October is a good month for seeing Bearded Tits, so with the weather bright and with fairly light winds on Monday I went along the paths down to the Sluice.
Opposite the Wildlife Lookout Hide there was a small group of them.
Do you mind if I join you?
While watching the Bearded Tits, Cetti's Warblers were calling all around us. As soon as the Bearded Tits left this Cetti's popped up in a bush right near me, sang, flew off then returned twice more posing beautifully each time.
On the walk to Island Mere, a brief glimpse of a Treecreeper.
Didn't see much close enough for a photo at Island Mere apart from this White Egret flying past.
On the way to the visitor Centre, this Kestrel was hunting along the path.
A return visit a few days later and a Wren by the disabled Toilets.
Then this great Egret viewed through some reeds by the Wildlife Lookout Hide. The view was obscured but being breezy this time every now and then the wind would blow the reeds out of the way for a brief clear view.
Just past South Hide the Bearded Tits were about again.
Collecting grit from the path.
Then off.
Heading around to Island Mere after a Cheese Scone, I found Whistling Joe and his partner with cameras pointed into the undergrowth to the side of the path.
First off a parasitic Wasp that specialises on catching flies.
A sun bathing Lizard.
Something flew past us and landed on a nearby fence post, which WJ identified as a type of Sabre Wasp, a female, about 5cm long.
The main thing they had set up to watch was an Adder, which slowly revealed more of itself while we watched.
Then on to Island Mere.
First fly past of a Bittern, one of a few while I was there.
Then a Great Egret.
The Egret flew across the sun and after thinking I would just end up with a silhouette I got this.
Then another Bittern gave me one brief chance of a photo.
Many thanks to Whistling Joe for a fascinating discussion about cameras and to WJ and his partner for many insights into some of the smaller creatures on the reserve.
I was warned the reserve was a bit quiet, with all the work going on, but as usually happens a rewarding day was had anyway.
Best Wishes,
Trevor
Great catching up with you Trevor, always good to talk hardware & wildlife at the same time :-)
I looked up the wasp with the long ovipositor when we got home and I think it's Ephialtes manifestator - one of the Ichneumons. The common name of Bee Darwin Wasp is suggestive, we've seen it parasitizing bee hotel chambers before now.
The Fly Wolf (or Field Digger Wasp), Mellinus arvensis is one of the later digger wasps we see, and is likely reaching the end of their season now, but it great to see them still busy (I'll try and sort out some footage later on). We also saw one of the German Wasps zipping about take a Common Darter & dismember it - this pic, taken by Mrs WJ, shows the important bit (the thorax with those tasty flight muscles) just before taking them back to the nest
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Find me on Flickr / All about your camera - The Getting off Auto Index
(Pardon the Scottish Accent)
Lot to learn
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
Many thanks everyone for your very generous comments on my photographs from a couple of my best days at Minmere.
We had the chance of a brief visit again a couple of day ago and a combination of car trouble and an unexpected road closure meant we arrived too late for the best time for the Bearded Tits and had less than an hour before we had to leave.
What we did manage was a brief view of a Bittern from the path by the Wildlife Lookout Hide, we've only ever seen them on the wing from this part of the reserve before. This area seems to be our lucky spot at the moment because we saw the Bearded Tits, Cetti's Warblers and Great Egret from the same spot.
I took a burst of shots before it flew off and this was the only one where the eye didn't have a reed over it.
Kind regards, Ann