A walk around the patch

A walk around the local area came across some more Bee Orchids some not looking their best probably the heavy rains taking there toll ,but there where one or two just coming through , plenty of damsels again and a couple of Meadow Browns soon they will be everywhere or will they this year .

 Bee Orchid just coming through

 I have enlarged this one ,I crept up on this Common Blue Damselfly till I realised  it was captured by a Spider  which you can just see it's legs

 Another Yellow ladybird

 Common Spotted Orchid

Meadow Brown will they be common this year ?

White Faced Darter & other Dragonflies

The end of  July visit to look for White Faced Darter in the good company of   blogger John from "Sedgedunum Warbler "  . The walk to the site was warm and I was full of expectation a pair of Guinea Fowl  on the track was an odd sight. A Hawker patrolled a sunny area but would not settle , Black Darters  sitting on Heather gave the first photographs , and it took only minutes to find the first W-F -D, not in the best position for photos but I took a few just in case , better opportunities came later , actually I took so many I could not download the card  till  I made room on the hard-drive . The sun went behind the clouds at times and most species went with it ,but as soon as the sun returned so did the Dragonflies ,  great day out  with a new species of Dragonfly to add to my photos. We  where both exhausted  on arrival back at the car the good weather had been kind to us but also took its toll !!!

Here are a few images from the day more to follow after processing .

 Numerous webs of these Spiders dotted through the Heather

 Black darter female

 No Idea what this is just caught my eye on the Moss

 Black Darter female

 Black Darter male

 Good numbers of Emerald Damselfly around ,they are so thin and wispy its hard to get a focus on them.

 Common Blue Damselfly using a feather to rest on (anyone tell what its from )

 White -Faced Darter

 Black darters coupled with the female ovipositing  along the pool edges

 A few Four Spot Chaser which actually chased off the Common Hawkers

 White -Faced Darter on cotton grass coming to the end of their flight period this one showing some wing damage

 Common Hawker constantly on the wing but came so close at times  as it searched for females. The Yellow Costa can be seen on the above .

Dragonflies 10-6-11

!0-6-11 I went off looking for Dragonflies around some of the local ponds they seem common just south over the water but I have yet to see any in Northumberland ,damselflies are out  but as yet none of the larger Dragonlies ,plenty of Butterflies today the Common Blue out in good numbers, also  day flying moths including the emergence of thousands of Five Spot Burnet's a very attractive Moth but as they are so common they hardly get a glance, came across some Bee Orchids a group of about 20 these are fantastic flowers , designed to attract a certain species of Bee ,if memory serves me right  does exist in Britain , so the pollen carriers just wither and the plant ends up fertilizing itself . Also lots of the commoner Orchids around , with some Betony just coming into Flower and one or two plants unknown to me ,but the problem is I forget the names of as many as I learn the names of  and constantly say to myself what's that  !!!

Anyway the day got colder and colder and I still have not seen a Dragonfly , so I headed off for Fish Quay to have a look for the Iceland Gull reported as having been there for a few days , listed as a third Summer it sounded interesting , arrived at the Quay and found the bird immediately but sitting up on the shed roof  , so I hung around and eventually it flew past several times  overhead at the time I thought  it looked OK for Iceland , it had darker outer Primary edges which would dispel Iceland but  I thought perhaps "Kumliens " , again I got it on the roof just above me took some head shots , looking at them it was more Herring Gull  but so what to me it was still interesting eventually just before I was going to leave it was down on the ground in the sheds ,sorted Leucistic Herring Gull , interesting bird to end the day, sometimes they are just not what you want them to be.

 These would be great to get some close up macro shots of but they are very hard to get near

 Common Blue damselfy

 Five Spot Burnet the top one is just emerging , I kept going back to get another shot but in the end I think it's dead

 A very Attractive Moth and very common ,I presume the colouration warns they are not edible , I have never seen a bird take them ?

 Bee Orchids are fantastic these probably introduced in with Wildflower seed mix although they are always in a loose group so perhaps not , could be the conditions are just right .

Leucistic Herring Gull North Shields Fish Quay 

More Spoonbills 2-6-11

Hound's -tongue

Started Off at East Chevington or actually the back of Druridge Bay Country park  , great views of Male Marsh Harrier, Lesser Butterfly Orchids out as where lots of Damselflies but no Dragonflies, Butterflies : Common Blue,Small Skipper, Small copper, Small Heath. Got to Druridge just going into the Budge and where told nothing around  but we had a look any way no sooner had we got there when Four Spoonbills drifted over and dropped in , as they flew in the first thing I looked for was colour rings but could not see any, but oddly as they started to feed one was indeed wearing colour rings different  combination to the previous birds ,this group was clearly connected in some way , I made a right mess of the digiscoping somehow as they are all out of focus they always look OK on the monitor, eventually they headed North but circled back and landed  near the small hide. So I think these are Four new birds

Cresswell 4 Avocets and 6 little Gulls was a good end to the day.....Thanks to Pat for the lift down good to meet you !!!

look  So intent on looking for rings as they flew in I neglected to check for any black in the wing tips, but I think these are perhaps 3 full adults and one 2nd year bird , this bird clearly shows an ochre patch which in the illustration of Collins is non breeding but in the text  its Adult breeding

 Rings reflecting in the water so that is not the colour combination

 Colour ringed bird with a different combination than the one I saw on Sunday

Dragonflies 11-6-10

Dragonflies or the lack of ,should really be the title, Friday had some long sunny spells so i went in the search of Dragonflies.One pond had a large amount of Azures/Common Blue in the process of oviposition, flying in tandem so that the male can guard the female from other males, this was in a sheltered part of the pool, a few Large Red Damsels and a few Blue-Tailed , I gave it about an hour just to make sure I had not missed anything. The next pond had more Large Reds, but nothing was very active the pool being exposed to the cool wind again gave it an hour but no sign of any Dragonflies .Two Damselfly Exuvia, (Exuviae plural) left behind after they have emerged .
Large red damselfly
Azure Damsels ovipositing into Lily Pads
Large Reds in tandem
Azures in tandem and some actual Sunshine !!!!!!!!!!!!