage of Red-throated Divers, I counted 123 although I didn’t get on them all.  There was also fifteen Arctic and Great Skuas again all moving south and we did see a single Manx Shearwater and two Sooty Shearwaters with the Manx bucking the trend and moving north.  There were quite a few auks passing and those identified were all Guillemots with the exception of a single Razorbill on the sea.  Four adult winter Little Gulls moved north and there were circa thirty Sandwich Terns, which appeared to be uncertain which way to go and a single Arctic Tern moving north.

A party of twenty-two Pink-footed Geese moved south and fifty Common Scoters were observed with a single Velvet Scoter moving north.  There were also several parties of Teal and two Wigeon and a single female-type Red-breasted Merganser moved south.

There were few waders with just two Oystercatchers, a single Dunlin and a possible Purple Sandpiper.

After we had, had some lunch we attempted to find a Pied Flycatcher that had been seen earlier without success but did find a single Stonechat.  We eventually decided to call it a day as the rain became more persistent again.

An early morning at Dean’s Lane, Leicestershire - September 20, 2012

When to Dean’s Lane to observed any visible migration but the rain kind of put the dampers on it.

The following were recorded: Mallard; Lesser Black-backed Gull; Stock Dove; Woodpigeon: Great Spotted Woodpecker [1]; Jay [1]; Jackdaw; Carrion Crow; Swallow [88]; House Martin [5]; Wren; Robin; Pied Wagtail; Meadow Pipit [21]; Chaffinch and Linnet.

A morning in Leicestershire - September 18, 2012

I went to Dean’s Lane in Charnwood first to see if there was any sign of visible migration as a Woodlark had been seen yesterday.  I had not been there long when three Sand Martins went over closely followed by a few Swallows and three Meadow Pipits.  There was a wait of forty minutes passed before there were any further when again a few Swallows passed over.  I finally decided to call it a day after ninety minutes as at best it could be described as slow.

From Dean’s Lane I travelled to Swithland Reservoir and stopped on the road bridge on the southern basin.  There were c.100 House Martin over the water and a Grey Wagtail flew over calling on a couple of occasions but there was little else of note.  Four Buzzards then flew over and a Sparrowhawk was observed harassing a Kestrel juts before I left for the northern half of the reservoir.

There were fewer wildfowl on this side but I did see a further two Buzzard, two Hobby and a Raven.

Juvenile Great Crested Grebe at Swithland Reservoir

Juvenile Hobby at Swithland Reservoir

A twitch to Daventry Reservoir, Northamptonshire - September 17, 2012

David and I went to Daventry Reservoir for a reported female Blue-winged Teal but when we arrived it had been identified as a hybrid Blue-winged Teal x Shoveler.

We went and had a look at the bird and it was easy to see how it was identified as a Blue-winged Teal.

The bill was perhaps the first thing to raise suspicions of a hybrid as it appeared shoveler-shaped and had a suggestion of orange, which was more evident on the underside.

On closer inspection the facial pattern also did not appear quite right; there was a very noticeable dark eye-stripe and the pale spot at the base of the bill was indistinct and less white than on Blue-winged Teal.  The upperparts were also perhaps less warm then on a female Blue-winged Teal and the feather edging whiter.

The plumage variations mentioned above are based on my own experience and previous photos taken in the USA but could well fall within the range of a female Blue-winged Teal.

Hybrid Blue-winged Teal

A day’s birding in Leicestershire & Rutland - September 15, 2012

Dave and I went to Burrough Hill where we met Roger and spent a couple of hours vismiging.  We initially went to the western edge of the old Iron Age fort and then walked north to a small valley leading to the summit as this is where there appeared to be a few birds moving.  It was rather slow but we did thirty-five plus Meadow Pipits and a few Swallow, Chaffinch, Greenfinch, Goldfinch and Linnet.  We eventually called it a day.

When we arrived at Rutland Water we went to the north arm where Roger soon located the Black-necked Grebe, which has been present for over a week now.  There was also a single Ruff on the north shore, two Little Egrets and a juvenile and an adult Common Tern.

We went to Egleton Reserve where we had lunch before going to lagoon four.  We soon located two Ringed Plovers, a single Golden Plover, two Dunlin and three Ruff and we heard at Greenshank but could not locate it.  There was also a large concentration of gulls on the western edge so we moved to dunlin hide to get a closer view.  They were mainly Black-headed Gulls but there were also plenty of Lesser Black-backed Gulls, a few Great Black-backed Gulls and I counted twelve Yellow-legged Gulls.  Pintail numbers were beginning to increase and there were twenty-one on the lagoon.  The Lapwing were very restless and flew high on several occasions and we eventually picked up a Peregrine, which eventually took a Kingfisher.  Other had seen the Kingfisher flying across the lagoon and I did see the peregrine stoop at it on several occasions but didn’t actually see it until the Peregrine flew to one of the islands to devour it.  There was also a Hobby briefly over the lagoon and a distance Sparrowhawk towards Oakham and a second briefly on the lagoon.  The Peregrine remained on the island for the rest of our stay and could be seen to be a second calendar year bird as its mantle and some of the coverts were grey but there was still some juvenile brown coverts present.

Whilst all this had been going on I noticed a gull perched on one of the osprey posts and considered that it might be a Caspian Gull.  It then flew and joined the rest of the gulls where the structural differences became obvious.  It appeared tall and lanky with particularly long legs, the tibia being particularly noticeable.  It was also more attenuated at the rear than other nearby gulls and the wings extended well beyond the tip of the tail.  The bill was slimmer than nearby gulls and there was no obvious gonydeal angle with the forehead sloping gently away from it giving the head a less angular shape.  The mantle was paler grey than nearby Yellow-legged Gull and most of the coverts were still juvenile, although some scapulars were grey.  The tail-band was rather neat with a suggestion of a pale trailing edge, which was observed in flight.  I suspect that this was an advanced first calendar year bird.

There were two female Siskin feeding in some alder as we walked back tot the centre, which were an unexpected bonus. 

Lagoon one at the centre had plenty of duck on it but mot appeared to be Tufted Duck with just a few Pochard and odd Gadwall, Mallard and Shoveler.  So we decided to visit the new 360° hide on lagoon five there was a reported Curlew Sandpiper.  However when we arrived all we could find was an immature Dunlin and a Ruff.  There was another nine Pintail on the lagoon and Dave noticed four Curlews roosting on one of the islands.  There was also five Little Egrets scattered around the lagoon.  This new hide gives superb views of the lagoon and hopefully some good birds in the future.

Our final call was to snipe hide on the wet meadow and on entering the hide we were told that there were two Curlew Sandpiper feeding but they turned out to be two juvenile Ruff with a third, an adult nearby.  There was a single Little Egret and two Green Sandpipers present and a few Shoveler.

It had been a peasant afternoon at Rutland Water in the warm autumn sunshine an supplemented by some nice birds.

Little Egret over lagoon four

Female Wigeon on lagoon four

2CY Peregrine over lagoon four

Adult an two juvenile Ruff on the wet meadow

An afternoon at Kelham Bridge, Leicestershire - September 13, 2012

A Cattle Egret had been reported yesterday and was still there today so Roger and I decided to go and have a look.

There had been a photo published on the LROS website and I was rather surprised to see so much buff there was on the head but the rest of the bird was not visible.  When we arrived the bird had flown over the road and was feeding in a stubble feed that had recently been harvested.  We were able to get reasonably close and it was immediately apparent that the bird appeared to be in full breeding plumage, which cast some doubt on to its origin.  I suggested to Roger that we should check to see if there were any rings on the bird but we could see nothing as it fed in the middle of the field.  As it came close I became more interested in taking some photos until Roger announced that it had a yellow ring on its left leg that convinced us that it was almost certainly an escape.  It was however a superb bird and did perform rather well for the observers that were present.

We eventually went back across the road and visited the reserve.  There was little of note, a Sparrowhawk and three Teal being the best.

Breeding plumage Cattle Egret

Breeding plumage Cattle Egret

Breeding plumage Cattle Egret

Breeding plumage Cattle Egret (yellow ring and primary wear c;early visible)

Female Shoveler

Sparrowhawk

A day out to Rainham Marsh, Greater London - September 10, 2012

Dave, Roger and I had made the journey as there had been a Baillion’s Crake had been present since the 8^th, but there had been no sightings when we arrived in the hide at about 10:00.  The hide gradually filled and at 10:50 it was observed briefly and then on several other occasions until 11:15 and whilst Dave had very brief views Roger and I were unsuccessful.  We eventually had to call it a day at about 13:40 only to find that it reappeared at 14:10 but then there were no further sightings by 18:15.

Two juvenile Hobbies and two Water Rails were also observed on a number of occasions.

Another good sighting was a European Water Vole.

European Water Vole

A day out in Leicestershire & Rutland - September 8, 2012

Roger and I set off for Eye Brook Reservoir but stopped just after we turned onto Stockeston Lane to view what we assumed was a Red Kite in a tree.  As I stopped the car a bird appeared to fly off the road and go over the hedge into a field.  It soon reappeared on the top of the hedge and we identified it as a Wheatear, our first local autumn record.  We then checked out the bird of prey and our assumptions were right as it was a Red Kite.

We continued to Eye Brook Reservoir almost running over eight Red-legged Partridges as they were reluctant to fly and just ran down the road in front of us.  They were obviously released birds and we saw many more at Eye Brook Reservoir.  We stopped at the entrance to Holly Oaks Farm and were rewarded with good views of two Lesser Whitethroats, a Whitethroat and a single Chiffchaff.  At another stop we found another Lesser Whitethroat but a party of circa fifty passerines in flight, which we assumed were Linnets, just disappeared.  There was no sign of the Little Owls in the old oak and it has been some time now since we last them.

We stopped on the Rutland bank and located two Little Egrets and a Buzzard fling over one of the fields on the Leicestershire bank, which was seen to try and catch a Red-legged Partridge unsuccessfully.  We could hear a Raven calling but we couldn’t see it so we walked back to gate where we had a better view.  We didn’t locate the Raven but in the filed there was an Osprey perched in a tree and we suspected that it had roosted there last night as all the local birds have apparently departed.  A Grey Wagtail then flew over calling, which is not a common bird at Eye Brook Reservoir.

We moved further down the Rutland bank a located three female/immature Goldeneye and circa thirty Swallow were feeding low over the water.

Having had enough of the north arm we moved off the Egleton Reserve and after some lunch we went to lagoon four.  We soon found eight Ringed Plover, three Dunlin, a Ruff and a Greenshank and we eventually found four Ruff.  There were also fourteen Pintail on the lagoon and eventually found five Little Egrets.  Two Red Kites then flew over the lagoon and two Hobby provided good views on several occasions.

Hobby over lagoon four

Hobby over lagoon four

Hobby over lagoon four

Greenshank on lagoon four

Lagoon three whilst holding a good number of duck failed to produce anything of note and lagoon one fared little better with just a single Little Egret being found.

The morning had started very well with the Wheatear and had continued through the day, although it did become quiet during the hottest part of the day but the Hobbies kept us entertained.  There was also a significant number of Migrant Hawkers on the wing, which is what the Hobby was probably after.

A morning out in South Leicestershire - September 7, 2012

The first task was to empty Dave’s moth trap but as there was only eighteen moths of eight species it didn’t take too long.  There was a single micro, a Honeysuckle Moth that was new for his garden.

The following were trapped: Honeysuckle Moth [1]; Brimstone Moth [2]; Large Yellow Underwing [5]; Lesser Yellow Underwing [6]; Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing [1]; Setaceous Hebrew Character [2]; Square-spot Rustic [1] an Flounced Rustic [1].

From Dave’s I went to Saddington Reservoir, which was fairly quiet but I did find four Chiffchaffs and three Willow Warblers and a Treecreeper was another good find.

There was also circa thirty Lapwings flying around for about twenty minutes presumably trying to find a place to land but eventually they just disappeared.

From Saddington I moved the short distance to Gumley where I immediately had a Nuthatch calling and saw another Treecreeper.

I walked through the wooded footpath to the church where there we three Goldfinch feeding in an old Yew and I did eventually see a Nuthatch as it came in a began feeding in an old pine.  A buddleia bush closer to the church had attracted a Peacock and five Red Admiral butterflies.  I saw nothing else of note and completed my morning out by walked a short stretch of the Grand Union Canal close by.  The best was a single Whitethroat, which provided excellent views albeit briefly.

During the morning I also saw five Red Admiral, a Peacock and seven Speckled Wood butterflies and a Migrant Hawker and two Common Darter.

Honeysuckle Moth

Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing

Flounced Rustic

A day ay the Ouse Washes, Cambridgeshire - September 5, 2012

There had been a Glossy Ibis and Purple Heron reported over the last few days at the RSPB Ouse Washes reserve.  So not having seen a Purple Heron in the UK since 2008, David, Roger and I decided to go.

We arrived on site and walked the short distance to kingfisher hide.  The area was still flooded and looked ideal for wading birds but the news was not good as neither the Purple Heron or the Glossy Ibis had been seen.  The light was also poor as we tending to look east into the sun.  There were clearly plenty of wader present and we soon identified Ruff, Sparrowhawk, Greenshank and Redshank.  I then picked up a juvenile Spoonbill in flight, which was flying amongst a large party of Little Egrets.  We had at least three juvenile Marsh Harriers, which constantly caused havoc as they patrolled the skies over the marsh.  Further scanning produced a number of Ringed Plovers, Dunlin and two Turnstone and I found a single Little Ringed Plover and ten Black-tailed Godwits flew in.  Shortly after this during one of the harrier disturbances Roger thought he caught a glimpse of the Glossy Ibis and shortly afterwards it was picked up in flight and landed to the left of the hide, where it spent some time feeding.

We had seen a Great Spotted Woodpecker as we left the centre and two Green Woodpeckers flew in front of the hide followed by two Kingfishers.

We walked to the next hide where there were plenty of Grey Herons visible but there was still no sign of the Purple Heron.  Roger then saw something further down, which he thought looked a little browner, although the heat haze made it possible to tell so we walked to the next hide.

We soon located the birds in the reeds and identified it as another Grey Heron.  There were eight Garganey and a couple of Pintail in front of this hide and we had more Ruff.

It was now lunchtime so we returned to the car park where we had lunch before going back for another attempt for the Purple Heron.

Juvenile Marsh Harrier

The light was much better now the sun had moved over towards the west and it continued to improve during the rest of the stay.  The Purple Heron had still not been seen and did not put in an appearance during our stay.

The afternoon produced a Sparrowhawk, Hobby and a Peregrine and we had further view of the Spoonbill, waders and Kingfishers but nothing else.  WE finally called it day and set off for home.

Cormorant with tench

Cormorant with tench

Juvenile Marsh Harrier

Juvenile Marsh Harrier

Juvenile Marsh Harrier

Hobby

Kingfisher

A walk at Great Glen, Leicestershire - September 4, 2012

This footpath just south of the village and running east west does more often than not produce a few nice birds despite it being quite close to the village and mainly arable farmland, although the sewage treatment works and stream obviously help.

I walked along the footpath but it was quieter than the other day but three Spotted Flycatcher were rather nice and I saw my second Willow Tit of the year.  There were no wagtails at all on the sewage filter beds, which is most unusual, particularly as there appeared to be no one on site.  I did find a couple of roving tit flocks but they kept to the tops of the trees and seemed more intent on moving rather than feeding and many went unidentified.  There were certainly Blue and Great Tits in both parties and Long-tailed Tits in the first and both the Willow and Marsh were amongst the second flock.  A Grey Wagtail did fly over calling but I failed to see it and another good bird was a Great Spotted Woodpecker.

Newton Harcourt, Leicestershire - September 4, 2012

Another morning emptying Dave’s moth trap.  Thirty-seven moths were trapped of eighteen species.

The following were trapped: Brown House-moth [1]; Light Brown Apple Moth [1]; Dichorampha alpiana [1]; Chrysoteuchia culmella [1]; Maiden’s Blush [1]; Riband Wave [2]; Green Carpet [1]; Brimstone Moth [7]; Flame Shoulder [1]; Large Yellow Underwing [1]; Lesser Yellow Underwing [3]; Setaceous Hebrew Character [1]; Square-spot Rustic [5]; Centre-barred Shallow [1]; Flounced Rustic [2]; Burnished Brass [1]; Silver Y [5] and Straw Dot [2].

Possible Dichorampha alpiana

Chrysoteuchia culmella

Maiden's Blush

Square-spot Rustic

Straw Dot

A day in Leicestershire & Rutland - September 3, 2012

I went to Eye Brook Reservoir first today although the water levels are still very high with very little exposed mud.  Consequently there were no waders present other than Lapwing.  There were two Little Egrets and I had five Buzzards soaring right over my head and eventually saw eight and also three Red Kites.

There were a few butterflies and I swa a Small Copper, a Red Admiral and two Peacocks.

One of the Buzards over the Eye Brook perimeter road

From Eye Brook Reservoir I drove the short distance to Rutland Water and the north arm where there had been four Black-necked Grebes yesterday evening but there was no sign today.  There were five Barnacle Geese, six Little Egrets, a Common Sandpiper, a Greenshank and fifteen Common Terns.

On the reserve I went to lagoon four were there was a Little Ringed Plover, two Ringed Plover, two Dunlin, a Ruff, a Snipe, two Spotted Redshank, a Greenshank and a Redshank and another twelve Common Tern.  I Peregrine flew over and a Hobby was observed over Burley Wood.  Lagoon three is now full and other than numerous Gadwall and Tufted Ducks there was little else although I did see two Reed Warblers.

Wigeon over lagoon three

Gadwall over lagoon three

Gadwall over lagoon three

Juvenile Tufted Duck on lagoon four

Migrant Hawker from shoveler hide

From shoveler hide I went to snipe hide on the wet meadow where there was another Snipe and Green Sandpiper.  A walk to wigeon hide overlooking Manton Bay failed to produce Osprey as all three had probably departed today.