The last 24 hours or so have all blurred into one... It started for me with a walk around the marsh in the scorching August sunshine with a good long stop in the Cordite for some quality Hoverating. A couple of male Eristalis intricaria were defending their territories in a typically showy hoverfly manner with short hovers followed with incredible bursts of exceleration. Jerry Hoare did exceptionally well to get this shot.
Big and bold Volucella zonarias and pellucens lounged without any fear of being eaten and there were clouds of Marmalades and Syrphus while Michael Rumsby snapped a fine Dasysyrphus albostriatus.
Dasysyrphus albostriatus (Michael Rumsby)
Volucella zonaria (HTV)
Brown Argus and Common Blues were to be found in the Adventure Playground and both species were also present around the Ken Barrett Hide.
The air show up the road near Belhus gave us great views of the B17G and a Victory Rolling Spitfire as well as some loony in a stunt plane and the Thames was polulated by the old rust red sails of old Barges... there is always something to see!
Aveley Pools are the main draw at the moment and with quickly dropping water levels it looks to be the place for passage waders this season. The light was not that good at lunchtime but there was a good spread of birds to be seen but more of that later.
With the day pushing on we set about preparations or our third Big Wild Sleepout and by six o’clock everyone was in the car park and loading their tents and gear onto the back of the trailer so that the tractor could take it all the way around to the Reedbed Discovery Zone where we would be based for the night.
The first of several bonuses for me yesterday evening was being designated back marker and lockerupper of the building. The Big Wilders headed down the river wall with their blue shirted hosts, Andrew trundled off in the tractor and I had the place to myself for a leisurely amble through the woodland and onto the Northern Trail where a short respite on the platforms revealed that the pools had come alive as the temperature dropped and the day drew to a close. There were now 56 smart Black-tailed Godwits spread out across the shallow pools, all voraciously feeding belly deep in the water. In amongst them were far more Teal than I had thought present and a single eclipse drake Wigeon. Coots and Moorhens were more obvious and both Green and spangly Wood Sandpiper were along the back edge with ten Dunlin. A female Marsh Harrier moved across and several parties of Sand Martin whizzed east.
Wood Sandpiper (Neil Hughes)
Down at the RDZ tent construction was well underway and the atmosphere was great as the slight wind died down and the looming dark cloud moved on to reveal the makings of a good sunset.
We set about sorting out the moth trap for the evening and Jim and Vicky pond dipped so that we could all have a look at what they caught. It was very different to a normal daylight catch with countless tiny critters wheeling away through the water – each much smaller than a pin head. We also found a tiny surface dwelling bug that Jim is working on (probably as we speak!) There were plenty of Mayfly larvae and the odd Caddis in its case, a single small escapologist Leech and a single Water Scorpion with a broken breathing tube.
While the kids were creating a wonderful lantern each (non airborne I hasten to add), Pat and Ken headed off for the dusk walk and within a few minutes they had seen two Barn Owls around the Central Control Building. It was not long before they came to visit and everyone else seen had lovely views of this ghostly silent hunter. The sunset was as awesome as we hoped and three Marsh Harriers were seen heading north, presumably to roost while Snipe ‘screeped’ and Green Sandpipers ‘ whit-whitted’ overhead.
In the last of the light a flock of about 60 Swallows arrived and circled noisily overhead for some time before heading for wherever they chose to spend the night and with that the two walks reconvened and the mothing session began. As expected it was dominated but thousands of Chironomid midges and Water Boatman along with a smattering of other small aquatic beetles. Some moths eventually came in and seemed to mostly be Marbled Minors and Bulrush Wainscots as well as quite a few thundering ginger Drinker Moths. Both sexes were seen and great to see the end result of those caterpillars we see all around the trails! The kids (and everyone else) behaved impeccably and thanks to Gillie for finding the cracking Herald moth on the wall behind the sheet!
Mrs Drinker
Mr Drinker
Bulrush Wainscot
The Herald - all taken by me
I had set my alarm for 2245 and gathered everyone away from the light to watch the heavens for a few minutes and bang on cue the International Space Station hurtled over at 17,100mph with its fins showing and the whole thing glowing brightly. Everyone was spellbound and most had never seen it before so I got the whole rapt audience to wave at the crew 258 miles above our heads.
At just after 11pm most people had left for their tents but I still had a job to do and escorted Jim and Vicky back off site so that they could go home to their own bed, leaving me to amble back on foot. I found myself sat in the dark as the clock ticked over to a new day, once again overlooking Aveley Pool with only the sounds of croaking Marsh Frogs, quarrelling Herons, the odd quacking Gadwall and plipping Teal, fizzy pylon cables and the ever hunting Barn Owl for company...
I tried the bat detector and was pleased to discover ‘clicking’ at 25kHz and thought that I had found some Noctules, until I discovered that the pylons were creating the sound with their regular crackles!
A swift Spitfire and then off to bed with the sound of hundreds of Black-headed Gulls having some sort of noisy roosting seminar as they drifted out of the river. Smiles all round and sleep soon came to visit although I did awaken when a fairly large (I'm guessing) spider ambled across my face...
Only to be banished again about four hours later when my alarm went off to send me back to the front gate to let the catering crew in at six to get the breakfast ready...
It was a pleasant if quick walk back along the Northern Trail and the pools looked gorgeous in the early morn light. The Barn Owl was still up hunting and most of the Big Wilders were still snoozing although the restless ones were already out with Pat. The trails were alive with early foraging Reed Warblers, Wrens and Linnets. Cetti's Warblers scolded me as I passed and the Black Tailed Godwits were snickering on Aveley Pool.
A superb Brown Hawker was patrolling near the Troll Bridge and the first Migrant Hawkers of the year were already on the wing and it was not even 6am!
Brown Hawker (Lawrence Rogers)
And after the eventual consumption of some quality bacon and sausages, that was that... The trailer was unloaded and tired but apparently happy Big Wilders began to drift off home just as the first of the new days visitors began to arrive on a second blistering summers day...
Another ten hours has elapsed since I started this post so I am defintely calling it a night!
Sleep well...
9-8-15
Howard Vaughan, Information Officer