16th July.
After a dull start to the day, the afternoon brightened up with a slight SE wind. It became quite hot and John recorded a Speckled Wood flying over the field drain in our garden. He later saw two more flying between the garden and the saltmarsh.
Speckled Wood on grasses over a field drain in hamlet.
Later in the evening two tiny rabbits came under the gate into the garden from the marsh where they have a series of burrows. The proceeded to play with Magpies who were feeding under the bird hanger by the gate.
Two young Rabbits at dusk.
18th July.
After very strong SW winds overnight and rain most of the day, we observed a Roe Deer with two fawns seeking shelter amongst the grasses in the orchard. John had previously cut wide rides amongst the trees there which made for easy access for them. The last we saw of them was as they made their way (presumably the way they had come) back onto the Discovery Field.
Roe Deer at dusk peering through the vegetation.
LOGBOOK SIGHTINGS
Visitor - Bullfinch, Redshank, Swift, Swallow, Greenfinch, Buzzard, Pied Wagtail, Heron.
19th July.
LOGBOOK Sightings.
CT - Green Sandpiper, Scrape 12.30pm.
HKM - Female Common Darter, Fox - Lonning.
Black-headed Gulls and Curlew are starting to appear on the estuary.
22nd July.
Rained most of the morning but as the sun came out mid afternoon, insects started fly and a Swift was seen hawking over the top of the saltmarsh. Numerous Meadow Browns and a Large Skipper could be seen there. The Speckled Wood also put in an appearance.
As the tide receded early evening an increasing number of Oystercatchers, Lapwings and Black-headed Gulls were coming to feed on the mudflats.
Swift seen flying over the saltmarsh. They will be leaving us soon to spend winter in South Africa.
Meadow Brown on saltmarsh.
Red Admiral on Thistles.
Speckled Wood on seeding grasses - hamlet garden as sun came out mid-afternoon.
Black-headed Gull numbers are starting to increase on the mudflats . . .
. . . as are Lapwings and Oystercatchers.
LOGBOOK SIGHTINGS.
Visitor - Snipe.
23rd July.
Cooler today. Lots of young birds about. Watched a very small rabbit come under the gate into the garden from the marsh and join the Chaffinches who were feeding under the hangers there.
Very small Rabbit and Chaffinches.
24th July.
Sunny most of the day but a fretful westerly wind was blowing, making it a little cooler than of late.
Mallard with six ducklings on hide pool at 5pm - Photo by Urisa Reungsuwan
25th July.
Sunshine with large cumulus clouds drifting across the estuary. A light westerly wind was blowing but it was warm in the sunshine.
HKM - Female Common Darter and a female Southern Hawker on the Lonning. Male Bullfinch on the feeders.
N & M - Sandpiper on the dipping pond.
26th July.
Sunshine and showers all day. In the evening the Roe Deer and her two fawns appeared in the garden. The fawns ran about wildly chasing each other, whilst the mother grazed on the hawthorn hedge and damson trees. Eventually they made their way through the orchard and finally back to the Discovery Field.
Female Roe Deer . . .
. . . brings fawns into the garden.
They look as if they are being trained to forage for themselves.
Adult had been grazing on the hawthorn hedge but now she has turned her attention to more succulent damson leaves.
Fawn gets a bit restless and starts to run about on the open space of the lawn.
The other one joins in . . .
. . . and a mad scamper starts.
It gets a bit too exciting, though.
Something else has grabbed this one's attention.
. . . and it's the water bath.
Perhaps the bird feeding area looks interesting.
Oh no! It's playtime again.
The last we saw of them as they disappeared back into the Discovery Field - whence they came.
27th July.
The sharp NE wind brought about cooler conditions. It had rained most of the day and the channel off Scargavel Point seemed swollen consequently. A small party of Mallard were dabbling there and a good sized flock of Lapwings (about 100) had arrived on the mudflats. A Deer was seen moving about in the orchard.
Visitor - Whinchat, Sedge Warbler, Deer.
28th July.
Had rained most of the day.
RDC - 2.30 - 3.30pm 85 Swifts moving west over the Common Boardwalk.
29th July.
Sunshine and showers. Good flock of Oystercatchers with Lapwing and Redshank - half an hour after hightide, just before midday.
After lunch we set off for a walk. As we entered the Lonning a car full of birders from Kendal pulled up to tell us that they had spotted a Little Ringed Plover on the Saltmarsh Pool. So we about turned and headed off in that direction. The pool was drying up and quite muddy making it the perfect camouflage for birds using it.. It was fairly easy to spot a number of Teal (green speculum flashing in the sunshine) and several Lapwing with well developed young. A Pied Wagtail flitted about in the foreground but the Little Ringed Plover was harder to spot. Eventually we did locate it, however.
Having returned to the Wetlands Centre, we found it to be a hive of activity: Norman and visiting RSPB Staff were having lunch in the sunshine outside; a number of visitors ( some were cyclists) were milling around; Chris Spencer was holding a Wildlife Explorers Workshop for local children and a small party of younger children and adults had just arrived in a small bus. Everybody seemed to be enjoying themselves - There was a lot of hammering going on in the direction of the picnic area. We discovered later that they had all been making nest boxes.
We pressed on down the Lonning. Birds were virtually absent now but a few butterflies and flowering plants were spectacular in their own way.
RF - Little Ringed Plover - Scrape.
Large numbers of Oystercatchers with Lapwings, other waders and Gulls are starting to amass on the mudflats - each with their own feeding style.
Oystercatchers and Lapwings.
Oystercatchers with Redshank further out.
Umbelliferates along the Lonning . . .
. . . seem attractive to Soldier Beetles - otherwise know as Bloodsuckers, although they don't!
Bullrushes in farm pond.
Knapweed flowering.
Small Tortoiseshell on Marsh Thistle which are just starting to flower.
30th July.
Sunny all day which made for a milder conditions in spite of a brisk SW wind blowing.
On the estuary ever increasing flocks of gulls and waders were forming. A collection appeared just west of the Viaduct in a corner sheltered from the wind.
The estuary corner at the end of the Viaduct is a gathering point not only for waders and gulls!
Oystercatcher fly-by at high tide.
A short walk in the sunshine along the top of the marsh, elicited plenty of butterflies either amongst the grass seed heads or on bramble flowers: lots of Meadow Browns, a couple of Ringlets and a Large Skipper (rather worn). Grasshoppers were everywhere underfoot. Further down on the marsh Prickly Restharrow was just starting to flower. A Speckled Wood was seen flying back and forth from the saltmarsh over the houses in the hamlet.
Prickly Restharrow is to be seen springing up on the saltmarsh.
After lunch, on a walk down the Lonning, we counted 20 Meadow Browns, 9 Green-veined Whites, 2 Red Admirals, a Small Tortoiseshell, a female Southern Hawker and a number of Azure and Large Red Damselflies. The butterflies were mostly feeding on Brambles that are starting to flower - obviously they are nectar rich. John spotted a Pied Wagtail on the workshop roof, feeding a young one.
Bramble flowers are now a good source of nectar for a number of insects: seen here is a Green-veined White butterfly and a Hoverfly . . .
. . . a Large Skipper (rather worn) . . .
. . . and a Meadow Brown.
A male Ringlet
Red Admirals seem to enjoy the warmth of the track.
Female Southern Hawker on the Lonning hedge.
A female Large Red Damselfly - typica.
A male Azure Damselfly.
Early evening, back in the hamlet, we were surprised to see a Grey Squirrel drop down from overhanging branches onto the lawn, have a quick drink from the water trough and then spring straight back up into the branch above.
Grey Squirrel had been drinking from the water trough in the garden.
The Grey Squirrel had initially dropped down from the branches above . . .
. . . and was now getting ready to take a flying leaf back up again.