Thursday 30 May 2013

BONSAI BANK HOLIDAY

According to the weathergirls monday was the only day this week with any sunshine,so I headed to the Hoe to do a butterfly transect and found a few wall browns, small heaths,dingy skippers and small whites.The early spider orchids have been very late this spring but eventually put up 8500 blooms and they are still worth a visit.
EARLY SPIDER ORCHID
SMALL HEATH
DINGY SKIPPER
 
WALL BROWN
 
After completing the transect I headed for Denge Wood to try for the Duke of Burgundy Fritillary,and on reaching Bonsai Bank found several specimens on the wing.
THE DUKE
OF BURGUNDY FRITILLARY
Males have four walking legs and females have six so I guess this is a male,
and this one too.
There were lots of Lady Orchids on the bank and Early Purple orchids in the woodland on the way from Garlinge Green as well as Bluebells still in bloom.
LADY ORCHID
EARLY PURPLE ORCHID
BLUEBELL
YELLOW ARCHANGEL
There were nightingales,willow warblers,blackcaps and chiffchaffs in song here too.
Since monday the sun has kept well hidden and looks likely to stay that way until next monday,one ray of hope I can remember the spring of 1976 being similar and that turned out not a bad summer.

Friday 24 May 2013

EMPEROR MONTAGUE BONEPART

Its been quite a week really,starting with the reluctant twitch at Margate for the dusky thrush,then finding five emperor moths at Oare plus Bonepartes gull and the Montagues harrier at Reculver.



DUSKY THRUSH MARGATE CEMETRY.thanks Malcom for persuading me to go.
EMPEROR MOTH, OARE.You can just see the male underneath in cop.
A second male EMPEROR MOTH was too late this time around.I had never seen this moth before but according to my moth book they are not uncommon.
BONEPARTES GULL at Oare

NOTE THE NEAT BLACK BILL

with BLACK HEADED GULL


PINK LEGS SHOWING WELL.


ONE LAST CRY OF DEFIANCE

MONTAGUES HARRIER hunting the oyster farm at Reculver
 
 
 

It came frustratingly within range a couple of times,but not close enough.

Monday 20 May 2013

GERMANY CALLING

Peter Wells and myself set out last monday on our latest adventure, Germany,inspired by the talk at the Obs by Roger White. We flew from Manston to Berlin via Amsterdam and armed with his guide book and a map we set off into the German countryside.
By chance we came across a group of birders by the roadside,and among them was Birgit Klock a leading member of the Great Bustard breeding programme,she invited us to the visitors centre the next day.
Leaving this group we went to the Bustard fields where a couple of tower hides provide excellent views across the fields and were so fortunate to see 9 birds straight away strutting about in front of us not very close but good views,we then moved to the second hide where we were greeted by a very confiding yellow wagtail and from the tower saw 5 bustards fly in and do a display for us.As I said earlier we were lucky because we went back here everyday but never saw them close again.
THE FIRST BUSTARDS
YELLOW WAGTAIL
YELLOW WAGTAIL flava -central europe.
Tower hides were full of breeding swallows that took no notice of us at all.
FLYING BUSTARDS
GREAT BUSTARD
GREAT BUSTARD- Male displaying
The last time the bustards were seen at anything but long range.

ICTERINE WARBLER- also seen from the tower hide.
After checking in at the hotel we explored the local lake where great reed warblers were making a healthy racket,not many birds on the water ,just half a dozen great crested grebes and single pochard and goldeneye,lots of nightingales singing with blackcap,garden and willow warbler and cuckoo making up the choir.
GREAT REED WARBLER.
Next morning a serin was singing outside my room
SERIN
En route to the next venue we stopped off to walk an avenue of mixed wood along a cycle track where we added nuthatch,tree creeper great spotted woodpecker and eventually found the promised ORTOLAN BUNTING,a pair high up in the canopy.A pair of ravens were also in the area making lots of noise I suspect the young were just fledging.
Next venue gave us views of red necked grebes and a little further on probably the best hide of all,gave a vista of large water meadows and reed beds where there were lots of cranes,shelduck,garganey,black terns more red necked grebes and a white tailed eagle that caused panic amongst the other birds whenever it took to the air.
RED NECKED GREBE


RED BACKEDSHRIKEs were fairly common in all areas.

Next morning started with a woodland walk which was not bearing much fruit until in one small area we saw hawfinch and tree pipit,it was warming up now and a few butterflies were seen including this MAP BUTTERFLY
After looking in on the bustards we went to GULPER SEE  a large lake where great egrets were found and a juvenile W.T.EAGLE did a fly past.


JUVENILE WHITE TAILED EAGLE.
A couple of richly coloured swallowtail butterflies also flew past but were in no mood for stopping.
VIOLET COPPER was a small compensation .
In this area we heard golden oriole and wood lark which pete eventually saw,then it was back to the marsh hide again.
THE DARK TOWER .
Whilst on this boardwalk.........
ADULT WHITE TAILED EAGLE.
When we got to the hide two black storks were poking around just nearby ,instead of getting a couple of shots off straight away tried to get a better vantage point up top but they saw us and all we got was the tailend going away.lesson learned?
We settled down to watch what was going on and picked up a distant osprey fishing over the river,eventually patience paid off and two ospreys came past the hide.

OSPREYS
It wasn`t all work we ate well and had a few beers every evening and the breakfasts were superb .
Next morning on the way back to Berlin we stopped off at the bustards just 3 distant birds,but garden and marsh warblers were singing outside the hide.
GARDEN WARBLER
Another marshy area produced booming bittern, singing savis and a pair of hobby which were on the hunt for........
 
BRILLIANT EMERALD DRAGONFLY.
 
WHITE STORK
 
RED BACKED SHRIKE female
RAPE FIELD
 
 
ONE LAST BEER AT TEGEL AIRPORT.