Red-footed Falcon twitch Saturday July 11

After announcing I wouldn't be twitching the Red-footed Falcon north of Stoke yesterday, I duly did a complete U-turn and went to see it today.

The journey up the M6 was as tedious as I had suspected, particularly the return journey. Lyn had considered coming with me, but I wasn't sure whether the bird would be easy to view from a wheelchair at Chatterley Whitfield Colliery, so she decided against it.

As it turned out she would have seen it easily as it was viewable from the entry road without difficulty. I took my sketchbook in case it was distant, but it was easy to photograph.

West Mids tick 296

The bird was a first-summer male, and perched on fence posts, periodically flying down to a lawn in front of one the colliery buildings. On the other side of the fence was a sloping pasture field containing a couple of horses. Having brought the sketchbook it seemed a shame not to use it so I started sketching. Half way through I became aware of a fat old bloke walking through the field clapping his hands. The falcon flew off. Thanks mate!

While waiting to see if it would return I noticed a little flurry of activity as someone spotted a distant Black Redstart. It was not a great view, but you could see it was a female/immature (probably the latter) bird. I heard a Siskin fly over.

The Falcon was relocated back down the road, but more distant, so I resumed sketching activity, before I decided it was time to head back.

Earlier this morning the omens had been good when I found a bathroom-tick in the form of a moth which I eventually identified as a Small Phoenix. I caught it and let it go in the garden. It promptly flew to the brickwork on the side of the house.

Small Phoenix

Friday July 10

A largely sunny morning. I have to say there was very little to report. The highlight was a Hobby seen a few times as it hunted dragonflies over the main pool.

Other than that there was a pair of Teal on the furthest flash and 30 Lapwings on the nearest. No Green Sandpipers!

I was concentrating on finding and sketching Kestrels. They are the ideal subject as they sit about and let you get on with it.

I should, of course, be on my way to Stoke to see the Red-footed Falcon, which would be a terrific West Mids tick. However, Stoke seems a really long way, and I had a few things planned this afternoon, so I doubt I will go.

The only other bird of note today, was a Little Grebe on the only deepish pool, behind the flash field.

Wednesday July 8

A cool sunny evening. Not much to report really. A pair of Teal on the drying out pool, three Green Sandpipers and a handful of Lapwings on the flash.

The highlight was a small flock of mixed finches and warblers, including Sedge Warbler, Reed Warbler, Whitethroats, and a very angry Lesser Whitethroat which mobbed me with its hard "tuck" calls. Presumably I was uncomfortably near its nest or fledglings.

The Lesser Whitethroat

Sunday July 5

A rather cloudy, cool morning allowed the opportunity for photographing some chilled butterflies, but also meant that dragonflies were hard to find.

As far as birds were concerned there was no real change to report, apart from a record count of 98 Swifts hunting insects over the farmland. Four Green Sandpipers and a Little Ringed Plover, plus 20 Lapwings occupied the ever increasing muddy margins of pool and flash. The local Tit flocks are now much in evidence, and one by the flash included Lesser Whitethroat, Blackcap, and about six Chiffchaffs.

Butterflies included an estimated 100 Meadow Browns and Ringlets, about 20 each of Marbled Whites, Large Skippers, and Small Tortoiseshells, and smaller numbers of Small Heaths plus a Comma, a Peacock, a Painted Lady, and the first Small Skippers of the year.

Small Skipper

Large Skipper

Marbled White

Other interesting insects included a little group of male Dark Bush Crickets, and two Large Yellow Underwing moths reflecting how variable the pattern of the upper wings can be.

Dark Bush Cricket

Large Yellow Underwing

Another Large Yellow Underwing

One slightly disappointing piece of news concerns Margrove Coppice. I was able to speak to the gamekeeper there, and he confirmed that it is private, so can only be viewed from the road or from the footpath along it's short northern edge.

Scarlet Tiger

I wasn't birding today, but a visit to Hiller's Garden Centre near Alcester produced a couple of very beautiful moths, one of which I photographed. I knew immediately that they were tiger moths, and a quick look at a children's moth book in the gift shop left me certain they were Scarlet Tigers.

Scarlet Tiger

When I got home I checked my Lewington moth book and confirmed that I had the identification right. I had a quick look at their status and found them described as "local".

At this point I decided to look at my copy of Larger Moths of Warwickshire and found a photograph of one under the heading "vagrant moths". Eh? A quick look at the text and it turns out that there are only four Warwickshire records. The county status is described as "uncertain" and "suspected vagrant".

I need to tell someone.

PS Thank you to Kevin for his comments about Scarlet Tiger. He has seen them in his garden in Stratford, so perhaps they are not as rare as they were in 2006, when the Warwickshire moth book was published. Insects seem to be capable of incredibly fast status changes, e.g. Tree Bumblebee and Roesell's Bush Cricket. Global warming in action.

Friday July 3

A sunny morning with a light south-easterly breeze.

I set out with my sketchbook with the intention of finding a Grey Heron, and this time one was present. It was a juvenile bird and stood, half obscured by the long grass, on the nearest flash.

It stayed just long enough for me to complete a couple of quick sketches, before, probably fully aware of me hiding behind the hedge, it decided to take off and fly away.

Earlier, I had become aware of plenty of insects. Some were biting me, but others were butterflies and dragonflies. In particular Marbled Whites were very plentiful, but just as flighty. The only one I managed to photograph had seen better days.

Marbled White

Also on the wing were lots of Large Skippers, Small Heaths, Meadow Browns, and a single Brimstone and a Small White.

Small White

Both Reed Warbler and Sedge Warbler were singing in the reed-bed.

Sedge Warbler

The waders on the main pool comprised four Green Sandpipers, and a Snipe. Mirroring the butterflies, there were many dragonflies on the wing. The pool behind the nearest flash was particularly good, lots of Black-tailed Skimmers, several Emperors, and a variety of damselflies. I spent a long time here due to a flight view of a dark dragonfly I couldn't put a name to. I only saw it twice as it got attacked by Black-tailed Skimmers, and shot away.

male Black-tailed Skimmer

I am tempted to speculate on what the mystery insect might have been. It was the size of a Black-tailed Skimmer, and I got the impression of a blob-ended rear to the abdomen. Perhaps it was just a rotten view of a female Black- tailed Skimmer, or a Four-spotted Chaser, but more optimistic thoughts led me to  hope it might be a Downy Emerald (unknown in Warwickshire) or a Hairy Dragonfly (very rare in Warwickshire).

Dream on.

Wednesday July 1

After a blisteringly hot day, the full force of which I only experienced for half an hour at lunchtime in Birmingham city centre, I was curious to know how the patch was bearing up.

So this evening I had a brisk stroll to the Flashes and back to Netherstead. As expected the pond on the way to the main pool now has a very extensive shoreline. The main pool, which is very shallow for much of its expanse, is showing an increasing amount of mud, but only three Little Ringed Plovers and a Green Sandpiper were in evidence.

Perhaps surprisingly, the two Flashes are now very different from one another. The furthest has plenty of water and no birds, while the nearest has been reduced to little more than a puddle, but hosted 24 Lapwings, and four Green Sandpipers.

Ironically my ornithological highlight this week came from my journey to work on Monday, when I heard a Siskin call as it flew high over King's Heath. This seems a strange record, but it's not unprecedented for early Siskins to turn up in good Crossbill years. The next few weeks will determine whether this will be one of them.