Tuesday July 22 - Grimley and Morton Bagot

 I was very tempted to call this post confessions of a lapsed twitcher. About twelve days ago a Black-crowned Night-heron was discovered at Camp Lane Pits, Grimley near Worcester. For some reason there was a delay of five days before the news was widely broadcast. But when it was, the bird became very popular with lots of county listers. That was when I should have gone.

Instead, my initial reaction was to wonder whether I'd seen one in the county before. I concluded I probably hadn't, and indeed it turned out that it had been a bogey bird for most in Worcestershire. My problem was that it was more than 20 kms away, and therefore could prove awkward in my current domestic circumstances. I kind of wrote it off. But as the days passed and the bird stayed, it bothered me more and more.

This morning I could stand it no longer. I got up early and went. It was a long time since I'd been to this part of Grimley, and I was in for a shock. The pit I remembered was quite small with a few gravel islands. Twenty years on, its huge, reed-lined, and impressive. Fortunately another birder had arrived just before me, Dan, a patch birder from just the other side of the river. He knew where to go, but like me he hadn't dragged himself away from his patch until today.

An hour later, though joined by several other hopeful twitchers, the omens looked bad. There was no sign of it. My time ran out and I reluctantly headed back to the car empty-handed. Fate gave me a bit of a break before I left the site as an orange-tailed bird "ticked" loudly before disappearing into a hedge along the north footpath. It had to be a Redstart, and with a little patience, I got a second chance to see it reasonably well.

Later in the morning I got back to what I know, and went to Morton Bagot. It wasn't too bad. The highlight was a Common Sandpiper among the Green Sandpipers, my first there this year.

There was even some back up in the form of a calling Yellowhammer, and a Garden Warbler within a loose mixed flock of warblers.

It may yet be that the Night Heron is still at Grimley, but I think the main problem is I just don't care about my Worcestershire list anymore. I probably won't go again.

Sunday July 20 - Earlswood and Morton Bagot (and moths)

 Trying to predict the best place to go birding, taking account of the weather, is a rather inexact science. I suspect most committed birders (or those who should be committed) do this. 

This morning it seemed like a no brainer. It was pouring with rain at 05:30, so within forty minutes I was at the largest water body within my Circle, Earlswood Lakes, hoping for the best. I'm reluctant to say expecting to see something because disappointment is also part of the game.

Sadly it didn't do the business. I got thoroughly wet for the sake of a Little Egret, three Common Sandpipers, three Common Terns, and a tatty second-summer Common Gull. The latter was only my second or third this year (they're not common around here), so I guess that got the accolade of best bird.

The Little Egret

In fact Earlswood is in a rather sorry state at the moment. The low water levels may bring the promise of wader passage, but they're also bringing death to the bigger fish in the lakes. Numerous dead Pike and Carp floated in the shallows. The Canals and River Trust have at least contracted someone to try to do something about it, and this morning water was being pumped into Windmill Pool with the intention, I assume, of increasing the oxygen levels.

After a late breakfast I headed for Morton Bagot in order to meet up with Dave who'd started at our normal time. The rain was now more showery, but after failing at Earlswood I was no longer feeling optimistic. Dave's best find was a Hobby which I missed after failing to follow his directions, but between us we managed to muster 10 Green Sandpipers, two Grasshopper Warblers, a Willow Warbler, and four Lesser Whitethroats. So pretty much the usual stuff.

Predicting moths is slightly different. The main prerequisite seems to be a warm night, preferably with not much breeze and maybe a little rain. Moonless is best. I picked Thursday night, mainly because Lyn and I were going to the theatre on Saturday and I didn't want to be too knackered. I still expected a big haul of moths, so 174 of 54 species was good, but not that good.

There were no major surprises either. About half the catch were the tiny Yponomeuta micros, and most of those were Bird-cherry Ermines. The rest were mostly familiar ones, and only 11 species were new for the year. There was also one which was new for the garden, but it was a tiny micro (6mm) and also apparently common (just not in our garden). That was Buff Mompha Mompha epilobiella. I should say that it never ceases to amaze me that common moths should wait this long to make their debut on my list. 

Mompha epilobiella

There were still a few noteworthy species. The first Least Yellow Underwing for four years, the first Maple Pug for a similar length of time (I proved myself lamentably inept at identifying it, having thought it was the very similar Slender Pug). An on-line expert came to my aid.

Least Yellow Underwing on the right (the other one is a worn Mint Moth)

Maple Pug on the window

White Satin Moth (first for two years)

Beautiful Plume. I see roughly one per year although they no doubt live in the garden.

Finally, the following evening I was pleased to see another Hummingbird Hawk-moth feeding on the Valerian, this one avoiding the local sparrows.

Thursday July 17 - Earlswood and Morton Bagot

 I may previously have said that rain is great for birding. I should have added sometimes. This morning I awoke to rain, and wasted no time getting to Earlswood before breakfast. My first scan revealed a couple of Common Terns, my first since the spring. I have to admit to a frisson of excitement as I swept my view back and forth along the muddy and shingly edges of the lakes. There was nothing. Well, no waders, save for a single Common Sandpiper on one of the rafts.

Such is life. There was still a few differences from my last visit; far fewer Sand Martins (just two), and Swifts (a dozen), but still plenty of Swallows. I decided to walk around Windmill Pool for a change, hoping to find the juvenile Little Grebe which Matt and Tony had seen recently. I was successful. Possibly only my second sighting of the species locally this year.

Part two of the morning came after breakfast when I decided to give Morton Bagot its chance to shine. The rain had largely stopped, and it was a bit muggy. At least one Grasshopper Warbler was singing from the chat field, and a couple of Lesser Whitethroats popped briefly into view. But my main goal was to check out the nearest flash.

The flash field at Morton Bagot can both impress and depress. It looks great at the moment, a perfect balance of wet mud and water. But scan as I might, all I could find was Green Sandpiper after Green Sandpiper. I counted eight of them, and no other wader species. A typical visit it has to be said.

There was one new arrival though; a pair of Teal, another staple of the flash, has returned for the autumn.

Changing the subject, my moth trap goes out tonight, and my new supply of moth pots arrived yesterday. There are going to be loads.

Tuesday July 15 -Earlswood Lakes

 With rain in the forecast, I decided to give Earlswood Lakes a try this morning. Unfortunately the rain was not overnight, and arrived while I was there. However it was overcast so there were plenty of Swifts (at least 52) and hirundines to look at. I estimated 70 Swallows and 30 Sand Martins, but Yvonne, who was organising a work party, later counted 60 Sand Martins perched on the raft wire, with several others visible in flight. Those rafts also supported the only waders I saw, namely two Common Sandpipers.

I had a pleasant walk round, photographing some of the Swallows perching in hawthorn when the heaviest rain swept in for example, and guess what, I can post photos again. Happy days.

The main talking point was the rediscovery of that annoying Herring Gull I featured back in March. At the time the water level was high, and I almost convinced myself it was a Yellow-legged Gull before wiser heads pointed out it wasn't.

Today there is a nice shoreline and the Gull was back in the same place with the same companion, a sub-adult Herring Gull. And I have to tell you I'm still not happy its just a Herring Gull. Don't worry, I'm absolutely sure its not a Yellow-legged Gull. The legs remain at best a dull straw colour and the feet pink. The primary tips have worn since March and are no longer as obviously Herring Gull-like, but that's just wear. The orbital ring is yellow on the lower and upper margin, but pink the front and back end. 

What bothers me is the contrast between the mantle colour of the oddity and the much paler Herring Gull. It's almost Lesser Black-backed-like, but clearly not dark enough when it was with obvious Lesser Black-backed Gulls on the island.

Another suggestion was that it might be an argentatus Herring Gull. If it is, why has it spent the summer paired with a Herring Gull at Earlswood? I should probably say that I've seen what I suspected was the same pair of Gulls since the original sightings, so I think they've never left. Here are some photos I took today.

So where does that leave us? It can't be a Yellow-legged Gull because of the primary pattern (no black on P5), the largely yellow orbital ring, and the legs being straw-coloured (although some Yellow-legs can be like that).

It can't be a Lesser Black-backed Gull because the mantle isn't dark enough, the orbital ring isn't red, and the legs aren't bright yellow.

But if it's a Herring Gull why is the mantle colour so dark, so Yellow-legged Gull-like? Why is the orbital ring not wholly yellow. Why are its legs straw coloured?

It's also noticeably smaller than its companion, which brings me to my latest suggestion. Why isn't it a hybrid Lesser Black-backed X Herring Gull? That's my latest theory.

So there we are, brightening up a dull day. And the photos are back. Whoo-hoo.

Sunday July 13 - Morton Bagot (and a whole heap of Friday night moths)

 Well this is a bit different. I have been unable to fix the photograph issue. It's a shame my prose isn't up to much.

Dave joined me today. Another hot one. We trudged around the patch with limited optimism. The best moment came an hour in, when I heard a Grasshopper Warbler singing from the Chat field. I called Dave over and while we listened in vain for another burst, I noticed that a crow flying some distance away was actually an accipiter. We watched in silence as it headed for Bannams. We both had the impression that it didn't look right for Sparrowhawk because it was actually a Goshawk. Presumably a male as it looked Crow-sized. 

The nearest flash has too narrow a muddy edge to provide much interest to passing waders, and we counted just four Green Sandpipers and 16 Lapwings. The only other surprise was a dead Pygmy Shrew on the path.

Which brings me to Friday night. Obviously it was warm and I was expecting a lot of moths. I take my hat off to proper moth-ers who tend their traps all night. I managed about fifteen minutes, most of which was spent trying to encourage a Hornet to leave the trap. I did grab a few moths, including what turned out to be a Southern Apple Moth, quite a local micro moth no doubt associating with our apple tree.

The following morning I emerged at 04.00 to find the box full of moths, mostly micros, and a dozen wasps queuing up for a free breakfast. I decided to intervene, remove the light source and drag the trap into the utility room. 

Five hours later I had counted 440 moths of 79 species. These included 33 new for the year, and at least four new for the garden. The new ones were the aforementioned Southern Apple Moth Recurvaria nanella, three Lesser-spotted Pinions (the only macros which were new), a Brassy Y Argyresthia goedartella, and a Dark Blackthorn Tip Moth Argyresthia albistria.

Two of the macros were garden seconds, a Least Carpet and the migrant Dark Sword-grass.

Throughout the morning I was hampered by a shortage of small pots and an excess of micro-moths. Several were too difficult for me to identify under the pressure of time and I suspect several potential new moths were written off for that reason.

I'll always prefer birding but my garden moth list (now in it's eighth year) is now 499, considerably more than the number of birds I've seen in Britain over the last fifty years.

PS: I had second thoughts about the Pinions and submitted them as Lunar Spotted Pinions. They were accepted as such, but if I ever catch another one I'll try to make sure I see the hind-wing.

Thursday July 10 - Earlswood Lakes

I'm afraid Blogspot is playing up again. It's the old uploading photos problem. I have been tempted to throw in the towel, but I guess I can limp on without photos while I try to sort things out.

I was up at the crack of dawn this morning and headed for Earlswood in the hope that something might have arrived in spite of the clear night and wall to wall sunshine.

It was pretty quiet. The only wader was a single Common Sandpiper, and the best of the rest were a Little Egret which departed to the north and a Ring-necked Parakeet calling from trees behind Windmill Pool.

Tuesday July 8 - A very brief appearance of a Humming-bird Hawk-Moth in the garden.

The brevity of this video is explained by the flicker of brown after the moth disappears from view. A House Sparrow flashed through the screen and the moth was seen no more.

R.I.P Humming-bird Hawk-moth. 😢

Tuesday July 8 - Morton Bagot

 Any thoughts that Morton Bagot might have joined in with the Black-tailed Godwit fest were quickly extinguished this morning. The farmer probably had one eye on the weather forecast when he ensured that the nearest flash would flood once more. As a result it contained just the Shelduck family (nine birds in all) and two Green Sandpipers. 

So the birding was pretty hopeless, but fortunately the morning was saved by a dragonfly. To be precise a Willow Emerald damselfly. This species is a relatively recent colonist which has spread north-west through England, reaching Morton Bagot about three years ago. I managed to see one about two years ago, but missed my chance to photograph it. This morning I put that right.

The key features are the long thin abdomen and the white dots on the end of the wings. It sounds as though they are now established locally, with singles at Earlswood last year and Middle Spernal recently.

It saved my morning though.

Monday July 7 - Morton Bagot and Earlswood Lakes

Yesterday was a day of showers, and the forecast was enough to put Dave off. In fact, my visit to Morton Bagot was largely a dry affair until I got caught out by a thunderstorm ten minutes before the end.

There were some good signs. A Grasshopper Warbler was singing near the dragonfly pools (although I couldn't see it), and two parties of Swifts totalling 44 birds headed south-west. Autumn really is here as far as the birds are concerned, and to emphasise the point I found that there are now 10 Green Sandpipers on the nearest flash as well as a Little Ringed Plover and a Kingfisher. 

But the real action happened this morning. I happened to awake early, and found it had just stopped raining. Surely Earlswood would be worth a punt? I decided to go, and I'm glad I did.

The first wader to claim my attention was a Redshank at the corner of Windmill Pool by the causeway. Despite being disturbed by early morning dog walkers it kept returning to the same spot, and I can't help suspecting that it's the same bird as was seen on June 12 and once since, though this begs the question where has it been in the meantime. Perhaps it is a new bird.

But this was just the hors d'oeuvre. After making my way across the causeway I scanned the shore off Wood Lane car park and discovered two summer plumaged Black-tailed Godwits. These were my first this year, and also a site tick.

I put the news out and managed to complete a circuit of Engine Pool without spooking them, but despite this only Janet managed to arrive in time to see them before they went. Unfortunately no-one seems to have witnessed their departure so I don't know which way they went, but presumably it was southwards away from their breeding grounds in Iceland.

I didn't have very long to scan for other birds but noticed at least seven Sand Martins and a few Swifts, both species which tend to leave early.

What a brilliant morning.

PS: I've subsequently discovered that there was a mass arrival of Black-tailed Godwits across West Midlands waters today, with 29 at Belvide Res, 28 at Upton Warren, four at Upper Bittell Res, and others at Middleton RSPB, Ladywalk, and Branston. And that's just the one's I've read about. I love it when "your birds" are part of a bigger picture. The only down side is that I wasn't able to get to Morton Bagot, so that will have gone unwatched.

Saturday July 5 - All about moths

Sorry moth-haters, the birding since Tuesday has been limited to one visit to Earlswood Lakes where, to be fair, the water level on Engine Pool is low enough to support waders. Unfortunately I saw none at all on Thursday, and nothing else better than a Whitethroat.

So that just leaves moths. I've now handed back the Clearwing pheromone lures, but before I did so I decided to try once more for Orange-tailed Clearwing. The result, as with last time was Yellow-legged Clearwing, one in the pot and one trying to get in. The one difference was that this time I devised a way of getting a nice photograph before it warmed up and flew off.

Yellow-legged Clearwing

A day later a much smaller moth flew into our bathroom during the day. A typical grain of rice-sized moth which looked vaguely novel to my naked eye, but put it under a lens and it transforms into something I'd never seen before. It was an Italian Bark Moth Metalampra italica, a species which was first recorded in Britain as recently as 2003. But things move fast in moth circles. They arrived in Warwickshire in 2017, and eight years later they are reasonably established.

Italian Bark Moth

That brings us to last night's moth-trapping session and 100 moths of 29 species. As is typical of this time of the year these included a good proportion which were new for the year, including a Shark which was my first for four years.

Shark

Nice though this was, another moth interested me much more.

One of the odd things about wildlife is how inappropriate many names are. In particular the term "Garden" implies ubiquity and dullness. But consider the two macro-moths and one bird prefaced by that word. The bird is Garden Warbler, a species I've never seen in my  garden and probably never will. They are not even all that common, although they are certainly dowdy.

The moths are Garden Tiger and Garden Dart. The problem here is time. When they were named it was fair enough, they were perfectly common in gardens fifty years ago. Since then their numbers have plummeted. Until this morning I'd never seen either, and had pretty much given up hope. Garden Tigers are spectacular looking, and I'd love to see one.

But it was the other one, Garden Dart, the extremely plain brown one, which I found this morning. Not that I knew what it was. I suspected it was something new, although I wouldn't have been surprised if it had just been a worn example of something familiar.

Garden Dart

It seemed too early in the year for Square-spot Rustic, a familiar species it vaguely reminded me of. I decided to try the Obsidentify app on it, and that suggested White-line Dart (70%) and Garden Dart (30%). I peered at on-line images trying to convince myself that the app could see something I couldn't, and eventually put some images on social media asking for assistance.

It turned out that the app was wrong (again), and it was indeed a Garden Dart. Now pretty scarce in Warwickshire and everywhere else, the kind of moth so dull-looking that it risks putting people off moths altogether, but maybe the only one I will ever see.

Hopefully I'll be better prepared if another does blunder into my trap one day.

Tuesday July 1 - Morton Bagot

 With the breeding season now winding down, I've decided to abandon my Circle wandering for the next four months to concentrate on watery habitats in the hope of some passage waders.

I was at Morton Bagot at 04:45 this morning, mainly to try to avoid the heatwave. I also had Water Rail on my mind, hoping for a second appearance and maybe some chicks. Well dream on, there was no sign of the Rail.

On the positive side the nearest flash looks decent again, and I counted eight Green Sandpipers, three Lapwings and an adult Little Ringed Plover. These are three of the four baseline waders here (the other being Snipe), anything else would be a win. At least Green Sandpiper numbers have doubled since Sunday.

There is much to be said for getting out early. The passerines in the hedgerows seemed to be in abundance and included a very brief Grasshopper Warbler, while the meadows were full of Knapweed in full bloom and many other flowering plants which I struggle to name. This morning I used my app to identify Lady's Bedstraw, though I've probably seen it here before.

I arrived home just after 07.05 and got a Whatsapp message that there were three Great White Egrets at Earlswood. John Oates had found them, so after checking Lyn was still fast asleep I jumped back in the car. Half way there I learned that they had flown off (and later turned up at Marsh Lane GP) so I returned home.

One final footnote; yesterday I had another go with some of John's Clearwing lures in the garden. Currant Clearwing appears to be absent, but I was successful in attracting a Lunar Hornet Moth and even managed to photograph it out of the pot before it flew off.

A very impressive wasp-mimic.