The Bennerley Bugle No. 21
May 27, 2014 in The Bennerley Birders Pages by Bennerley
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| Robin |
Thursday, 22nd. May. 2014. Bennerley Marsh.
Maximum Temperature: 14°C (57°F), Wind Direction: East North Easterly, Wind Speed: 7mph, Visibility: Good, Sunset: Cloud, Rain. 21:07 BST.
A day of dodging showers and not really a day for insects, just a single Orange Tip butterfly and a single Large Red Damselfly, plus a few hardy Bees!
A large female Sparrowhawk was patrolling the numerous copse’s around the site and a lone Redshank was sharing the marsh with half a dozen Lapwing and a handful of Swallows and Swifts.
More Swallows and swifts along with Meadow Pipits and Skylarks were at Chat Corner and that was about it, apart from the rain of course.
Bennerley. 2 Greylag Goose, 6 Lapwing, Redshank, 3 Black-headed Gull, 7 Swift, 4 Swallow, Sparrowhawk [F.] Kestrel, 2 Blackcap, 2 Whitethroat, Willow Warbler, 3 Mistle Thrush, 2 Song Thrush. Plus. 1 Orange Tip Butterfly, 1 Large Red Damselfly. Chat Corner. 4 Skylark, 3 Meadow Pipit, Reed Bunting, 3 Swift, 2 Swallow.
Friday, 23rd. May, 2014. Bennerley Marsh.
Maximum Temperature: 17°C (63°F), Wind Direction: South Easterly, Wind Speed: 13mph, Visibility: Very Good, Sunset: 21:09 BST.
As the un-official, unpaid and probably unwanted Bennerley Warden I made a tour of my patch [someone has to!] Tathams Pond was on form song-wise with Reed Warblers and Sedge Warblers, I’m still waiting for Cetti’s Warbler to arrive at this location, its perfect, it will happen I’m sure!
A single Grasshopper Warbler was “reeling”at the North Marsh plus more “Sedgies” and a single Reed Warbler, now I did have Cetti’s here a couple of years ago so there is always hope.
Back at Bennerley I bumped into a couple of my favorite small butterflies, Small Coppers as well as quite a few Banded Demoiselles.
Botany Bay. 2 Blackcap, 3 Whitethroat. Tathams Pond. Reed Bunting, 4 Reed Warbler, 2 Sedge Warbler, 2 Tufted Duck. North Marsh. 7 Reed Bunting, 3 Sedge Warbler, Reed Warbler, Grasshopper Warbler, 3 Whitethroat, 15 Sand Martin, 2 Grey Heron. Shipley Gate. 2 Tufted Duck, 9 House Martin, 6 Swallow, 5 Sand Martin. Bennerley. 7 Lapwing, 2 Gadwall, 2 Greylag Goose, 2 Grey Heron, Cormorant, Willow Warbler, Blackcap, Bullfinch, 2 Song Thrush. Butterflies. 8 Orange Tip. 8 Small White, 2 Small Copper. Plus. 11 Banded Demoiselle Danselflies.
Saturday, 24th. May, 2014. Long Eaton Gravel Pits & Attenborough NR.
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| Chaffinch, Kingfisher Hide Feeders. |
Maximum Temperature: 14°C (57°F), Wind Direction: East South Easterly, Wind Speed: 9mph, Visibility: Moderate, Sunset: 21:10 BST.
A very wet day for the most part so I spent a lot of time, unusually for me, in the various hides around Attenborough which gave me the chance to try my new central column clamp, which saves using the tripod legs and it works a treat!
I started at Long Eaton GP’s, there were many hirundines and Swifts, a real treat to see so many over the big still working pit, mostly Swifts, then Swallows followed by House Martins and Sand Martins, as I say, a real treat!
Up at Attenborough it was a cast of thousands but not much stood out apart from a ventricular Cuckoo [or was it two!] Common Terns, twenty five on the main pit, zipping about and Cetti’s Warblers on every bush – well four bush’s at least! Support was from the more common warbling birds and the regular waterfowl that frequent Attenborough.
Long Eaton GP’s. 8 Gadwall, 5 Great Crested Grebe, 4 Common Tern, Chiffchaff, Whitethroat, 140 Swift, 95 Swallow 50 House Martin, 35 Sand Martin. Attenborough NR. Coneries. 3 Sedge Warbler, 2 Reed Warbler, 2 Blackcap, 6 Gadwall, 4 Great Crested Grebe. Clifton Pond. 2 Cettis Warbler, 4 Blackcap, 4 Whitethroat, Garden Warbler, 4 Sedge Warbler, 2 Reed Warbler,10 Swallow, 6 Swift, 4 Great Crested Grebe, 2 Little Grebe, 4 Common Tern, 2 Grey Heron. Main Pond. 25 Common Tern, 2 Egyptian Goose, 2 Gadwall, 2 Great Crested Grebe. Delta. 5 Reed Bunting, Cuckoo, Sedge Warbler, 4 Swift. Tween Pond. 11 Gadwall, Teal, 6 Lapwing, 3 Common Tern, 2 Grey Heron, Cettis Warbler. Church Pond. 4 Common Tern, Great Crested Grebe. Sailing Pit. 2 Sedge Warbler, 3 Common Tern, 3 Grey Heron.
Sunday, 25th. May, 2014. Bennerley Marsh/Cossall.
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| Grey Heron, Nottingham Canal, Cossall |
Maximum Temperature: 16°C (61°F), Wind Direction: Southerly, Wind Speed: 14mph, Visibility: Good, Sunset: 21:11 BST.
As far as Sunday goes I’m sort of “old school lazy” and the unmade lanes and bridleways around Cossall is ideal for this frame of mind and you really don’t know what you might see, I didn’t expect to encounter many insects today but the Nottingham Canal turned up a few Red-eyed, Common Blue and Azure Damselflies as well as a few common butterflies.
Spring Wood seemed to be the liveliest with Buzzards, Skylarks and one each of Lesser White Throat and Green Woodpecker.
Bennerley. 2 Gadwall, 2 Greylag Goose, Grey Heron, 5 Lapwing, 3 House Martin, 3 Swallow, 4 Swift. Willow Warbler, Green Woodpecker. Butterflies. 2 Speckled Wood, Orange Tip. Cossall. Kestrel, 2 Grey Heron, Chiffchaff, 4 Blackcap, 1 Lesser Whitethroat, 5 Lapwing, 2 Song Thrush, Green Woodpecker, 5 Pheasant. Old Moor Wood. Jay, Blackcap, Whitethroat, 18 Swallow. Spring Wood. 4 Buzzard. 5 Skylark, Whitethroat. 6 Pheasant, 10 Swallow, Green Woodpecker. Butterflies. 3 Small Tortoiseshell, Speckled Wood, 3 Large White, 6 Orange Tip, 13 Small White. Damselflies. 12 Red-eyed, 5 Common Blue, 4 Azure.
