Belvide - 24 Apr 19

Another set of photos from a visit to the West Midlands Bird Club reserve at Belvide today.

A Canada Goose cruises by.

A drake Tufted Duck passing by with ‘tuft’ streaming in the wind.

This one powering in for a landing.

Now with everything extended for splashdown.

And a pair doing the same.

One pair of Oystercatchers laid but a single egg. Here is the day-old hatchling with one of its parents.

The proud parents, one with a tasty(?) morsel.

The result of another food-gathering sortie. Looks as if this bird needs to cut its toe-nails!

Touch-down.

For scale here is a Common Sandpiper alongside a duck Tufted Duck. The diagnostic white extending up the shoulder is obvious on the sandpiper.

At extreme range and not as sharp as I would like but clearly shows the diagnostic dark wedge in the outer primaries that separates this species from possible confusion, but less likely, species of Arctic and Roseate Terns. There are other differences of course but flying birds at a distance are always challenging.

An instructive trio of summer Black-headed Gulls. The passing bird is an adult. On the water to the right is a first-summer bird with a complete dark hood and only aged by the brown in the folded wing. At the other extreme is a first-summer bird with almost no more black on the head than it would have had all winter.

This first summer Black-headed Gull has been in the wars – surprising it can fly anything other than circles. Even the tail is damaged.

In some ways typical arguments at a Black-headed Gull colony ... except that the calling bird looking to snatch the nesting material is in fact a second summer Mediterranean Gull with small black wing-tip marks on otherwise all-white wings. Note too the redder bill.

And here we see the much brighter legs and more extensive and blacker head markings.

More arguments – well probably not. The flying Black-headed Gull (more or less hiding the Mediterranean Gull) hovered like this for what seemed like several minutes ...

 ... Without much change in posture ...

...Even leading to a ‘foot in mouth’ problem – or was it toe-sucking as a prelude to ....

 ...What they were after all along.

Male Blackcaps can be a struggle to photo as they often, but now always, sing from within vegetation. Females, with brown caps, are always more of a challenge. Hawthorn buds in front of her.

This is a Sedge Warbler. Often in the same habitat as Reed Warbler and many people find the song confusing. Sedge has a less deliberate and more varied song. It is also often given from an exposed perch – as here – or even during a brief song-flight. Reed Warbler is much harder to see, singing whilst staying hidden in the vegetation – it is after all not much to look at, lacking even the supercilium of the Sedge.

What I had for breakfast was ...

... And what I am about to have for lunch is ... in front of the Sedge Warbler are four St Mark's Flies or Hawthorn Flies (Bibio marci). They characteristically fly with their legs hanging down. They very typically emerge on or around 25th April – St Mark’s day. These were two days early and perhaps should be St George’s flies!

You get two species for the price of one. Here we see that Sedge Warbler had faint crown stripes and an unmarked warm brown rump. A Tree Sparrow looks on – a much chunkier bird.

My first Comma butterfly this year. This was a ‘safety’ shot before I changed position to a better angle. As it transpired my only chance as it flew off.

A Speckled Wood butterfly.

Take care in the hides if you are an arachnophobe! I think this is a Garden Spider (Arameus diadematus).

(Ed Wilson)

Newport - Apr 2019

Not far from Newport there is a small marsh with an overlooking hide. The owners live at Wall Farm and are happy for birdwatchers to walk along the permissive path to the hide. Car parking is a problem in the narrow lane though

I visited recently and here are some of the photos I took:

The resident Mute Swans were visited by another two adult birds. This one, looking like a cob (male) seems to have a BTO ring on its right leg.

The other bird looks as if it has been in the wars.

... But flying strongly enough ... 

 ... And not about to give up after the first attempt. Wheels down ... 

... Seems to be having second thoughts ... 

... Looks like it will be splash and go ... 

... And away again.

A pair of Shelduck seems to have taken up residence. Today these, like the resident swans, had to deal with a pair of visitors. Here is the inbound drake.

And inbound the pair, the smaller and less brightly coloured duck in the lead.

The resident male was having none of it and set off in threatening pose.

Have seen off the visiting Shelduck the resident drake decided to harass the other ducks. Here is after a drake Gadwall.

And here having another go.

The drake Gadwall comes back.

Pleased with himself the drake Shelduck returns.

And now the duck Gadwall is put to flight.

And the drake Shelduck is off again.

The ducks all gather together for protection – the pair of Gadwall and a drake Shoveler.

The Shoveler was not immune from being chased by the Shelduck. Here he comes back. Great plumage with the green head and speculum and blue forewing.

A pair of Little Grebes is nesting here. This one was doing the fishing. What exactly has it caught? 

Looks like a newt to me.

There are currently three very noisy Oystercatchers. Here are two of them

Not sure what caused this, but most things panicked. The ducks are Teal. The Oystercatcher is obvious. Less obvious are two Dunlin that I did not realise were present until later. Small waders with, in summer, a distinctive black belly.

All three Oystercatchers were put to flight ... 

... Before doing what Oystercatchers do best – head-down making loud piping calls.

 If you thought these were practicing for the Lapwing formation team you were mistaken ...

... They are ‘out of sync’ anyway, but ... 

 ... It was all about territory and occasionally got rather dramatic.

I mentioned the two Dunlin. Here they are in front of the duck Gadwall. The rufous back and black belly of these breeding-plumage birds belies the two-tone grey plumage we see them wearing in winter on our estuaries. The duck Gadwall needs a handkerchief.

Same view enlarged somewhat.

A Small Tortoiseshell butterfly. Although some individuals hibernate this specimen looks too fresh and is surely a new brood.

Orange-tip butterflies do not hibernate so this is a new brood. Only males have the orange tip, the females being all white above and with a very intricately patterned underwing. I had not previously realised that ‘orange tip’ is a misnomer. The very wing-tips are grey!

Both the plant and the insect have me beat. The plant looks like an all-white Red Deadnettle – if such a thing exists.

Well it is Easter... and it is a working farm.

(Ed Wilson)