The Bird and Bees (and Moths)

Bird News: Ibsley Water - ruff 1 juvenile, dunlin 2, ringed plover 2 juveniles, yellow wagtail 1 or more calling near the Tern hide, wheatear 2 (1 an adult male)

Ivy Lake - green sandpiper 2, Cetti's warbler 1 singing.

The moth trap had rather few moths this morning, but then it was the first really autumnal morning, dawning misty after a calm and very cool night. The few moths that there were included several very fresh and fine specimens including a sallow.

There were several frosted orange, all very fresh.

Other moths included a single migrant rusty-dotted pearl, large and lesser yellow underwing, flounced rustic, square-spot rustic and 2 brindled green, my first of the year.

It was volunteer Thursday and we were cutting willows again on the shore of Ivy Lake, as we will be again tomorrow. Later in the day I was on the south shore of the lake and took a look at the vegetated rafts we set afloat in the spring, some of the me have done pretty well.

I had lunch in the Tern hide where I eventually saw the waders listed above. I also heard a yellow wagtail, the first of the autumn, but typically I could not see it. A very noticeable thing today was the almost complete absence of martins, perhaps fifty each and a few swallows, a big change from the thousands of recent days.

At the end of the day I had a car left in the car park as I locked up, I waited around and was just about to lock up when the owner returned. I did take a look at the sandy bank on the lichen heath as I waited and found loads of small bees going in and out of holes and mating in the evening sun. I think they are Colletes succinctus.

I'm not sure this one is accepting visitors.

Island Life

More cutting along the shores of Ibsley Water today, making things better for grazing wildfowl and breeding waders. As well as cutting the shore two of the volunteer team went out to the island to give it a trim. This island is sometimes used by the big flock of black-tailed godwit that use the Avon Valley in the winter. Sometimes this flock can be as large as 3500 birds, a sizable part of the Icelandic population. The pictures show the island just after work started.
and what it looked like by the end of the morning.

Since I spent much of the morning using a strimmer and the afternoon various other machinery, bird sightings were few. The ruff was still on the islands in Ibsley Water first thing in the morning and I flushed a green sandpiper as I was transporting equipment up the shore of the lake later. I could see no sign of the scaup today, but it could still be around as I did not have a very good look. At the end of the day 2 wheatear were of note, both on the long shingle spit to the east of the Tern hide.