Summer Lull in Excitement

 The long dry and warm spell continues and I have to say I'm enjoying it. It's good to go out each morning  without a coat, although I always wear a hat to protect my head from the sun.

Unfortunately I've seen nothing that you wouldn't expect to see at this time of year, so I have no great news to report. Our local wildlife is always worth watching though as you never know what may occur or pop up.

Magpies appear to be increasing in number around the Mere but are very wary of being approached so I haven't taken many pics of them. This morning I got one in a tree with a Yellowhammer for company.

Magpie and Yellowhammer

Gatekeeper butterflies have been a feature of the last week or so, with good numbers seen most days.

Gatekeeper on ragwort

The white butterflies are also being seen regularly, but in nowhere near the numbers of previous years - no doubt gardeners are pleased as their produce won't be under attack from the "cabbage whites". Ringlets and Meadow Browns keep the interest going as I walk through the fields, as there always the hope that something different will appear.

A pair of Meadow Browns

As I check the grass and flowers for butterflies I also see more and more bees now. One afternoon I managed to see six different species of bee which is encouraging. We would of course be better off with more habitat for our insects and also a reduced amount of pesticide being used, but hey ho - I'll just get on with life rather than moaning all the time.

Damselflies. I've only managed two species this year to date so I need to get a wiggle on and get out more.

Two for the price of one - Common Blue Damselflies

Five for the price of one - more Common Blue Damselflies

Not much to excite me along the sea front these mornings, although 26+ Sandwich Terns one morning was good to see, with several juvenile birds in and amongst.

Sandwich Terns on one of the sea front groynes.

Sandwich Tern calling

Adult and juvenile Sandwich Terns

Juvenile Sarnie

A successful dive into the sea

I'm always on the look out for a decent viewpoint from which to get a tern diving. I followed a young bird with my camera as it dived, but it was a bit distant so the images aren't very good.

Sandwich Tern diving

Entering the water

Unsuccessful this time

The only other bird of note within camera range other than the usual gulls was a Lesser Black-backed Gull that flew along the shore.

Lesser Black-backed Gull

The Lapwings have now finished breeding but are still mooching about. One was circling me as I walked along and it showed signs of post-breeding moult with missing primary feathers on both wings.

Moulting Lapwing

Catch Up Time

 This is my first post for a while. I've been distracted by getting on with lots of jobs in the new house, so other things like enjoying myself have taken a back seat 😂

Nothing particularly new or exciting to report, but the sun has been seen locally apparently. No photographic evidence has been produced though so it's hard to verify.

Butterflies! I've seen 5 (five) species of butterfly today. 

Ringlet

Gatekeeper female and male

The female Gatekeeper is larger than the male so in the above photo the male is on the right facing right.

Small White

The missing photos are of a Speckled Wood, seen but not 'togged I'm afraid, and Meadow Brown which I didn't bother with.

Along the path to the hide a young Roe Deer wandered up to see if I was worth bothering with. Obviously not as it ran off back to its mum.

 

During my wander through Goxhill this morning I watched a Barn Owl hunting over the fields. It landed for a while on a dead tree.

 

Barn Owl

Among the numerous young birds now flying around I came across a small family of Pheasants. I saw the female first, keeping still in the long grass.

female Pheasant

 Then the whole family exploded into life and I didn't know where to point the camera 😀

female and young Pheasant

young Pheasant

On the water at the Mere there are lots and lots of Black-headed Gulls and quite a few juveniles mixed in with them. I watched (and heard!) one calling for food from the top of a buoy and a parent bird came along and satisfied its hunger.

juv Black-headed Gull

juv with adult

feeding time

LBJ's (Little Brown Jobs)

 Birders have a generic term for small brown birds - little brown jobs or LBJ's for short.

These include all manner of species and today I got reasonable photos of two such examples.

Firstly a Treecreeper. Brown and white admittedly but usually you only see the brown back as it climbs up a tree.

Treecreeper in usual pose

This morning I watched a Treecreeper climbing a tree from the bottom and then it found a perfect place to stop for a while and preen. A perfect opportunity to get closer and get some photos.

Treecreeper preening in the sun

Then this afternoon from my study window I saw a juvenile Dunnock catching insects in a cotoneaster that I've given a really hard cut back. I'm tempted to remove it all together as it is too close to the house, but now I've seen what treasures it holds I may rethink.

juvenile Dunnock

They may well be LBJ's but I think they are something special when you see them up close.

Hey, You, Get Off My Perch

 A saunter along the sea front on a grey-ish morning was needing a bit of something to wake me up. A small encounter twixt a Black-headed Gull and a Sandwich Tern did the trick. Just a few minutes in duration but good to see something along there on a very quiet morning.

Sandwich Tern and Black-headed Gull

A sunnier morning followed the greyness and a few insects came out of their torpor long enough to bask in the sun. My first Common Darter of the year too 😀

Common Darter female

Red Admiral

 You can't beat a long straight walk every now and then and the Trans Pennine Trail provides that locally. Walk as far as you want but don't forget to allow time and energy for the return walk!

Rosebay Willow Herb along the TPT

Tree Sparrow along the TPT - locally scarce now

I don't come across as many Mistle Thrushes as I used to. Along with many other species unfortunately. All our wildlife is suffering while we continue as if everything is OK - and I include myself in that as I haven't got rid of my car, nor have I stopped using plastic in its many forms, and lots of other things that I should do I aren't. However, I do small things to help but without the farmers and economists and land owners getting their acts together, individually our actions are a drop in the ocean.

Distant Mistle Thrush

Great White Egret passing through over the Mere

Common Buzzard and Marsh Harrier

Common Buzzard and two Marsh Harriers

Close Encounters of the Raptor Kind

Common Buzzard and Marsh Harrier

Things were a bit distant but it looked like the male Marsh Harrier was seeing off the buzzard while a juvenile Marsh Harrier watched the action. Could be one of this year's young ones.