Sunday August 3

Sunny, breezy, fluffy clouds. Oh dear, a fluffy cloud day. Over the years I have nurtured a growing dislike of this type of weather. Blue sky and fluffy cumulus clouds scudding across from the south-west = no birds.

This is doubtless a drastic over simplification, but today was pretty typical. The breeze strengthened to the point where it was difficult to see passerines. The ones which did pop out were almost exclusively Chiffchaffs.

Chiffchaff

I reached the flash where I was pleased to count 13 Green Sandpipers and the Common Sandpiper plus  110 Greylag Geese and the juvenile Shelduck. Perhaps it wouldn't be such a bad morning after all. For a change I decided to enter Stapenhill Wood. This tiny wood has been left to its own devices for many years and consists of many rotting stumps, tall Ash trees, and a jungle of hawthorn and blackthorn. I was soon fighting my way through shoulder high nettles and brambles remembering why I so rarely go into it. The rotting wood is no doubt great for beetles etc, and also for fungi.

Unfortunately, despite buying a book on the subject, I remain entirely ignorant on the subject. This is some kind of bracket fungus.

Returning to my car I decided to try the flash again. En route I spotted the Little Grebe on the pool, and also proof that the pair had bred successfully.

Little Grebe chick

At the flash the cows had decided to visit the near flash en masse, and this had one beneficial effect. The Green Sandpipers were no longer spread out, but were (apart from one party pooper) all lined up for a group photo.

12 Green Sandpipers

All dots of course, but the cows were not content to leave it at that. They edged forward and flushed most of the waders to the near edge where I could get a better photograph to give you some idea of what a Green Sandpiper actually looks like.

A Green Sandpiper

This is about as close as I can get unless the waterlevel starts to drop on the main pool. That was about it. I recorded a single Swift and three Teal, two Whitethroats, and three Reed Warblers. The autumn migration will have to wait for another weekend.